Which kind turns up most often?

Japanese Imari. The word appears in 118 of 495 titles, 'japanese' in 109, and the two together in 79, and Imari makes up about a third of current stock on Sellingantiques. English named-factory dessert and cabinet plates are the next largest group, with Worcester in 77 titles, Derby in 37, Coalport in 20 and Minton in 18.

What is the difference between a dessert and a cabinet plate?

A dessert plate came from a service and was eaten off. It is usually the most decorated part of that service, and often smaller than a dinner plate. A cabinet plate was made to be displayed, on a wall or behind glass. The signed painted work, painted fruit especially, sits in this group.

Are these plates always round?

No. The Imari group alone runs to shell-shaped, hexagonal, octagonal, square and oval plates, and dealers flag these as unusual shapes repeatedly. Rims vary as well. Scalloped and shaped edges appear across the heading, and some rims are pierced through in openwork before firing.

How reliable is the dating on a listing?

The period field is broad. '19th Century' covers 103 listings, '1900s' 91 and '18th Century' 62, with reign labels like Georgian, Regency and Victorian overlapping those bands rather than tightening them. Only 178 of the 495 listings carry a clean year, and plenty of titles that quote a circa date in words are still tagged undated. The title text usually says more than the tag.

Do pairs and sets come up?

Often. 'Pair' appears in 70 titles, and group lots run deeper than that. Sets of twelve appear in Sèvres-style and Satsuma, seventeen Tonquin China dessert plates in another listing, and a matching collection of fourteen Japanese Imari. Sets cluster toward the top of the range.

What counts as a large plate here?

Anything called a charger. The word is in 17 titles, and it means an oversized display plate or platter rather than something from a service. The largest recorded by diameter are a 55cm Japanese Imari plate and a 60cm Vienna charger, with a 20-inch Sèvres charger and an 18.25-inch Cantonese charger behind them.