Covered Sugar Bowl 1876

This covered sugar bowl was made by the Worcester Royal Porcelain Company from, well, porcelain. What is porcelain? It is a high-fired ceramic material that, when thin, can appear almost translucent. It's a mixture of kaolin, a pure white clay, silica, and feldspar. Porcelain is extremely hard-wearing, which made it ideal for tableware, but it is also very difficult to work, and thus was considered precious. The surface of this bowl is decorated with abstract geometric designs in gold, green, pink and black. The Worcester Royal Porcelain Company was known for the high quality of its wares, and its pieces were popular among the British upper classes. Sugar bowls like this one would have been used as part of a tea service, and would have been a status symbol, signaling the owner’s wealth and taste. The bowl’s design is a reflection of the aesthetics of the period and of the demand for luxury goods. This bowl offers insight into the social context of its time, and challenges our traditional notions of fine art and craft.