Aynsley Cup of Fortune 2018 Commemorative Edition Solid Lime
From Mystic Tea Room
In 1904, the British designer Neville Ross created the Nelros Cup of Fortune, which was produced for Ross by Aynsley China in England. The Nelros Cup of Fortune was a very early symbol cup as well as an astrology cup. It was also the first to contain poetry on the cup.
The rights to produce the Nelros Cup of Fortune were soon transferred to the Aynsley company, and the cup was manufactured for decades on a succession of pottery shapes. Eventually it was discontinued.
In 2018, Aynsley produced a new version of this cup and saucer, made in China for distribution in Japan. The Aynsley Cup of Fortune 2018 Commemorative Edition series was glazed in vivid solid colours, with gilded rims and edges, featuring an open cup shape with a spurred handle, reminiscent of the Paragon Signs and Omens cups of the 1930s.
Although this commemorative set is evocative of the original 1904 design, it is not a true copy of Neville Ross's pattern.
- The interior of the cup retains the tea leaf symbols and planetary glyphs of the original.
- The twelve signs of zodiac, which graced the original saucer, have been deleted.
- The poetic verse that formerly circled the outside of the cup has been displaced to the saucer rim.
The colours in the series are:
- Aynsley Cup of Fortune 2018 Commemorative Edition Solid Lime
- Aynsley Cup of Fortune 2018 Commemorative Edition Solid Orange
- Aynsley Cup of Fortune 2018 Commemorative Edition Solid Pink
- Aynsley Cup of Fortune 2018 Commemorative Edition Solid Purple
- Aynsley Cup of Fortune 2018 Commemorative Edition Solid Turquoise
- Aynsley Cup of Fortune 2018 Commemorative Edition Solid Yellow
This series of cups was manufactured for distribution exclusively in Japan, apparently as a way to keep the Nelros Cup of Fortune trademark active and up to date. They were produced in a limited run, and came in special boxes with instructions in Japanese.
- Aynsley Cup of Fortune 2018 Commemorative Edition Solid Lime
DIV-TLR-SOLI
catherine yronwode
curator, historian, and docent
The Mystic Tea Room