Wileman & Company was formed in 1872, using the name The Foley China.
In 1910, all Wileman china became marked as Shelley
The Foley China
Late 1800's ~ early 1900's
England
Personal cake plate ONLY
Fine bone china (porcelain) that has translucent properties (hold it to the light and you can see through it)
Quality hand decorated
Light, delicate mauve leaf design around the outer edge, changing to a light golden brown leaf. Central area of delicate light mauve foliage
Scalloped sides
Gold gilding around the outer edges of the petal shaped plate
Dimensions: 7.25" diameter (184mm)
Clean
NO cracks
NO discolouration
NO fleabites
NO crazing
Gilding is in very good condition.
Backstamp clearly identifies this personal cake plate as being made during the period 1894 ~ 1910 (See the photograph)
The bottom line of the backstamp has
RS 175656
I cannot type the 1st two characters (RS) correctly, that is a capital R and S but the S is far smaller and right up near the top of the R
But there is also another number, this seems to be the Registration - this code is stamped INTO the porcelain (not printed) and is quite difficult to read (faint)
Artists marks ("5044" gold paint) are clearly visible - each item painted by the artist had their unique mark placed underneath as they were paid "by the piece"
For those who collect this fine china based on the artist, both this cake plate and the tea saucer advertised separately are decorated by the same artist, amazing (just think of it) that someone sat down and hand painted this item around 120 years ago!
