The

Koninklijk or (, Dutch for 'royal') is an honorary title given to certain companies and non-profit organisations in the Netherlands and to a lesser extent Belgium, by the monarchs of each country. It was first introduced by Louis Bonaparte in 1807, then Ki ...

e Porceleyne Fles N.V. (trading publicly as Royal Delft) is a Dutch manufacturer of Delft Blue earthenware, headquartered in

Delft Delft () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam, to the southeast, ...

, the Netherlands. It is the only remaining factory out of 32 that were established in

during the 17th century. Today, the company has been active for over 360 years without interruption.

History

During the

Dutch Golden Age The Dutch Golden Age ( nl, Gouden Eeuw ) was a period in the history of the Netherlands, roughly spanning the era from 1588 (the birth of the Dutch Republic) to 1672 (the Rampjaar, "Disaster Year"), in which Dutch trade, science, and Dutch art, ...

, the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...

had a lively trade with the East and imported millions of pieces of

Chinese porcelain Chinese ceramics show a continuous development since pre-dynastic times and are one of the most significant forms of Chinese art and ceramics globally. The first pottery was made during the Palaeolithic era. Chinese ceramics range from constru ...

in the early 17th century.Volker, T. ''Porcelain and the Dutch East India Company'', 1602–1683, Leiden, 1955) p. 22. Exotic blue-and-white designs from China were particularly prized by Dutch and European elites. The decline of the Ming Dynasty following the death of the

Wanli Emperor The Wanli Emperor (; 4 September 1563 – 18 August 1620), personal name Zhu Yijun (), was the 14th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1572 to 1620. "Wanli", the era name of his reign, literally means "ten thousand calendars". He was the ...

negatively impacted Sino-Dutch trade, including earthenware, to the extent that Dutch merchants decided the only solution was to produce such objects locally. One such manufacturer was David Anthonisz van der Pieth, who founded ''De Porceleyne Fles'' ("the Porcelain Bottle") in 1653. From then until the late 18th century, the company produced earthenware for clients around the Netherlands and Europe. Delftware ranged from simple household items – plain white

earthenware Earthenware is glazed or unglazed nonvitreous pottery that has normally been fired below . Basic earthenware, often called terracotta, absorbs liquids such as water. However, earthenware can be made impervious to liquids by coating it with a ce ...

with little or no decoration – to fancy artwork. Pictorial plates were made in abundance, illustrated with religious motifs, native Dutch scenes with

windmills A windmill is a structure that converts wind power into rotational energy using vanes called sails or blades, specifically to mill grain (gristmills), but the term is also extended to windpumps, wind turbines, and other applications, in some par ...

and

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

boat A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size, shape, cargo or passenger capacity, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically found on inl ...

s, hunting scenes, landscapes and seascapes. Competition from the European porcelain industry, however, was fierce and by 1840, De Porceleyne Fles was the last factory remaining, all other competitors having ceased operations. In 1876, Joost Thooft bought the factory with the aim to revive the production of

Delftware Delftware or Delft pottery, also known as Delft Blue ( nl, Delfts blauw) or as delf, is a general term now used for Dutch tin-glazed earthenware, a form of faience. Most of it is blue and white pottery, and the city of Delft in the Netherland ...

. Together with Leo Senf, he worked to modernise operations and produce products that would be able to compete with European manufacturers. Thooft developed the trademark that is applied to all hand-painted Royal Delft items. After Thooft's death in 1890, owner Abel Labouchere helmed the company, overseeing the centralisation of production from dispersed locations around the city to the current factory location in 1916. In 1919, the

Dutch royal house In the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the monarchy is a constitutional office and is controlled by the Constitution of the Netherlands. A distinction is made between members of the royal family and members of the royal house. Membership According t ...

awarded the company the right to add the prefix ''Koninklijke'' (Royal) to its name, a sign of appreciation for the company's efforts to preserve an important Dutch industry. To this day, the company maintains a close relation with the

Dutch Royal Family The monarchy of the Netherlands is a constitutional monarchy. As such, the role and position of the monarch are governed by the Constitution of the Netherlands. Consequently, a large portion of it is devoted to the monarch. Roughly a third of ...

Gallery of images

File:Porceleyneflespaintingandmarksign.jpg, Delft painter at work on object File:Delftblauwmerk.JPG, Trademark of Delft Blue item File:1953 porceleyne fles.JPG, Example of Royal Delft work File:De Porceleyne Fles 0349.JPG, Different phases of the manufacturing process

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1653 establishments in the Dutch Republic Economic history of the Netherlands Porcelain Ceramics manufacturers of the Netherlands Companies established in 1653 Manufacturing plants in the Netherlands Kitchenware brands Dutch brands Delftware

History

Gallery of images

See also

References

External links