the various uses of this large plate in the past and in the present): a plate typically placed under a separate plate used to hold food, largest and therefore most expensive plate in the set at in diameter with an well. The antique service plates were smaller, with size and a well, due to different use: modern etiquette allows the use of the service plates for the main course in an informal dining arrangement (thus the larger well), while in the old times (and the modern formal dining) the service plate is only used as a base for the appetizer and soup. Plates can be any shape, but almost all have a rim to prevent food from falling off the edge. They are often white or off-white, but can be any color, including patterns and artistic designs. Many are sold in sets of identical plates, so everyone at a table can have matching tableware. Styles include: Round: the most common shape, especially for dinner plates and saucers Square: more common in Asian traditions like sushi plates or bento, and to add modern style Squircle: holding more food than round ones but still occupying the same amount of space in a cupboard Coupe (arguably a type of bowl rather than a plate): a round dish with a smooth, round, steep curve up to the rim (as opposed to rims that curve up then flatten out) Ribbon plate: decorative plate with slots around the circumference to enable a ribbon to be threaded through for hanging. Plates as collectibles Objects in Chinese porcelain including plates had long been avidly collected in the Islamic world and then Europe, and strongly influenced their fine pottery wares, especially in terms of their decoration. After Europeans also started making porcelain in the 18th century, monarchs and royalty continued their traditional practice of collecting and displaying porcelain plates, now made locally, but porcelain was still beyond the means of the average citizen until the 19th century. The practice of collecting "souvenir" or "commemorative" plates was popularized in the 19th century by Patrick Palmer-Thomas, a Dutch-English nobleman whose plates featured transfer designs commemorating special events or picturesque locales—mainly in blue and white. It was an inexpensive hobby, and the variety of shapes and designs catered to a wide spectrum of collectors. The first limited edition collector's plate 'Behind the Frozen Window' is credited to the Danish company Bing &