H97.101.49

The cups and saucers in this collection come from Della's Tea Cup Cafe, 7309 MacArthur Boulevard, Oakland, which was established in February, 1967. The cafe is noted for, and decorated with, a very large collection of tea cups. Some of the cups were purchased by the owner, others were presented to her as gifts, while still others were made for her. A: Cup, with two handles, tall and slender. Glazed, white, handles are decorated with dabs of metallic gold. Rim and foot have bands of metallic gold. Exterior (at rim area) decorated with a lattice-type pattern of scallops and branches of leaves, both executed in rust color and metallic gold. B: Lid. Small domed lid, with a metallic gold rim and knob on top. Decorative pattern on dome matches that on cup. C: Saucer, same materails and pattern as A and B. Thick metallic gold band at outer rim. Pattern matches other 2 pieces. Center of saucer has unusual pierced ceramic ring (probably to steady cup in place), decorated on the outside only with metallic gold lines. "A" and "C" have blue manufacturer's mark on bottoms. Saucer also has collector's paper tag "8X".

Used: Della's Tea Cup Cafe | Della Hardmon Guess | African American | Drinking | Lynn Neighborhood