Royal Derby

No....not the horse racing sort of Derby, but cups and saucers type.  One of my dearest friends just returned from a very long holiday in Great Britain, and she returned back with a beautiful little gift for me. 

She found this little treasure in one of the many antique stores located in the ancient city of York. The dealer at the shop told her that it was called "Royal Derby" china and that it was from the 1820's.  So, she and I did a bit of brief research on-line and came up with a few things. This site tells a little bit about the history of "Royal Crown Derby" Porcelain, and  Here is a page that has a nearly exact replica of the cup I now own (look down the page at figure #8).  The only difference is the shape of the handle.  Mine has a cute little upward curve at the top. 

It would seem that the exact type of Royal Crown Derby porcelain is called "Bloor" Derby, after the last name of the man that owned the porcelain factory at the time.  As for the date, 1820's might be a late estimate, as the height of this particular design was between 1810 and 1820.  Also interesting to note, this particular cup is not a tea cup, but one intended for coffee!  Isn't it adorable?! 

It has a few little chips and cracks, but I love it all the more for that because it means it's been used....by how many people, I don't know, but I would love to know their stories.  I can't believe I own a little piece of Regency History!  I just keep looking at it thinking about where it might of been, whose table it might have been at, what kind of coffee it might have held...it's such a little jewel to me. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you, my friend, for such a special gift!