About
"China collecting in America" by Alice Morse Earle is a historical account written in the late 19th century. It explores the passion, practice, and history of seeking old china and related tableware in the United States, especially New England, blending personal memoir with antiquarian research. The work likely appeals to collectors and readers of material culture, moving from anecdotes of “china hunting” into guidance, ethics, and the evolution of tableware from wood and pewter to Delft, English wares, and Oriental porcelain. The opening of the book recounts the author’s “midsummer madness” for hunting old china across New England, detailing the thrills, frequent disappointments, and crafty etiquette of buying from wary farm households. Vivid anecdotes include failed negotiations (a Nankin bowl used for mixing chicken-dough), misidentified “Martha Washington” plates, evasive hoarders, and the colorful stratagems of dealers—alongside a playful fantasy of collecting from a tin-peddler’
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