Spode Fine Bone China

Fine Bone China

Josiah Spode I (1733-1797) founded the Stoke-on-Trent U.K. based pottery company, Spode, in 1770. Born on 23rd March 1733, Josiah I began a career in the pottery industry at the age of 16. His inherent skills and sheer dedication to his business lead to two major achievements that would redefine the pottery industry:

• The development of a winning formula for fine bone china.
• The perfection of blue under-glaze printing

This fine bone china was brilliant white and translucent. It inspired new designs and finishes and required new skills. It was of superior quality and strong whilst also having the look of being delicate. It was this formula that made the Spode name famous across the globe.

The Portmeirion Group acquired Spode in 2009. With an outstanding product range and rich history that complemented Portmeirion's existing brands, Portmeirion felt it very important to keep this great British brand alive.

Today, The Portmeirion Group is committed to the development of the Spode brand producing the high quality that is expected in collections such as “Blue Italian” , “Woodland”, “Christmas Tree”and “Baking Days”.

The manufacture of many items has been brought back to the factory in Stoke-on-Trent which has been producing high quality ware for the Portmeirion brand for 50 years. 

“Spode” Blue Italian

Launched in 1816, Blue Italian is one of the collections that secured Spode's reputation as a leader in the ceramic industry; it is now one of Spode’s most collected ranges and is still made to this very day.

The Portmeirion Group has brought a significant amount of the manufacture of this range back to England with thousands of Blue Italian pieces now being made at our factory in Stoke-on-Trent.Launched in 1816 and still manufactured today, Blue Italian is now considered a design icon. Inspired by scenes of the Italian countryside featuring remarkably detailed figures amongst Roman ruins and framed by an 18th century Imari Oriental border, the incredibly detailed design captures the essence of a sunny Italian day to great effect.

It was in 1784 that Josiah Spode I perfected the process of underglaze printing on earthenware with tissue paper transfers made from hand-engraved copper plates. Initially the designs were sympathetic reproductions of the Chinese porcelain that had been incredibly popular during the 1700s, but soon Josiah I launched original designs such as Willow (c1790), Blue Tower (1814) and Blue Italian.