This is a rare and beautiful true trio made by H&R Daniel in about 1825. The set is potted in the "second gadroon" shape and bears the popular pattern 4168, which was done by several factories at the time.
In the 18th and early 19th Centuries, cups and saucers were sold as "true trios" consisting of a teacup, a coffee cup and a saucer; as you would never drink tea and coffee at the same time, why invest in an extra saucer?
The H & R Daniel porcelain factory was founded by Henry Daniel, son of a family of master colour makers. He headed up the decoration department in the famous Spode factory where he oversaw all the beautiful early Spode decorations. In 1822 he opened his own factory with his son Richard, creating a truly iconic body of work with the most subtle colours and beautifully painted flowers and landscapes.
The Daniel factory was the last true cottage industry among the English porcelain factories, resisting the increase of industrialisation and mass production. This resulted in extraordinary and unrivalled quality, but it probably also led to the factory having to close its doors in 1846 because it could no longer compete with others who did modernise. Daniel porcelain can be hard to identify as the factory was only around for about two decades, but this short duration and the low output also means that Daniel items have become true collectors' items.
This set is potted in the "second gadroon" shape, which was used between 1824 and 1836. Gadrooned rims became very fashionable in the late 1820s and 1830s and Daniel created several shapes with these rims. The handle is a beautiful Rococo Revival-inspired "rustic bean" shape. The set is decorated with a pattern that was done by several factories, among which Coalport, Yates and several lesser-known factories. Daniel's pattern number was 4168 and it consists of a white ground with intricate gilt patterns, and beautiful hand painted flower sprays.
The set is unmarked except the pattern number 4168, which points to a date of about 1825.
CONDITION REPORT The set is in good antique condition without crazing or repairs and virtually no wear. The teacup has a faint hairline down the wall. There is some light wear and there are some tiny glaze imperfections near the inner rim of the saucer. All this is visible in the pictures.
Antique British porcelain is never perfect. Kilns were fired on coal in the 1800s, and this meant that china from that period can have some firing specks from flying particles. British makers were also known for their experimentation, and sometimes this resulted in technically imperfect results. Due to the shrinkage in the kiln, items can have small firing lines or develop crazing over time, which should not be seen as damage but as an imperfection of the maker's recipes, probably unknown at the time of making. Items have often been used for many years and can have normal signs of wear, and gilt can have signs of slight disintegration even if never handled. I will reflect any damage, repairs, obvious stress marks, crazing or heavy wear in the item description but some minor scratches, nicks, stains and gilt disintegration can be normal for vintage items and need to be taken into account.
There is widespread confusion on the internet about the difference between chips and nicks, or hairlines and cracks. I will reflect any damage as truthfully as I can, i.e. a nick is a tiny bit of damage smaller than 1mm and a chip is something you can easily see with the eye; a glazing line is a break in the glazing only; hairline is extremely tight and/or superficial and not picked up by the finger; and a crack is obvious both to the eye and the finger. Etcetera - I try to be as accurate as I can and please feel free to ask questions or request more detailed pictures!
DIMENSIONS (diameters) teacup 10.2cm (4"), coffee cup 9cm (3.5"), saucer 14.2cm (5.6").
