Antique F & Sons Burslem Bute Platter Dish c1893

A Victorian Table Centrepiece from the Heart of Staffordshire

In the golden age of British tableware, the potteries of Burslem, Staffordshire produced pieces that graced the tables of households across the Empire. This oval serving platter — a Bute pattern meat dish by Ford & Sons, dated to circa 1893 — is a fine survivor of that tradition: a piece that speaks of Sunday roasts, formal dinners, and the quiet rituals of late Victorian domestic life.

The platter is rendered in crisp white porcelain, its surface decorated with the Bute pattern in a rich teal and green transferware design that exemplifies the Aesthetic Movement sensibility of the period. Scalloped edges and canted corners lend the form an elegant refinement, while the generous oval shape — measuring 30.5cm in length — made it equally suited to the grandest joint or the most carefully arranged cold cuts. A painted backstamp to the reverse confirms its provenance as an original Ford & Sons production piece.

Over 130 years old and still in very good condition, this platter is as much a collector's artefact as it is a functional object — a tangible connection to the craft and commerce of Victorian England.