Tichelaar Makkum large handpainted Delft Chinoiserie kraak style dish (tin glaze)

$125.51

Shipping to United States: $52.49

Large (35,2 cm diameter) handpainted dish / plate made by Tichelaar in Makkum, the Netherlands. The dish is decorated in classic Delft Chinoiserie (Chinese inspired) style in various shades of blue on a white tin-glaze background. The design is based on so called "Kraak ware" (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kraak_ware), Chinese export porcelain from the late Ming Dynasty (16th and 17th century) which is characterised by a large decoration in the centre of the dish, surrounded by a ring of panels on the edge.

In our plate the central image shows a fantasy garden with flowers, insects and an animal which could be either a dog or a cat. The edge is decorated with ten panels featuring leaf and flower ornaments. The dish has a raised footring with a bent copper wire (factory original) through it for hanging it on a wall.

The backside of the dish is signed with a handpainted Tichelaar Makkum mark (used between 1948 and 1979) and a model / catalogue number (444). There is also a Roman style "A" added above the mark, which could be a painter's signature (most likely then of the painter Gerrit Altena, who started his own company Altena & Krooyenga in Makkum in 1965). But it may also be a general symbol that for some reason was added by Tichelaar to the standard mark on kraak ware style items. We say this because on many kraak ware style items of Tichelaar that we have seen, there is an "A" like symbol present in some form (see also this dish: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1733688818).

The dish is handmade by Tichelaar according to century-old traditions identical to how 17th or 18th century Delftware was made. The earthenware (made from local yellow clay) is shaped by hand in a mould and after a first firing glazed with an opaque white tin-glaze. The colours are then painted on this glaze and fused with it through a second firing. This creates a product with a beautiful and unique appearance. Tichelaar is the only remaining Delftware producer in the Netherlands that still follows this procedure.

Condition: the dish is in a very good condition, without any damages, cracks, hairlines or restorations. The dish does have on the front a few small scratches in the glaze (see detail picture), which are noticeable upon close inspection. The price of the item has been adjusted for this. Aside from this, the glaze is in a very good condition, thickly applied and with very little wear, a beautiful gloss and without any crazing. The blue colours of the dish are strong and beautiful. On the backside of the dish there are three stilt marks, these are marks left by the stilts upon which the dish was resting while being fired in the oven. These marks are a characteristic of the artisanal way these dishes were made and should not be considered a defect. The stilt marks have been sanded down, which can be seen in the glaze on the backside. This is a normal practice of Tichelaar and not a defect.

A beautiful and stylish Delft Chinoiserie style plate. Great to hang on the wall or as a centre piece on a table (it would make a great fruit bowl / plate if used with care). It can also be placed on its own upright in a plate stand. The perspex plate stand featured in the pictures will be provided with the plate.

Made by: Royal Tichelaar

Place of manufacture: Makkum, the Netherlands

Year of manufacture: between 1948 and 1979, most likely during the 1960s

Model (catalog) nr.: 444

Method of decoration: handpainted (tin-glaze)

Size: diameter: 35,2 cm, depth: 4,6 cm

Weight: 1,28 kg

Additional pictures of the object can be provided if required.

Current catalogue price: not available, this exact model is not offered anymore by Tichelaar today. You can find the current price for other plates and dishes on the website of Tichelaar here: https://www.tichelaar.com/shop/fine-ceramics.

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About Tichelaar:

Royal Tichelaar is located in a small fishing village in the north of the Netherlands, Makkum. The history of the company goes way back to 1572, making it the oldest continuously operating company in the Netherlands. Tichelaar means "tile-maker", and at first the factory only produced bricks and tiles, but around 1700 production also started of tin-glazed household and ornamental dishes. After 1890 a large part of the production became oriented towards ornamental Delftware in various forms and styles. Tichelaar uses a yellow baking clay for their products, which is locally excavated. After baking it receives a white tin-glaze and is subsequently decorated. This is the way all Delftware was produced centuries ago, and Tichelaar is the only remaining factory to still do so. Other Delftware producers in the Netherlands around 1900 switched to painting directly on white baking clay without the extra layer of tin-glaze. True to the spirit of tradition, Tichelaar keeps mechanisation to a minimum and all items remain handpainted. The quality of the handpainting is very good, it has a distinctive "Frisian" character that is very recognisable.

