Thomas Drewery & Son ‘London’ Shape Cup and Saucer Set with Chinoiserie Design c.1820-30

This is a charming example of a cup and saucer set in the ‘London’ shape and attributable to Thomas Drewery & Son of Daisy Bank, Lane End.

The cup has a slightly everted rim and an angular ogee-shaped bowl. It sits on a rounded foot. The handle is angular and plain.

The interior and exterior have a transfer-printed outline and have been hand-painted over the top. The exterior depicts a scene including a pagoda, trees, and an adult woman and a child. The same child can be seen on the interior of the base. The inside of the rim is decorated with a scrolling foliate design.

The underside of the cup is plain and unmarked. There is some roughness around the foot edge and a small chip. There is also a minor glaze crack on the underside, although this does not go through the ceramic as it is not visible on the interior.

The saucer has a deep, angular rim and is decorated with the same motif as the cup. The underside is plain, unmarked, and has a further glaze crack in the centre. Like the cup, this is not visible on the front of the saucer.

Although unmarked, this cup and saucer have been attributed to Thomas Drewery (also spelt Drewry) & Son, who were active from 1818 to 1830. An example of a ‘London’ shape teapot with the same transfer-printed design can be seen on page 415 of the ‘Staffordshire Porcelain’ book by Geoffrey Godden. 

The cup has a height (to the rim) of 6.4cm, with a diameter across the rim of about 9.5cm and across the foot of about 4.9cm. The saucer has a height of approximately 3.3cm and a diameter across the rim of about 14.0cm.

The cup has a liquid capacity (to the brim) of 225ml.

They have an unwrapped weight of 220g.

They are in good condition for their age, with (as previously mentioned) a small chip to the cup foot and a glaze crack to each base. The rim of the cup is a little rough in places where it has been finished. The transfer-printing and hand-painting are quite crude; Godden describes their output as ‘average quality’ and that they appealed to the ‘lower end of the market’.