Royal Crown Derby Visitor Centre
Visitor CentreRoyal Crown Derby china is known and collected throughout the world. The fine traditional skills have led to an international reputation for quality and creativity. The Royal Crown Derby Visitor Centre has been created to provide an insight into the traditions, the history and the skills that go into making Royal Crown Derby so special. The Visitor Centre is comprised of a factory shop, a coffee shop and a museum;
there are also factory tours available. A visit to Royal Crown Derby is a great day out!
The history of Royal Crown Derby is one of changing fortunes in the ebb and flow of time and taste. It began some time before 1750, when the Huguenot, Andrew Planche, established the first china works in Derby. His exquisite figures led to a fortuitous link with William Duesbury, who eventually became the guiding light in a very successful partnership manufacturing china of the highest quality.
By 1770, Duesbury had acquired the famous Chelsea China Works and the Bow moulds which resulted in the gradual transfer of a number of extremely skilled craftsmen to Derby. It wasn't long before Duesbury could claim - with some justification - that his Derby factory was the 'second Dresden'. The opening of a London Showroom in 1773 marked the begnning of the widespread recognition of the excellence of Derby porcelain.
It was Robert Bloor who restored the Derby porcelain reputation when he took control of the factory in 1811 and began to build a team of very fine painters.Many rich and elegant services were produced at this time and shapes tended to be larger and more flamboyant. Typical of the period are the lavishly decorated Japan, or Imari, patterns whose deserved popularity continues in various forms to the present day.
Confidence in the Crown Derby name was underwritten in 1877 by the opening of an impressive new factory at Osmaston Road, Derby. This was the beginning of a period of growth and diversification which has continued to the present day.
Many new shapes and decorative techniques were added to the traditional Derby styles. Raised gilding and piercing, together with the rich colours of Persian and Indian art all played an important role in developing and widening the appeal of the range.
Royal Crown Derby was acquired by S.Pearson and Son, the Pearson family company, to become part of their Allied English Potteries group. Brian Branscombe was appointed Art Director, and established the new Graphic and printing departments. Pearson subsequently Bought Royal Doulton. The company was then merged into the larger group.
The first Royal Crown Derby paperweights, five birds and a rabbit, were launched at a reception at Chatsworth House. These models were to develop into one of the most important ranges of china figures in the world of collecting. Hugh Gibson, a former director of Royal Doulton and member of the Pearson family, leads a buy-out of Royal Crown Derby. Once more the firm becomes an independent and privately owned concern, during the year in which it also celebrates 250 years of manufacture of porcelain in Derby.
The paperweight range celebrates its 21st birthday, with a special stopper for the year, and a new collection of five birds and a rabbit. Rich colours and intricate gilding remain the distinguishing features of Royal Crown Derby. The range has something for everyone who appreciates how the aesthetic, the functional and collectable have been brought together in classic designs that please both the eye and the heart in equal measure.
VISITROS INFORMATION:
Opening times:
The Royal Crown Derby Visitor Centre
Open Monday – Saturday 10-5pm
Duesbury Coffee Shop closed on weekends. Factory tours
Available 11am & 1.30pm Booking essential. (Tuesday to Friday only)
Admission is refunded in The Royal Crown Derby Shop on purchases over £50.
How to find us
From M1 - Jct 25 Follow A52 in to Derby, then the Brown Tourist Signs.
15 minutes walk from the centre of Derby/Westfield Centre.
ADDRESS:
194 Osmaston Road,
Derby,
DE23 8JZ