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A plate is a broad, mainly flat vessel on which
food Food is any substance consumed by an organism for Nutrient, nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or Fungus, fungal origin and contains essential nutrients such as carbohydrates, fats, protein (nutrient), proteins, vitamins, ...
can be served. A plate can also be used for ceremonial or decorative purposes. Most plates are circular, but they may be any shape, or made of any water-resistant material. Generally plates are raised round the edges, either by a curving up, or a wider lip or raised portion. Vessels with no lip, especially if they have a more rounded profile, are likely to be considered as bowls or dishes, as are very large vessels with a plate shape. Plates are dishware, and tableware. Plates in
wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...
,
pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...
and metal go back into antiquity in many cultures. In
Western culture Western culture, also known as Western civilization, European civilization, Occidental culture, Western society, or simply the West, refers to the Cultural heritage, internally diverse culture of the Western world. The term "Western" encompas ...
and many other cultures, the plate is the typical vessel from which food is eaten and on which it is served, provided the food is not too high in liquid content. Its primary alternative is the bowl. The banana leaf predominates in some
South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...
n and
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
n cultures.


Design


Shape

A plate is typically composed of: * The ''well'', the bottom of the plate, where food is placed. * The ''lip'', the flattish raised outer part of the plate (sometimes wrongly called the rim). Its width in proportion to the well can vary greatly. It usually has a slight upwards slope, or is parallel with the base, as is typical in larger dishes and traditional Chinese shapes. Not all plates have a distinct lip. * The ''rim'', the outer edge of the piece; often decorated, for example with gilding. * The ''base'', the underside. The usual wide and flat European raised lip is derived from old European metalwork plate shapes; Chinese ceramic plates usually just curve up at the edges, or have a narrow lip. A completely flat serving plate, only practical for dry foods, may be called a trencher, especially if in wood.


Materials

Plates are commonly made from
ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcela ...
materials such as
bone china Bone china is a type of vitreous, translucent pottery, the raw materials for which include bone ash, feldspathic material and kaolin. It has been defined as "ware with a translucent body" containing a minimum of 30% of phosphate derived from c ...
,
porcelain Porcelain (), also called china, is a ceramic material made by heating Industrial mineral, raw materials, generally including kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The greater strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to oth ...
, earthenware, and
stoneware Stoneware is a broad class of pottery fired at a relatively high temperature, to be impervious to water. A modern definition is a Vitrification#Ceramics, vitreous or semi-vitreous ceramic made primarily from stoneware clay or non-refractory fire ...
, as well as other traditional materials like
glass Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline solid, non-crystalline) solid. Because it is often transparency and translucency, transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in window pane ...
,
wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...
, or
metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...
; occasionally,
stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...
has been used. Despite a range of
plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or Semisynthesis, semisynthetic materials composed primarily of Polymer, polymers. Their defining characteristic, Plasticity (physics), plasticity, allows them to be Injection moulding ...
s and other modern materials, ceramics and other traditional materials remain the most common, except for specialized uses such as plates for young children. Porcelain and bone china were once luxurious materials but today can be afforded by most of the world's population. Cheap metal plates, which are the most durable, remain common in the
developing world A developing country is a sovereign state with a less-developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to developed countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreeme ...
. Disposable plates, which are often made from plastic or
paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, Textile, rags, poaceae, grasses, Feces#Other uses, herbivore dung, or other vegetable sources in water. Once the water is dra ...
pulp or a composite ( plastic-coated paper), were invented in 1904, and are designed to be used only once. Also melamine resin or tempered glass such as Corelle can be used.


