Title: James K. Polk China

Description: This dessert plate features the shield of the United States. It has 27 stars for the 27 states in the union in 1846. The motto of the United States, E Pluribus Unum, which means “out of many, one,” is on the banner across the shield. Each plate had a different flower in the center. Many think this is the most beautiful of all the White House china.

Date: 1846

Creator: Edouard D. Honore, Paris

Credit: Photograph by Erik Kvalsvik, copyright White House Historical Association