Royal Crown Derby Thimbles - Thimbleselect Catalogue

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THERE ARE 22 PAGES OF THIMBLES & OTHER ITEMS TO BUY
aluminium 1 - books 1 - brass 1 - china 6 - display cases 1
gold 1 - needlework tools 2 - other collectables 1 - pewter 1 - plastic 1
silver 3 - steel & metal 1 - unusual materials 1 - wood 1

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Royal Crown Derby Thimbles

There were no thimbles produced by Royal Crown Derby [RCD] during the 20th century until around 1985, when they were taken over and owned by the Royal Doulton Group [of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire]. The Doulton stable thru mergers included Minton, John Beswick, Caithness Glass, Royal Crown Derby and Royal Albert. From 2000 Royal Crown Derby is once again an independent company.
Well that opening statement was true when I first composed this page on RCD, but a recent treasure has turned up with a thimble with a 1940 date. It is an intriguing date as England was in the heart of World War 11. Have you ever encountered another RCD with a date earlier than 1985?
In 1981 when the Franklin Mint thimbles set of Porcelain Houses of the World was commissioned, Royal Doulton and Royal Albert thimbles were included in the set of 25. By 1985 when the Thimble Collectors Club commissioned the Hallmarked Thimbles of the World's Great Porcelain Houses, Minton, Royal Doulton, Royal Albert and Royal Crown Derby thimbles were included in the set of 50.
In 1986, RCD began production of sets of fine bone china thimbles that reflect the patterns from the old Derby Porcelain pattern books of their dinnerware range.
Most of their thimbles are marked inside with a Roman numeral and this helps collectors identify matching sets. Or does it? A puzzle has arisen as some identical thimbles have a different Roman number. In 1937 Royal Crown Derby introduced a dating system for their products. In 1937 items were marked with the Roman numeral I and so on for each year. So if an item is marked L [=50], add this to 37 and the date of manufacture is 1987. This is a really unique feature, as one can now tell exactly when your thimble was made - ie that it was part of the original issue or not.
In 2000 RCD changed their policy to one using the actual Roman numeral to correspond with the year of manufacture eg. MM for 2000.

L = 1987
The first series of 6 was produced in 1986 and continued in manufacture until 1992, which explains the differing Roman numerals in identically patterned thimbles. The set was named The Derby Collection. This launch was so successful amongst thimble collectors, that another larger set was commissioned Lawleys by Post, the commercial arm of Royal Doulton, who promoted the second series of 15, produced in 1986. The collection is named The Historical Thimble CollectionA booklet written by Betty Bailey A collection of thimbles accompanied this set. The book lists the thimbles with the name assigned and a brief description of the origins of the patterns. I have included the dates that Derby first introduced the original pattern. No pattern names are in the thimbles, so the names can only be found in Bailey's booklet or in the original advertisements from Lawleys by Post. Once separated, the naming becomes impossible. I have recorded them here for posterity.
It was lovely to be alerted by collectors to the The Chatsworth Collection by RCD. This is a set of 12 thimbles - in more pastel shades than the earlier series. They were produced for Lawleys by Post in 1995 and designed by the RCD artist Sue Rowe. They all have names but these names are again not marked inside the thimble. Nor are they marked with a Roman numeral as are most of the other Royal Crown Derby thimbles, but they do have a second backstamp for Chatsworth House in the same colour as the RCD stamp. In addition the word 'Chatsworth' appears under the RCD backstamp. These designs are all based on a flower and the motifs come from the interior of the mansion of the Duke and Duchess of Devon who own Chatsworth House in Derbyshire.
Then there is a The Curator's Collection of 6 thimbles. This set was issued in 1999, bearing the Roman numerals LX11.
The shape of the RCD thimbles conforms to the later thimbles made by Royal Doulton. These are squatter than the original Doulton thimbles produced in the early 1980s. These RCD thimbles are richly gilded with 22-carat gold and the colours reflect the rich colours one has come to associate with RCD merchandise. The apexes have gilding of the indentations, making them quite distinctive. There is a slight variation between the first and subsequent sets, in the apex gilding. The patterning goes around the thimble, usually repeating the design. Where this is not the case, I have shown the other side.
Does anyone know whether RCD are currently producing thimbles? We know from thimbles using the RCD dating system they were still producing thimbles in 2002 [MM11].
Aren't these Royal Crown Derby thimbles some of the 'richest' looking thimbles you have encountered, in all their deep jewel colours? In the collectables market, Royal Crown Derby are premierly associated with their range of paperweights in their rich colours and some of this uniqueness is reflected in their range of thimbles.

