Design for China Decoration

Anna M. de Pool's design showcases the ornamental vocabulary of late-nineteenth-century tableware. The composition presents five pieces—saucer, teacup, covered tureen, creamer, and saucer—rendered in precise line work with decorative borders of hanging foliate patterns. The restrained palette and symmetrical ornamentation reflect the influence of aesthetic movement principles on domestic ceramics. Such designs circulated among manufacturers and decorators as working drawings, establishing visual standards for coordinated tea services during an era when coordinated tableware became increasingly central to middle-class domestic display.