In the Nineteenth Century, J. and G. Meakin of England produced ironstone plates with “tourist” scenes of English landmarks for export to Australia, Canada and the United States. In 1970, Wedgwood took over the Meakin name, stopping production in 2000.
This plate by Meakin dates to the late Nineteenth Century. The green transfer-ware scene depicts one of the “stately homes of England”—just the sort of thing that a “foreign” market would want to collect as an example of the collective imagery of Britain.
The reverse of the plate says, “Romantic England. Penshurst Place. Kent, c. 1341. Historic ancestral home of the Sidneys. Sir Philip Sydney, poet and soldier, was born here. J & G Meakin, England. Permanent Decoration, A Genuine Hand Engraving by Frank Trigger.”
Sturdy and attractive, these plates found their way into many a home and were more often than not displayed as opposed to used in daily life. Such interesting “souvenirs” can often be found in antique shops today.
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