Arabella Side Plate, Green Palm Tree
Arabella Side Plate, Green Palm Tree Arabella Side Plate, Green Palm Tree Arabella Side Plate, Green Palm Tree Arabella Side Plate, Green Palm Tree Arabella Side Plate, Green Palm Tree Arabella Side Plate, Green Palm Tree
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Arabella Side Plate, Green Palm Tree Set of 4

£110

Materials
Fine European Earthernware
↔
Width
22 cm

The gold-scaled trunk and green fronds of Caldas da Rainha's most well-travelled motif, on a side plate where two pink blooms hold the rim like bookends.

At this scale the palm becomes something more intimate — a courtyard glimpsed rather than entered. The white ground still breathes, the trunk still rises, and the two remaining blooms frame it with the quiet authority of a composition that knows exactly what it is doing.
JJ places this set of 4 Arabella Side Plate beside the dinner plate, or alone with cheese at the end of a long lunch.

Inspiration
The palm tree arrived in European decorative arts as a symbol of everywhere Europeans wanted to be and could not quite reach. The Orientalists painted it first — grand, solitary, silhouetted against a desert sky — and the ceramicists followed, as ceramicists always do, borrowing from painters who borrowed from travellers who borrowed from the thing itself.

In the decorative tradition, the palm carries contradictory meanings with remarkable ease. To the ancient Egyptians it marked the passage of time — one frond for every month of the year. To the Romans it was victory. To the Arabs who cultivated it across North Africa and into Andalusia, it was simply life — shade, fruit, water found. The Moorish craftsmen who brought their tilework north into Portugal understood this. Their azulejos carried the palm not as symbol but as fact, the way you paint something you have grown up beside.

By the time it reached the drawing rooms of nineteenth century Europe, the palm had become something else entirely — exotic, aspirational, a shorthand for warmth and distance and the particular glamour of a life lived closer to the equator than most people managed.

JJ finds it the most well-travelled motif in her collection. A palm on a Portuguese plate has passed through Egypt, Rome, Moorish Andalusia, and a Lisbon atelier before it reaches the table. That is a great deal of history for something that looks, at first glance, simply like a very good plant.
Collectors Questions

Q: I only need side plates — are they sold as complete sets on their own?

A: Side plates are sold and available as their own set of four. The word "side plate" undersells them — they work brilliantly as bread plates, dessert plates, and serving dishes for small bites. A set of four at the centre of a table with cheese and fruit is a complete thing in itself.

Q: Are they dishwasher safe?

A: Yes, on a low-temperature or eco cycle (ideally ≤30–45°C) with a mild, non-aggressive detergent, and with heated drying switched off. Hand-washing is still the preferable routine for long-term durability, particularly for pieces with fine painted or gilded detail.

Q: Do the side plates match the dinner plates from the same collection exactly?

A: Where a matching dinner plate exists within the same collection — such as the Cara Shell or Camilla pairs — both are drawn from the same glaze and pattern, so they're designed to sit together as one setting. That said, mixing different designs across the Casa by JJ range is always encouraged.

Q: Are side plates a good starting point for someone new to a collection?

A: Yes — a set of four side plates is a versatile way to bring a pattern into daily use before deciding whether to add the dinner plate or bowls from the same design.

Q: Are these a suitable wedding or housewarming gift?

A: A set of four distinctive side plates is one of the more considered gifts you can give — something the recipient will use and notice every time, and won't already own. A handwritten note is available at checkout.

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Sustainable Practices

Towards A Greener Future

At Casa by JJ, we believe true luxury considers its legacy, not just in heirloom pieces, but in the planet we leave behind. That’s why we are proud to triple carbon offset, going beyond neutral to give back more than we take. Every collection is a step towards a greener future, where beauty at home and responsibility to the world exist in harmony.

Our Story
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