"Illinois" Plate
c. 1878–89
Medium
Porcelain, enamel, and glaze with gilding
Dimensions
Diam.: 21.3 cm (8 3/8 in.)
Classification
plate (general, dish)
Department
Arts of the Americas
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
212969
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Joseph S. Potter served as a diplomat and United States Consul in Germany. There he embraced the hobby of china painting after noticing women in the consulate taking lessons and later visiting the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory. Potter painted a series of “states” plates, including this Illinois plate, which is decorated in colored enamels, glazes, gold, and silver. Inside the gold patterned cartouche is a bald eagle against rays of sunshine. In its beak it carries a band inscribed with the Illin...