Theodore Haviland "Ganga" — Complete 83-Piece Dinner Service Limoges, France · Circa 1920–1936 · Patent 64453

An extraordinary assembled service for twelve in Theodore Haviland's richly decorated Ganga pattern, produced in Limoges, France during the early twentieth century. At 83 pieces—with complete principal place-setting lines and an unusually substantial collection of serving ware—this is not simply a group of matching china. It is a developed dinner service capable of setting a complete table.

The Pattern

Ganga belongs to Theodore Haviland's interwar Limoges production and is documented in period advertising from the 1920s. The green Theodore Haviland factory mark found on the service is associated with approximately 1920–1936, while the evidence specific to Ganga points more closely toward the mid-1920s. We therefore describe this service conservatively as circa mid-1920s rather than treating the full lifespan of the factory mark as the production period of the pattern itself.

Ganga's decoration centers on a colorful floral basket surrounded by an elaborate border of deep blue, black, orange and gold. Trelliswork, stylized florets and extensive gilding create a pattern that feels almost architectural around the softer floral center. The result is unmistakably Haviland: formal and richly ornamented without allowing the decoration to overwhelm the porcelain beneath it.

Pieces carry Theodore Haviland factory and decorator marks together with the Ganga pattern name. A number of pieces within the service additionally bear the period designation “PATENT 64453.” Because that designation does not appear consistently across every form in the service, we preserve it here exactly as found rather than treating 64453 as a production date or universal pattern number.

Why This Service Is Different

The strength of this service is not simply its 83-piece count. It is what those 83 pieces actually accomplish.

The principal table lines provide true service for twelve: 12 dinner plates, 12 bread & butter plates, 12 cups, 12 saucers and 12 dessert/fruit bowls, with 13 salad plates and an additional saucer beyond the twelve required place settings.

Beyond those settings is a remarkably developed serving suite: two oval well platters, an oval vegetable bowl, two octagonal handled bowls, a round serving bowl, bon bon dish, covered sugar and creamer.

That distinction matters. Large antique and early twentieth-century china lots can accumulate impressive piece counts through duplicate plates, incomplete cup-and-saucer lines and miscellaneous extras. This service was assembled with something different in mind: a table that could actually be set and used.

The two well platters are particularly handsome examples of the pattern, while the large octagonal handled bowl gives the serving collection a substantial centerpiece. Together, the serving pieces allow Ganga's elaborate decoration to extend beyond the individual place settings and across the entire table.

What's Included

12 Dinner Plates — 9½"

13 Salad Plates — 7⅜"

12 Bread & Butter Plates — 6½"

12 Dessert/Fruit Bowls — 4⅝"

12 Cups

13 Saucers — 5⅝"

1 Large Oval Well Platter — 13⅜"

1 Small Oval Well Platter — 11"

1 Oval Vegetable Bowl

1 Large Octagonal Handled Bowl

1 Small Octagonal Handled Bowl

1 Round Bowl — 5⅜"

1 Bon Bon Dish

1 Covered Sugar Bowl

1 Creamer

Total: 83 pieces

Condition

Condition throughout is excellent for an early twentieth-century porcelain service of this size. There are no cracks or structural compromises anywhere in the service.

In keeping with our practice of disclosing prior damage and repair regardless of how inconspicuous or stable it may be, the exceptions are detailed below:

Large Octagonal Handled Bowl: Two chips to the base ring. Cosmetic and not visible during normal use or display.

One Salad Plate: Chip to the reverse edge of the rim, not visible from the front.

Small Octagonal Handled Bowl: Previously repaired base-ring chip; structurally sound and stable.

Large Oval Well Platter: Previously repaired base-ring chip; structurally sound and stable.

Small Oval Well Platter: Previously repaired base-ring chip; structurally sound and stable.

Oval Vegetable Bowl: Previously repaired base-ring chip; structurally sound and stable.

The remaining pieces—including the complete bread & butter line and the additional cup and saucer sourced to complete the service—have no chips, cracks or repairs.

Please review the photographs closely, as they form an important part of the condition description.

Provenance

The core of this service was acquired from the estate collection of a longtime fine-china collector who had originally intended his collection for his daughters.

When acquired, one conspicuous element was missing: the bread & butter plates. Rather than leave an otherwise exceptional service incomplete, we carefully sourced the full twelve-piece line along with an additional cup and saucer, bringing Ganga to the complete service-for-twelve configuration offered here today.

It is an assembled service rather than a claim of untouched original completeness—and, in many ways, that is part of its story. Pieces made in Limoges nearly a century ago have been preserved, collected and reunited so that this service can once again do what it was created to do:

set a table.

Shipping & Delivery

Given the size, weight and value of this 83-piece service, shipping is arranged through our concierge process so that appropriate packing and delivery can be coordinated for the destination.

Please contact concierge@champagnetasteco.com to discuss shipping or delivery arrangements before purchase.

Ganga comes from an era when a fine dinner service was meant to be assembled thoughtfully, cared for over decades and passed forward. Nearly a century later, this one remains ready to fulfill that purpose.

Set the table. Gather the people who matter. And someday, pass it on.

Curator Certified for accuracy and quality.