The basic design of a "dishevelled bird standing on a rock" is derived from a Chelsea porcelain original of the mid-18 th century. Two bone china plates in the Spode Museum collection, believed to be Spode matchings for Chelsea originals of around 1812, are painted with variations of this subject.

The original printed version is recorded in the Spode pattern books as pattern number B595 dating from 1839. Later printed versions were also known under different names including Blackbird, Pink Bird and Rock Bird.

The different versions of the pattern had different pattern numbers. Sometimes the variation would be that the pattern was on a different shape or perhaps finished in a different way. Some of the most popular are detailed below.

Pattern number 2/6837 of 1916 was produced on Marlborough shape in a white earthenware. This had a registered number 651133 which registered the design with the British Patent Office on 1st September 1915 . Pattern number 2/7734 of 1923 was produced on the Camilla shape printed in brown and coloured underglaze.

Several monochrome versions of the pattern have been produced with different names. Rock Bird was available in pink with pattern number S2658 of 1951 and green, with pattern number S2672, also of 1951 on an ivory earthenware both on Marlborough shape. A green version with pattern number S2664 was also recorded in 1951 as Chelsea Bird. Confusingly the pattern produced in pink was also sometimes called Black Bird!

Confusion also seemed to occur with manufacturing too as ware has been seen featuring the pink version on Gadroon shape but sporting the pattern number for the green Chelsea Bird!

A slide-off transfer version on earthenware with pattern number S3399 was recorded in 1971. The pattern was discontinued in 1993. A version of Chelsea Bird on Stafford shape in china with number Y8555 was first recorded in 1989.