This cup is one of about 40 pieces made at an unidentified British porcelain factory. They are known as the 'A-marked' group, as many have a painted or incised 'A' underneath. This has been associated with the Duke of Argyll, who supported early experiments to make porcelain near Glasgow around 1749. However, most recently the group has been attributed to Thomas Frye (1710-1762), who was working in London before the Bow factory was set up, in which case the 'A' may stand for Alderman George Arnold, an early backer of Frye's. Most examples are very finely potted and painted, and they are technically superior to other porcelains made in Britain in the late 1740s or early 1750s. The raw materials used to make them probably included china clay, an ingredient of 'true' or hard-paste porcelain. This resulted in a much harder material than the 'soft-paste' porcelain imitations made at Chelsea, Bow and other early British factories. Many of the 'A-marked' group are painted with figure subjects copied from prints by the French illustrator and designer Hubert-François Gravelot.