H97.101.6

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. This is an old style cup and saucer; the cup has no handles and the saucer is very deep. A: Cup is white lusterware with lavender stripes, one below the belly, one at the rim, and one inside the rim. There is a groove where the foot and body connect. There are black decal decorations on either side, depicting a mother and child; one shows the mother seated on a chair, holding a basket of fruit in her left hand while her right hand dangles cherries above a child standing on a cushion. The other image shows a mother and child; mother is seated on a chaise lounge and is playing a paddle game similar to badminton with the child, who is standing on the floor next to her. The quality of the decals on the cup are not as detailed as that on the saucer. B: Saucer is also white lusterware with lavender stripes, one on the rim and two on the inside. The center is a black decal with the same image of the mother and child playing a paddle game; it differs from that on the cup in that it is darker and more detailed. The bottom is marked with the numbers "423" in lavender luster glaze and also a more recent adhesive label marked in blue ballpoint pen with the numbers "13X". When describing this cup and saucer, the donor said: "Look at this; this is so beautiful. Chinese people hold [the cup] like this. If your hands are cold [it] keeps your hands warm."

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