Covered Vegetable Dish 1885

This covered vegetable dish was made by the Union Porcelain Works in Brooklyn, New York, sometime between 1863 and 1922. The whiteness of the porcelain, together with the gilded lattice-work and classically inspired motifs in green and gold, evoke the refined tastes of elite society at the turn of the century. The Union Porcelain Works was one of several American companies that attempted to compete with European manufacturers by producing high-quality, artistic porcelain. It was a time when the decorative arts were increasingly seen as a signifier of social status and cultural refinement. Museums and world's fairs encouraged an appreciation for the aesthetic qualities of manufactured objects, and thus fueled an appetite for elaborate ceramics and other luxury goods. To truly understand this object, we might look at the company’s records, as well as the exhibition catalogues and social commentaries that reveal how porcelain tableware operated in the cultural life of the period.