The Peplow pattern has had a genuinely long life at Spode — first printed in blue in the early 19th century, then revived decades later as a polychrome transfer specifically for Harrods, registered under design number 568948, before being revived again in 1925 as pattern R8542 with the yellow border seen on this bowl. Three distinct versions of the same underlying Chinoiserie flower design, each one a product of its own decade's taste rather than a straight reissue.
This baluster-form sugar bowl carries that 1930's yellow-bordered version, with two scrolling handles and a domed lid, the transfer printed in bright, multicoloured detail across the body. Chinoiserie patterns like this borrowed loosely from Chinese decorative motifs without attempting real accuracy, a Western design convention that stayed popular in British ceramics for well over a century after it first appeared, long outliving whatever brief fashion first brought it into use.
