The Royal Crown Derby paperweights normally portray a creature and are made from bone china. The Paperweights are hollow and have a gold stopper in the bottom with the Royal Crown Derby stamp on it, however some of the earlier figures just have an air hole or a ceramic stopper.
Many Royal Crown Derby Paperweights are decorated in the Imari style and have 22 carat gold gilding. Limited Editions normally have a different backstamp, which provides details on the edition. Limited Edition Paperweights usually also come with a certificate.
Royal Crown Derby History
In 1745 André Planché settled in Derby, where between 1747 and 1755 he made soft-paste porcelain vases and figurines. At the beginning of 1756 he formed a business partnership with William Duesbury (1725 — 1786), a porcelain painter formerly at Chelsea porcelain factory and Longton Hall, and the banker John Heath. This was the foundation of the Derby company.
Duesbury quickly established Derby as a leading manufacturer of dinner services and figurines by employing the best talents available for modelling and painting.
In 1773, Duesbury’s hard work was rewarded by King George III, who after visiting the Derby works granted him permission to incorporate the royal crown into the Derby backstamp, after which the company was known as Crown Derby.
In 1786, William Duesbury died, leaving the Crown Derby company to his son, William Duesbury II, also a talented director, who besides keeping the reputation of the company at its height, developed a number of new glazes and body types.
In 1815, the Crown Derby factory was leased to the firm's salesman and clerk, Robert Bloor, and the Duesburys played no further part in it. Under him the company produced works that were richly coloured and elegantly styled, including brightly coloured Japanese Imari patterns, generally featuring intricate geometric patterns layered with various floral designs. These designs proved extremely and lastingly popular, and Crown Derby continued to thrive.
In 1845, however, Bloor died, and after three years under Thomas Clarke, the Cockpit Works were sold and the Crown Derby factory closed in 1848.
A group of former employees set up a factory in King Street in Derby, and continued to use the moulds, patterns and trademarks of the former Crown Derby business, although not the name, so keeping alive the Derby traditions of fine craftsmanship. No mechanical processes were used, and no two pieces produced were exactly the same.
In 1877, an impressive new factory was built by new owners of the Crown Derby name in Osmaston Road, Derby, thus beginning the modern period of Derby porcelain. Crown Derby’s patterns became immensely popular during the late Victorian era, as their romantic and lavish designs exactly met the popular taste of the period.
In 1890, Queen Victoria appointed Crown Derby to be “Manufacturers of porcelain to Her Majesty” and by Royal Warrant granted them the title "The Royal Crown Derby Porcelain Company".
In 1935 Royal Crown Derby acquired the King Street factory, thus reuniting the two strands of the business.
In 1964, the company was acquired by S. Pearson and Son and became part of the Allied English Potteries Group, later to be joined by Royal Doulton.
In 2000, Hugh Gibson, a former director of Royal Doulton and a member of the Pearson family, led a buy-out, making Royal Crown Derby once again an independent and privately-owned concern.
2009 - With the demise of famous brands and Far East sourcing by many other companies, Royal Crown Derby remain as one of the only manufacturers of Fine Bone China products still made solely in the UK.
