Royal Albert, Old Country Roses

One of the most popular china patterns that has been in production since 1904 is the Old Country Roses pattern by Royal Albert. This floral pattern was inspired by the beautiful old world roses that bloomed in gardens across England.

The Royal Albert brand wasn’t created until 1904, but was birthed by the Albert Works owned by Thomas Wild and his sons who created breakfast and dessert china that was very widely used to celebrate the daily ritual of taking tea in England. The original Albert Works had been operating since 1846. The original company got its name in honor of the Queen Victoria’s husband Albert, but the Royal Albert was named in honor of Albert’s great-grandson and namesake.

The company boasts a Royal Warrant, which is bestowed about persons or companies that regularly supplied the Royal Family with goods and services and is kind of like the Good Housekeeping Seal in this country. One can count on products with a Royal Warrant to be of the highest quality and service. The company received this designation from producing specialty china for Queen Victorian’s Diamond jubilee.

Royal Albert produced many patterns of floral china, but the most popular pattern that remains to this day is Old Country Roses. This fine bone china was designed by Harold Holdcroft in 1962. The pattern features a curvy fluted design with curled handles trimmed in gold and featuring red, pink and yellow blooms. You can still purchase this china at your local Belk’s to this day.

Royal Doulton bought the Royal Albert line, which was part of the Pearson Group in the 1970s and later was purchased by Wedgewood. You can identify the age of your Old Country Roses by the mark on the bottom. A crown with the simple words Royal Albert Crown China was used before 1922. Later stamps were the same with the word England added. Elaborate floral marks appeared after 1945.

There are many websites dedicated to collectors of Royal Albert and their most popular pattern, Old Country Roses. If you are lucky, you can sometimes find these treasures at estate sales and thrift stores. Don’t overlook some of the other pretty patterns that were produced by Royal Albert such as the similar older pattern called Kings Ransom, Victorian Chintz and some of the lovely art-deco inspired patterns.

Happy Collecting!

Jillinda Falen has been buying and selling antiques for over 30 years and is a licensed REALTOR and estate liquidation specialist. You can contact her via email at jcfalen@gmail.com.

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