Luneville Faience is one of the most famous French pottery manufacturers. It has been located in

Lunéville Lunéville ( ; German : ''Lünstadt'' ; Lorrain: ''Leneinvile'') is a commune in the northeastern French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle. It is a subprefecture of the department and lies on the river Meurthe at its confluence with the Ve ...

Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...

, France since 1730.

History

Jacques Chambrette Senior initially started the first fine pottery works in

in 1711. His son began in 1722 by trading

faience Faience or faïence (; ) is the general English language term for fine tin-glazed pottery. The invention of a white Ceramic glaze, pottery glaze suitable for painted decoration, by the addition of an stannous oxide, oxide of tin to the Slip (c ...

. He built his own factory there in 1730, just before he obtained the royal permission. He formulated a new type of earthenware called "terre de Lorraine" in 1748 based on the study of English potteries. As soon as 1749, he was granted the label of ''official Royal manufactory'' by Stanislaus I, former

king of Poland Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of Royal elections in Poland, free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electab ...

. At the time, Lorraine being indeed an independent state, France levied heavy taxes on goods imported from there, reason why Jacques Chambrette established as early as 1758 an additional factory in

Saint-Clément, Meurthe-et-Moselle Saint-Clément () is a commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department in north-eastern France. It was there that a sister company of the Lunéville Faience manufactory was founded by Jacques Chambrette in 1758. It still produces today both old & ...

, only seven miles away, but located on French territory to escape those duties. However, at the death of the founder, the two factories were split between the family and

Richard Mique Richard Mique () (18 September 1728 – 8 July 1794) was a Neoclassical architecture, Neoclassical French architect born in Lorraine. He is most remembered for his picturesque hamlet, the hameau de la Reine — not particularly characteristic of h ...

bought in 1763 the Saint-Clément part. In 1786 Sébastien Keller bought Luneville from the Chambrette family following the bankruptcy of the pottery manufacturer in 1785. For the next 137 years, the Keller family controlled the company. About 1832, Sébastien Keller's son aligned with his brother-in-law Guérin to give birth to the mark K&G (or KG) from the names Keller and Guérin. In 1900, there were around 1,100 employees. The factory's products had a worldwide reputation and participated successfully in various fields of art and industrial exhibitions. upright=1, Stamp of Lunéville K & G (Keller et Guerin), early 20th century

Developments since 1968

The former pottery factory in Lunéville is now a company store, production continuing in Saint Clément.

Some important products

* In 1746, the statue of Nicolas Ferry "le nain bébé" was offered to the royal court. *1770s - first vases designed by Richard Mique of

Louis XV style The Louis XV style or ''Louis Quinze'' (, ) is a style of architecture and decorative arts which appeared during the reign of Louis XV. From 1710 until about 1730, a period known as the Régence, it was largely an extension of the Louis XIV sty ...

of which he is one of the main proponents in his field. He also adorned the queen's hamlet at the

Petit Trianon The Petit Trianon (; French for 'small Trianon') is a Neoclassical architecture, Neoclassical style château located on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, France. It was built between 1762 and 1768 ...

in Versailles with some vases that are still visible there today.

List of some designers and other artists involved with Lunéville

* Charles-Adzir Trouillot * Auguste Majorelle *

Jean-Baptiste Pillement Jean-Baptiste Pillement (24 May 1728 – 26 April 1808) was a French painter and designer, known for his exquisite and delicate landscapes, but whose importance lies primarily in the engravings done after his drawings, and their influence in spr ...

* Mougin brothers * Géo Condé * Ernest Bussière *

Émile Gallé Émile Gallé (; 4 May 1846 in Nancy, France, Nancy – 23 September 1904 in Nancy) was a French artist and designer who worked in glass, and is considered to be one of the major innovators in the French Art Nouveau movement. He was noted fo ...

* Paul-Louis Cyfflé

References

External links

Lunéville faience and associated Lorraine royal manufactorieshistory of the Lunéville manufactory history of the Saint-Clément manufactory history of the manufactory
in ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Luneville faience Ceramics manufacturers of France Companies established in 1722 French brands Figurine manufacturers Companies based in Grand Est Faience of France