Dishware

Dishware is the general term for the dishes used in serving, and eating food, including plates and bowls. Dinnerware is a synonym, especially meaning a set of dishes, including serving pieces.

The broader term Tableware includes dishes, cutlery, and drinking vessels. Flatware refers to plates and cutlery. Hollowware refers to containers like bowls and pitchers, especially if made of metal.

Modern dishes may be made of earthenware, stoneware, porcelain, glass, and durable plastics, such as melamine resin. Disposable dishes made of paper or lightweight plastics may be used for casual eating. Historically, dishes have also been made of wood, metals such as pewter, and even animal skulls.

During the last 1940s a number of companies started to make standardized dinnerware with "atomic" or "futuristic" designs, leading into the Mid-Century Modern period. Two of the most popular and prolific designs were the Starburst dinnerware design by and Temporama, the latter of which could be "purchased" by turning in stamps, the history of which is not specific - some say the stamps were given away by gas stations, other say it was grocery stores, and likely it was both.

The designs used in these dinnerware sets continue to survive today, a major iconographic design from the 1950s that is still used today.