Tichelaar today still produces some Delftware, but on a very limited scale. The traditional production process makes that the items are nowadays very costly to produce, and for many too expensive to buy. A small number of items is still produced and offered through the shop on their website. The company nowadays has its main focus on producing speciality tiles, with special glazes for architecture / building purposes. More information can be found on their website: https://www.tichelaar.com/.

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This item will be carefully packed and send by tracked and insured mail.

If you buy multiple items from our shop in one purchase, we will try to combine the items into one parcel. Any excess shipping costs will be refunded.

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, you may contact us within 14 days from the delivery date to return the item. If the item is returned in its original condition, we will issue a refund for the total purchase price of the item (return shipping costs are however not covered).

Shipping from The Netherlands

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I gladly accept returns

Just contact me within: 14 days of delivery

Ship items back to me within: 30 days of delivery

I don't accept exchanges or cancellations

But please contact me if you have any problems with your order.

Conditions of return

Buyers are responsible for return shipping costs. If the item is not returned in its original condition, the buyer is responsible for any loss in value.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are your shipping times?

We will send off your order within one or two working days. We use the standard parcel service of PostNL to ship our parcels. You can find their estimated delivery times per country here www.postnl.nl/en/customer-service/international-delivery-times-post-and-parcels/. In the fourth column you can find the delivery times of the standard service (in estimated business / working days). Please keep in mind that customs / import procedures in non-EU countries can sometimes add an extra week (or even two weeks) to the delivery times.
On request we can also ship with UPS for a faster delivery: expedited (within 10 days) or express (within a few days). There are no custom delays when shipping with UPS. Contact us before the purchase to get a quote.

How do you pack your items, will my item arrive safely?

Broken ceramics is a thing we do not like! Not only is it a waste of time and money, but it also (often) means the end for a rare and unique item, which was treasured and cared for by their previous owners. So we really want to avoid any damages during shipping!
We have lots of experience of shipping ceramics, and we have seen what works and what does not work to protect ceramics during transit. If we ship multiple items in one package, each item is carefully wrapped and kept well seperated from the other items. We use large boxes, with plenty of buffer all around the items, so the packages can withstand a lot of abuse. All our packages should be able to cope with a 1,5 m drop without the items getting damaged.

Do you take care of the environment?

Yes we do. We re-use packaging materials as much as possible, which means we rarely have to buy new materials for our packaging. Only foam peanuts are sometimes bought by us, in which case we choose starch based peanuts which are fully biodegradable, non-toxic and water-soluble.
Each year, we calculate the greenhouse gas emissions in CO2-equivalents caused by our shipping. We multiply that amount by 150% and then offset it in certified CO2 compensation projects based on tree planting / reforestation in Bolivia and Uganda. See https://treesforall.nl/en/project/ for more information on the projects.

How should I take care of my Dutch ceramics?

First of all, don't let them fall! Always handle them in a mindful way and put them in spots where they cannot be accidentally bumped over when cleaning or vacuuming. Some people put some (clean) sand in vases to make them more stable.
Second, don't clean them too often! Underglaze painted Gouda and Delftware can be perfectly cleaned with water if necessary, but often just dusting them off or polishing them up a bit with a soft dry cloth is enough. Overglaze painted items should not be cleaned too often.
The colours of ceramics do not fade in sunlight, so you can put them in bright spots where they look good. But do avoid large temperature differences, which will cause increased crazing in many Delftware and also Gouda type pieces.

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