Very rare set of six mid-Victorian English Minton majolica oyster plates. Featuring six oyster wells, a central well for sauces and a larger one for lemon segments or crackers. Done in luminous light cream glaze and pink accents with small pink flowers surrounding the central well. The oyster plate was first used in the Victorian Era when the oyster on the half shell first became a delicacy. Oysters were a symbol of wealth and conspicuous consumption and needed to be properly served on their own special plates. No Victorian dinnerware service was complete without its oyster plates! Maker: Minton Origin: England Date: 1879 3306 g 2 cm tall 26 cm diameter Good overall antique condition. Plate 1 - loss to paint hairline crack and tiny chip on rim. Plate 2 - loss to paint, hairline crack and small chips on rim. Plate 3 - loss to paint and hairline crack on rim. Plate 4 - large crack. Plate 5 - signs of restoration on crack, tiny chip to rim. Plate 6 -hairline crack and restoration to rim, small black mark on back.