© Michael Perry 2011. Contact
Image courtesy of Lema Publishing Ltd, publishers of ‘Tableware International’ www.tablewareinternational.com
Last updated: 1st August 2011
From 1902 to 1925 the lower-case letters ‘c’ to ‘z’ were added below the mark. The letter may be inside a shield, or between hyphens. The key to the dates is given in the table.
ow.
From 1928, the lower-case date cyphers were replaced by prominent printed numbers usually positioned to the right of the mark. This system of dating was introduced in 1928 (with the number 1) and ended in 1957 (with the number 30). If this numeral is present, the date of production can be ascertained by adding 1927 to the number. For example if the numeral is ‘7’, the date of production is 1927 + 7 = 1934. An abbreviated key is given below.
Importantly, evidence suggests that the Doulton mark and the date number were added separately. In the image, the impressed date of ‘10 32’ is the date of manufacture of the body. The Registered Design No. (764873) was registered in mid-1931 and may apply to the shape of the ware. The pattern number D5202 , ‘Maybells’, was added to the pattern book in 1932, and the Doulton mark (lacking the words ‘Made in England’) is also consistent with a production date of 1932.
The date numeral ‘13’, however, is for the year 1940!
Close examination reveals that the date number (the ‘13’) is on top of the glaze, as is the pattern number, whilst the makers mark and the Registered Design No. are underneath the glaze. Hypothetically, the impressed date and Registered Design No. apply to the the body -the shape - and could be applied at an early stage. Each shape would have many possible patterns and so the pattern number (and if a named pattern, the name) could only be applied later, perhaps much later in response to an order or anticipated demand.
The role of the date number, however, is unclear. Perhaps the date numerals were used by Doulton for some other purpose, such as the year of decoration - and thus the year the manufacturing process was completed?
Number |
Year |
Number |
Year |
Number |
Year |
Number |
Year |
1 |
1928 |
9 |
1936 |
16 |
1943 |
24 |
1951 |
2 |
1929 |
10 |
1937 |
17 |
1944 |
25 |
1952 |
3 |
1930 |
11 |
1938 |
18 |
1945 |
26 |
1953 |
4 |
1931 |
12 |
1939 |
19 |
1946 |
27 |
1954 |
5 |
1932 |
13 |
1940 |
20 |
1947 |
28 |
1955 |
6 |
1933 |
14 |
1941 |
21 |
1948 |
29 |
1956 |
7 |
1934 |
15 |
1942 |
22 |
1949 |
30 |
1957 |
8 |
1935 |
|
|
23 |
1950 |
|
|
Letter |
Year |
Letter |
Year |
Letter |
Year |
Letter |
Year |
c |
1902 |
i |
1908 |
o |
1914 |
u |
1920 |
d |
1903 |
j |
1909 |
p |
1915 |
v |
1921 |
e |
1904 |
k |
1910 |
q |
1916 |
w |
1922 |
f |
1905 |
l |
1911 |
r |
1917 |
x |
1923 |
g |
1906 |
m |
1912 |
s |
1918 |
y |
1924 |
h |
1907 |
n |
1913 |
t |
1919 |
z |
1925 |
©Michael Perry 2011
There are FIVE different sources of date information on the base of this plate suggesting dates from mid-1931 to 1940.
Image ©Michael Perry 2010