At a Glance
Covers general table-setting pieces, alongside our more specific categories
Works as an individual piece or as part of a fuller table setting
Check Bowls, Dishes, Trays, or Cutlery directly for those specific pieces
Ask directly for guidance on building a full table setting
Style & Maker History
“Tableware” gathers table pieces that don’t yet have enough individual stock to warrant their own dedicated section — an epergne is the clearest example. Epergnes first emerged in the early 1700s and became a genuine centrepiece of Victorian dining: a tall central trumpet vase, often surrounded by smaller detachable vases or baskets on scrolling arms, holding flowers, fruit, or sweets, designed as much to impress as to serve any practical purpose. Georgian and Regency examples tend toward more architectural forms, sometimes combined with cut glass bowls; Victorian pieces are often heavily ornamented — naturalistic grape-and-vine decoration, Rococo revival scrollwork, or occasionally a genuinely playful figural base. Because of their scale, many surviving epergnes are silver plate or Old Sheffield Plate rather than solid silver, worth checking carefully given how substantial a plated piece can still look. Elkington & Co., Walker & Hall, and Daniel & John Wellby are among the makers whose epergnes and centrepieces appear regularly in the trade.
