High Life. Serving in style

 They say luxury is in little things, like the icing on a cake. But a real connoisseur will probably take note of just what you’re serving this slice of cake on — welcome to the lesser known, yet expansive, world of luxury tableware.

 The reason why the term ‘silver spoon’ has become synonymous with wealth is because, before the 1700s, people brought their own spoons to dinner, and a silver one obviously indicated wealth and prosperity.

Today, we may have other less obvious symbols of wealth, but the table setting is still a subtle expression of luxury. Traditionally considered a mandatory gift at nuptials to help them set up home, in certain cultures, ‘wedding china’ refers to the dinnerware received at the wedding, and is reserved for special occasions.

What’s in a name Today, tableware has become mostly functional. But for those who appreciate a finely laid out table, place settings or table settings need to be elaborately set up with numerous items, a few of them being mostly decorative.

 What makes fancy dinnerware stand apart from the usual crockery used in daily life is the material used. Terms like china, porcelain and bone china are used interchangeably, and often wrongly, when there are definite distinctions between the different kinds of tableware used today.

 The term ‘china’ came to be associated with porcelain, when actually both terms refer to the finely crafted smooth white ceramic product created by mixing mainly clay, kaolin and small quantities of other materials.

Porcelain came to be referred to as ‘China’ after the country where the art of creating these delicate products originated. The name could have stuck on also because kaolin, a main ingredient for porcelain, was often called “china clay”. ‘Bone china’ refers to porcelain, where bone ash is used as an ingredient to give it that milky white, translucent appearance. Bone china tends to be softer than regular china, which makes it less brittle and hence, more resistant to chipping.

Brands across the world While porcelain originated in China, the glossy ware soon spread to Europe, where many started their own production. Some names have become the gold standard, and some have attained collectible status. So, there are a number of heritage brands making fine tableware that have slowly expanded into objet de art and more, but without losing their original speciality. Britain took to fine china quite to heart especially after it was patronised by European royalty. Brands like Wedgewood, Villeroy and Boch, Royal Doulton and many more have taken on the onus of creating fine porcelain dinnerware.

 Meissen, the 300-year-old porcelain manufacturer from Saxony in Germany, has handcrafted a name for itself. The first European brand to manufacture hard paste porcelain, the brand’s logo of two swords crossed, is one of the oldest trademarks.

Despite carefully guarding its secret to the recipe for its porcelain, manufacturers soon sprung up all over Germany. Today a number of brands from this region have upped the ante, with brands like Rosenthal.

 Russian brand Faberge is renowned the world over for its bejewelled “imperial easter eggs”, of which some are made from porcelain before being covered in jewels, enamel and gold.

Japanese brand Noritake has created its own aesthetic of clean lines and iridescent glaze that has grown its own fan following.

Royal Copenhagen has been making fine porcelain at the behest of the queen of Denmark since 1775. Its famed ‘Flora Danica’ patterned dinner service is known for its gilded edges and floral motifs that were trademark Danish in style.

As an art form The brand is also known for its limited edition Christmas Plates, whose moulds are broken after each year’s celebrations so that the pattern is never repeated.

Art as an investment option was always considered solid, as well as a more enjoyable way of enjoying money as people become more open-minded. This extends to antique porcelain as well, as its value appreciates over time, and the size makes upkeep and maintenance much easier.

A rare Chinese bowl from the Song dynasty was sold for $26.7 million at an auction in Honk Kong. It was one of the 79 complete pieces left in the world.

In 2014, a Ming dynasty-era bowl with chickens painted on the sides sold for $36.3 million, a record for the highest price paid for Chinese porcelain at an auction. Chinese porcelain, as an art form, has been collected across the world, and the demand for original antique pieces can only go up, as they get rarer.

One look at the auction prices today is enough to see why porcelain was, at one time, referred to as ‘white gold’.

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