Historical information

This is a dish sold to tourists visiting Warrnambool in the 1920s as a souvenir of Warrnambool and the Hopkins River. It was made by the Royal Stafford Bone China Company which was founded in the mid 1800s and based in Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. The scene depicting the Hopkins River mouth shows the Lyndoch windmill, the Lyndoch bungalow built in the early 1920s by Florence Lake, Proudfoots Boathouse and the Rowing Club building.

Significance

This dish is an interesting example of the high-quality souvenirs sold to tourists in the mid 1920s. Local Warrnambool residents may also have purchased an item such as this. Souvenir items depicting local scenes are still sold today in most places in Australia.

Physical description

This is a square-shaped white china dish with a fluted edge and gold colouring on the edge of the fluting. In the centre of the dish is a black and white image of the mouth of the Hopkins River near its mouth. On the base is a blue stamp of the maker of the dish.

Inscriptions & markings

‘The Hopkins, Warrnambool, Vic.’
‘Guaranteed Royal Stafford English Bone China, Made in England’