Royal Crown Derby (England) paperweight

Royal Crown Derby is a British porcelain manufacturer that was founded in 1750 in Derby, England. The company was originally known as "Derby Porcelain," and it produced a wide range of ceramic items, including tableware, vases, and figurines. In 1775, the company was granted a royal warrant by King George III, which allowed it to use the title "Royal Crown Derby."

Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, Royal Crown Derby established a reputation for producing high-quality, hand-painted porcelain with intricate designs. The company's porcelain was known for its delicate and detailed patterns, as well as its bright more... and vibrant colors. It also produced a wide variety of items, including plates, cups, saucers, figurines, and vases. Many of these pieces were decorated with gold and other precious metals, which added to their luxury and elegance.

In the 19th century, Royal Crown Derby became known for its Imari-style porcelain. Imari is a type of Japanese porcelain that is characterized by its bold, colorful designs, and Royal Crown Derby's Imari-style porcelain featured similar patterns and colors.

In the 20th century, the company continued to produce high-quality porcelain, and it began to focus more on the production of luxury items, such as figurines and vases. Today, Royal Crown Derby is still in operation, and it continues to produce a wide range of porcelain items, including tableware, figurines, and vases. less...

Paperweights, used to hold down papers, and most commonly made in glass, evolved in Venice in the early nineteenth century, and spread to France via Bohemia about 1845, where the finest examples were produced by three factories: Baccarat, Clichy and St Louis. Examples from these manufacturers are mostly unmarked and widely faked and imitated and thus a minefield for the uninitiated. The most popular motif is millefiori ('thousand flowers'), though fruit, single flowers, insects, and other small objects are often used as well as portraits and view. The cheaper paperweights use air bubbles as decoration. The classic paperweights are round more... and domed, but lesser weights were also made in the form of pyramids and rectangles. The early period of paperweights is reckoned to have ended in 1870 but some 20th century manufacturers such as Lalique, Kosta Boda, Whitefriars and Caithness Glass have produced some fine examples. The great majority of paper weights are unmarked, and glass rarely shows its age.

Paperweights are also made in gold, silver, silver plate, hardstone, amber, ceramic, ivory, timber and other materials. less...