Size and type

As food availability increased, so did plate sizes. The increase in the diameter of a typical dinner plate is estimated as 65% since 1000 AD. Modern plates for serving food come in a variety of sizes and types, such as: * (also full plate, meat plate, joint plate): large, in diameter; only buffet/serving plates are larger. This is the main (at times only) individual plate. During its disappearance in Europe that happened with the fall of the Roman Empire, trencher plates made of bread (or wood) were used. Regular plates returned to fashion at the French court under
Francis I of France Francis I (; ; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once removed and father-in-law Louis&nbs ...
around 1536. * (also half plate, dessert plate, fish plate) has a diameter of and is used for
hors d'oeuvre An hors d'oeuvre ( ; ), appetiser, appetizer or starter is a small dish served before a meal in European cuisine. Some hors d'oeuvres are served cold, others hot. Hors d'oeuvres may be served at the dinner table as a part of the meal, or ...
, fish, entrée, or a dessert. * (also sweet plate, half plate, fruit plate) has a diameter of , usually is substituted by an entrée plate * (also bread and butter plate, B&B plate, quarter plate, cheese plate) has a diameter of , also used as an underplate for soup bowl * can be either round, in diameter, or intended to be positioned snugly to the right of a full plate, the latter usually has a
crescent A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase (as it appears in the northern hemisphere) in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself. In Hindu iconography, Hind ...
shape (hence another name, a crescent plate). * Tea saucer is a small plate with an indentation for a cup and a diameter of . A demi-tasse saucer, or coffee saucer is in diameter. * has a diameter of , a much deeper well and wide rim ("lip"). If the lip is lacking, as often seen in contemporary tableware, it is a "soup bowl". May also be used for desserts. * (also oatmeal bowl, cereal plate), at in diameter, used for porridge and
breakfast cereal Breakfast cereal is a category of food, including food products, made from food processing, processed cereal, cereal grains, that are eaten as part of breakfast or as a snack food, primarily in Western societies. Although warm, cooked cereals li ...
, as well as milk pudding, compote, apple pie with custard sauce * Luncheon plate, typically in diameter, fell out of popularity at the end of 19th century, together with the luncheons for ladies. * Platters (
US English American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the most widely spoken language in the United States and, since 2025, the offici ...
) or serving plates: oversized dishes from which food for several people may be distributed at table * Decorative plates: for display rather than used for food. Commemorative plates have designs reflecting a particular theme. * Charger (also a ''buffet plate'', ''cover plate'', ''lay plate'', ''place plate'', all names are due to the various uses of this large plate in the past and in the present): a plate typically placed under a separate plate used to hold food, largest and therefore most expensive plate in the set at in diameter with an well. The antique service plates were smaller, with size and a well, due to different use: modern etiquette allows the use of the service plates for the main course in an informal dining arrangement (thus the larger well), while in the old times (and the modern formal dining) the service plate is only used as a base for the appetizer and soup. Plates can be any shape, but almost all have a rim to prevent food from falling off the edge. They are often white or off-white, but can be any color, including patterns and artistic designs. Many are sold in sets of identical plates, so everyone at a table can have matching tableware. Styles include: * Round: the most common shape, especially for dinner plates and saucers * Square: more common in Asian traditions like
sushi is a traditional Japanese dish made with , typically seasoned with sugar and salt, and combined with a variety of , such as seafood, vegetables, or meat: raw seafood is the most common, although some may be cooked. While sushi comes in n ...
plates or bento, and to add modern style * Squircle: holding more food than round ones but still occupying the same amount of space in a cupboard * Coupe (arguably a type of bowl rather than a plate): a round dish with a smooth, round, steep curve up to the rim (as opposed to rims that curve up then flatten out) * Ribbon plate: decorative plate with slots around the circumference to enable a ribbon to be threaded through for hanging.


Plates as collectibles

Objects in Chinese porcelain including plates had long been avidly collected in the
Islamic world The terms Islamic world and Muslim world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs, politics, and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is ...
and then Europe, and strongly influenced their fine pottery wares, especially in terms of their decoration. After Europeans also started making
porcelain Porcelain (), also called china, is a ceramic material made by heating Industrial mineral, raw materials, generally including kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The greater strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to oth ...
in the 18th century, monarchs and royalty continued their traditional practice of collecting and displaying porcelain plates, now made locally, but porcelain was still beyond the means of the average citizen until the 19th century. The practice of collecting "souvenir" or "commemorative" plates was popularized in the 19th century by Patrick Palmer-Thomas, a Dutch-English nobleman whose plates featured transfer designs commemorating special events or picturesque locales—mainly in blue and white. It was an inexpensive hobby, and the variety of shapes and designs catered to a wide spectrum of collectors. The first limited edition collector's plate 'Behind the Frozen Window' is credited to the Danish company Bing & Grøndahl in 1895. Christmas plates became very popular with many European companies producing them most notably Royal Copenhagen in 1910, and a Rosenthal series which began in 1910.


Gallery

File:Tresor Lyon Vaise-plateaux.jpg,
Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization (cultural), Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire in Roman Gaul. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, Roman culture, language ...
silver plates in the Gallo-Roman Museum of Lyon-Fourvière (
Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
, France) File:Soup Plate, 19th century (CH 18350773) (cropped).jpg, Soup plate, 19th-century Meissen porcelain File:Plate, Spode Factory, c. 1792-1794, porcelain - Chazen Museum of Art - DSC02223.JPG, Spode plate, Stoke-on-Trent, England c.1792-94 File:Kitchenware Silver Plate Rezowan.JPG,
Vitreous enamel Vitreous enamel, also called porcelain enamel, is a material made by melting, fusing powdered glass to a substrate by firing, usually between . The powder melts, flows, and then hardens to a smooth, durable vitrification, vitreous coating. The wo ...
on metal File:Kitchenware Steel Plate Rezowan.JPG, Steel Plate File:Geometrikus-tál.jpg, Geometric plate Seuso Treasure File:Romanian decorative plate.jpg,
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
n decorative plate featuring a traditional model File:ChosroesHuntingScene.JPG, Persian plate or dish featuring a king hunting File:Paper Plate.jpg, alt=Paper plate, A typical paper plate File:Late 1800s wooden plate Solberga parish Kungaelv municipality Sweden.jpg, Late 19th century wooden plate from Kungälv municipality, Sweden


References


Sources

* * * * *The Bradford Book of Collector's Plates 1987, Brian J. Taylor, Chicago, IL SN:18949/700002376186 {{DEFAULTSORT:Plate (Dishware) Kitchenware Tableware