ABSTRACT
Social practices relating to identity construction can be a way for individuals or households to determine and display alignment with or rejection of others. From clothing to ceramics, displays of identity often take the form of consumer goods where a household's possessions become a mirror into that household's concept and vision of itself. For Thomas Jefferson and other members of the plantation elite in Virginia, access occurred through direct purchase of goods from European and English merchants and through shopping in local stores. The purchase of large quantities or sets of transfer-printed ceramics could signal the owner's mastery of modern dining etiquette while also naturalizing standardization and segmentation. Examining the archaeo-logically recovered ceramics from Poplar Forest in conjunction with both personal and merchant account records highlights not only the frequency of ceramic purchases by the Jefferson household but also the level of importance placed on these objects by their owners.
