Soup Plate
Dateca. 1820
OriginEngland, Staffordshire
MediumLead-glazed earthenware (china glaze / pearlware)
DimensionsOverall: 1 3/4 × 10 3/16in. (4.4 × 25.9cm)
Credit LineMuseum Purchase, The Friends of Colonial Williamsburg Collections Fund
Object number2025-31
DescriptionCircular dish with broad rim and deep bowl; transfer printed in underglaze blue on the rim with a chinoiserie border and in the center of the well with the Herbrew word for "meat". Evidence on the underside of the rim of three sets of evenly spaced triangular trivet marks and on the top of the rim singular trivet mark touch points.Label TextOrthodox Jewish dietary laws called for separate sets of dishes for meat and dairy foods. A British delft dish bearing the Hebrew word for “dairy” has been recovered archaeologically in an 18th century London context and similarly decorated intact tin-glazed earthenware dishes made in England, the Netherlands, and France are also known. This pearlware plate is a continuation of that earlier tradition of specially made ceramic dishes inscribed with the Hebrew words for “meat,” “dairy,” and “kosher.” It is transfer printed with the Hebrew word “basar,” meaning “meat.”Inscription(s)Transfer printed in underglaze blue in the center of the well with the Herbrew word “basar,” meaning “meat.”
