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Four plates made up the Bradford Exchange's "Rockwell on Tour" series of the early 1980s. According to the special backstamps, each decoration, "preserves the private postcards hand-colored by Norman Rockwell and sent only to his personal friends during his European tour taken in the Summer of 1927."
Walking through merrie Englande |
Promenade a Paris |
When in Rome |
Die Walk am Rhein |
The tallest man depicted is Norman Rockwell. The other two are architect Dean Parmelee and building contractor Bill Backer. In three of the plates, the names Bill, Dean, and Norm can be seen to the right of the artwork.
The special plate was created in May 1982 with a diameter of 7 ⅝" with a light hobnail edge and modeled inside line. A revision had to be made the following month on June 11 when the hobnail edge was slightly altered. They were given a special decal backstamp along with a serial number. Each plate was sold in its own box with a certificate of authenticity. The fourth plate in the series, Die Walk Am Rhein, sold as late as the spring of 1984 for $16.00 each.
The decal marking on the back promoted the plates as "Genuine Newellware" and being made at the Newell Pottery Company, a division of Edwin M. Knowles. The Knowles China company had closed twenty years prior, however the Bradford Exchange had bought the rights to the name. In actuality, all four plates were made at the Homer Laughlin China Company in Newell, WV.
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