Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Silver, Room 65, The Whiteley Galleries

Miniature Dinner Plate

ca. 1730 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This miniature dinner plate is a toy. The term toy included any knick-knack or fashionable trinket for adults, as well as a child’s plaything. Silver toys like this one copied the exact details and proportions of normal sized pieces and came in a variety of subjects and sizes, ranging from domestic utensils to elaborate furniture.

There are several explanations for them. They might have been intended to furnish dolls’ houses. They might have been miniature trade samples. They might have been practice pieces for apprentices. They might have been fashionable novelties for adults to collect or they might simply have been playthings for rich children. In 1571, the daughter of Henry II of France ordered a set of small silver ‘pots, bowls, plates and other articles’ to give to a royal child.

The high point of production in London was the period 1700-1750. Because they were light and small, silver toys are not fully hallmarked. The form of the maker’s or retailer’s mark helps to date them.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Silver
Brief description
Silver, David Clayton, London, ca.1730
Physical description
From a set of 18, circular
Dimensions
  • Diameter: 3.3cm
Marks and inscriptions
  • Town mark: London
  • Mark of David Clayton
Gallery label
PLATE STAND AND PLATES London, around 1730 Mark of David Clayton For warming plates in front of the hearth. Mrs D.S.F. Campbell Bequest Plates M.233A-Q,-1976 Stand M.235-1976(26/11/1996)
Credit line
Bequeathed by Mrs D.S.F. Campbell
Object history
Bequest - D.S.F. Campbell. Acquisition RF: 76 / 2060
Historical context
D.S.F. Campbell Bequest
This is a collection of silver toys, mainly English dating from the 17th and 18th centuries with some Dutch pieces, said to have belonged originally to Queen Victoria. According to Mrs Campbell's papers, they were given by the Duchess of Kent to Mrs Salina Bracebridge, née Mills, in recognition of her work with Florence Nightingale in the Crimea, c.1855.
Summary
This miniature dinner plate is a toy. The term toy included any knick-knack or fashionable trinket for adults, as well as a child’s plaything. Silver toys like this one copied the exact details and proportions of normal sized pieces and came in a variety of subjects and sizes, ranging from domestic utensils to elaborate furniture.

There are several explanations for them. They might have been intended to furnish dolls’ houses. They might have been miniature trade samples. They might have been practice pieces for apprentices. They might have been fashionable novelties for adults to collect or they might simply have been playthings for rich children. In 1571, the daughter of Henry II of France ordered a set of small silver ‘pots, bowls, plates and other articles’ to give to a royal child.

The high point of production in London was the period 1700-1750. Because they were light and small, silver toys are not fully hallmarked. The form of the maker’s or retailer’s mark helps to date them.
Associated object
Bibliographic reference
Houart, V., Miniature Silver Toys 1981, pp.187, Pl. 228 Poliakoff, M., Silver Toys and Miniatures V&A, pp.40, 37., Pl. 96, 85
Collection
Accession number
M.233J-1976

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Record createdSeptember 10, 2004
Record URL
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