How do you identify Noritake china?

Noritake china is stamped on the bottom of the piece with the name “Noritake” along with the pattern name. Some older pieces have a four-digit code rather than a pattern name. The company maintains a database that matches these codes to their corresponding pattern names.

Noritake began importing china to the United States in 1904. Early pieces made between 1890 and 1921 have a stamp that contains the word "Nippon," which indicates that the china was made in Japan. In 1921, the stamp was changed to "Japan" to adhere to the McKinley Tariff Act, which requires that all goods imported into the Unites States list the county of origin in English.