Item LL 72398.1 Dinner Plate - Whiteware, Blue, Orange and Gold, Flow transfer, Gilt and Hand-painted, Oriental Pattern, England, after 1835 (Fragment)

Summary

This plate was reconstructed from a group of similar fragments found in the same context. They were excavated at one of the digs on the Commonwealth Block between 1988 and 2003.

Uncovering past food practices.
Of all the archaeological material uncovered in the Little Lon excavations, the remnants of eating and drinking are the most numerous. Broken plates, bowls, cups and cutlery were thrown into rubbish piles with smashed jars that once held jam and pickles, and jugs that held water or cordial. Shells from oysters, abalone and coconuts were tossed in with bones from mutton, beef, rabbit and pork. Pips and seeds from fruit and vegetables were also added to the piles. These objects offer clues to the food consumed by residents of Little Lon, and are important in the rediscovery of a people, place and time long vanished.

Physical Description

This is a flow blue plate with a feathered edge. It has a neutral glaze and a blue underglaze transfer print and an overglaze in red and gold. The face and and trim design is floral and the design on the shoulder is geometric.