Pictures and patterns on ceramics that aren’t hand painted are called decals, from the French decalque: to copy by tracing. This technique totally revolutionised the UK ceramics industry, making patterns and design individuality more available to everyday people. This piece is probably produced in recent times. Now that digital printing is possible, the industry has been revolutionised yet again, making the printing and design process even more accessible. After all these years ceramic has remained the material of choice to eat your dinner off.