I bought this stoneware hotel plate in a little junk shop in West Auckland a number of decades ago just because it amused me and it was only a couple of bucks. I am amazed I have owned it this long without actually breaking it yet it has survived over 25 years of use off and on.
I'm interested in finding out more about it, though. After some previous aborted attempts at finding out anything of its provenance, recently I think I had a breakthrough on some of the history.
There was a Joseph Sherlock/Shirlock McConkey who ran a tearooms in Palmerston North in the 1910s named the 'Kosy.' Seemingly he emigrated alone from Ireland in the mid 1890s and had some history in Wellington and also possibly Masterton in different professions before he relocated to the Manuatu-Wanganui area, by which time he was describing himself as a confectioner. In the late 1920s he appears to have moved to Auckland where he was in catering briefly before retiring. I think this plate comes from the Auckland period of his career, although I have no evidence he ever ran any kind of business during this time. Other than that, there's little explanation for how it ended up in Glen Eden, where I found it If you have anything to add, please leave a comment below.