Early 20th Century - The Derby Collection - The Historical Thimble Collection
The Chatsworth Collection - The Curator's Collection - Others

Early 20th Century thimbles
1937 - 1984
At this stage only one pre-1985 thimble has emerged
this treasure is hand-painted

1940
1940 apex

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The Derby Collection
1986 - 1992
Examples in this set have differing Roman numerals from XLIX [1986] to LVI [1993]
Does anyone own one of this series with dates other than these?

Ambassador
Asian Rose
BUY THIS THIMBLE

Bali
BUY THIS THIMBLE

Blue Aves
Brittany
BUY THIS THIMBLE

Derby Panel Green

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The Historical Thimble Collection
1985-1993 [XLVIII-LVI]
The booklet that accompanied this set was printed in 1986, but I have found thimbles in this set with an earlier date 1985 [The Moth]
Each boxed thimble is supplied with an explanatory leaflet on the design
The dates included with each photo are those of the date Derby first introduced that pattern to their range of fine dinnerware
This covers 250 years of patterns.

Art Deco
1900
Art Nouveau
1990
Billingsley Roses
1790

Chinois
1765
Diamond
Flower Sprig
1752

Golden Flower
1795
Imari Scroll
1880
Moses Webster
1825

Moth
1760
Old Imari
1880
Purple Scroll
1947

Spiral Stripe
1890
Traditional Imari
1889
Victorian Persian
1888

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The Chatsworth Collection
1995

American cowslip
Anemone
Azalea

Camellia
Crocus
Daffodil

Honeysuckle
Michaelmas daisies
Orchid

Pansy
Water lily
Weymouth Pine

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The Curator's Collection
1999-2002
LXII - MM11

Derby Old Japan
Acanthus
Pardoe

Derby Garden
Tree of life
Rich Japan

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others

Pair commemorating marriage
Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson
the centre view is on the verso of both thimbles
There are no Roman numerals in this set
1986
Learn more about
British Royalty on thimbles
BUY THESE THIMBLES

Thimble Collectors Club
Hallmarked Thimbles of the World's Great Porcelain Houses
1985 [with no Roman numeral]
Learn more about
Hallmarked Thimbles of the World's Great Porcelain Houses

Pair
Commimmissioned by Times Past
LIX [1996]

Thimble Collectors Club
XLIX [1986]
Learn more about
Thimble Collectors Club thimbles

Pair
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert
Queen Victoria accession 20th June 1837
Prince Albert Consort to Queen Victoria 1840-1861
with gold George crosses on apex
limited to 5000 sets
L [1987]

Pair
Queen Elizabeth II Golden Wedding Anniversary
1947 1997
limited to 950 sets
LX [1997]
Learn more about
British Royalty on thimbles

LVII [1994]
Where does this one fit in?

christmas 1979 with holly
Can this be a correct date?

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DO YOU KNOW ANY MORE DETAILS ABOUT ROYAL CROWN DERBY THIMBLES?
DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER RCD THIMBLES NOT MENTIONED?
DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER RCD THIMBLES NOT PICTURED OR CLEARER PHOTOS?
EMAIL thimbleselect@bigpond.com TO SHARE YOUR KNOWLEDGE.

Contributors
Sue Burt - Susan John - Bev McDonald - Moyra Peckston - Gai Sdao - Edna Skarratt
Jacqueline Smith - Jean Taylor - Anita Ulack - Joanna Waciorski

References
Betty Bailey A collection of thimbles. 1986
Royal Crown Derby website

This listing of Royal Crown Derby thimbles does not purport to be complete or accurate in all aspects. Rather it invites comment and contribution to add to our knowledge. My thanks to the contributors.

Enjoy!

Any questions or comments?
thimbleselect@bigpond.com

Last updated 11 June 2008
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