Royal Porcelain Manufacture Berlin
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| GmbH | |
| Industry | Ceramic products |
| Founded | 1763 |
| Headquarters | Berlin |
| Products | European hard-paste porcelain |
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Number of employees
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150 2013 |
| Website | www.kpm-berlin.com |
The Royal Porcelain Factory in Berlin (German: Königliche Porzellan-Manufaktur Berlin) (KPM) was founded in 1763 by Frederick II of Prussia (Frederick the Great). Its actual origins, however, lie in three private enterprises, which, under crown patronage, were trying to establish the production of "white gold" (i.e. porcelain) in Berlin from the mid-18th century onwards.
The company logo is a cobalt blue sceptre, which is stamped (painted prior to 1837) on every piece. All painted pieces produced by KPM are signed by the painter. KPM is still producing to this day; each piece of dishware and decorative porcelain is entirely unique.
KPM has produced a number of dishware forms and porcelain figurines throughout its history. Some forms have hardly changed their shape in over 200 years of production. Frederick the Great, who, as the owner, jokingly referred to himself as his own "best customer", was under the spell of the Rococo style during his life; a culmination of this artistic style can be seen in his castles.
To this day, the most successful designs of the 1930s are the Urbino, Urania and Arkadia (originally a tea set designed in honor of KPM's 175th anniversary) created by Trude Petri, whereby the Arkadia medallions were created by Siegmund Schütz and the Urania set (with the same basic form as the Arkadia) did not enter production until after the war, as was also the case with the Arkadia table set. Porcelain figurines of different styles corresponding to each era have always been created under the guidance of the master workshop, including the modern animal sculptures, such as the miniature Buddy Bear or the Bear Knut.
Before KPM Berlin was founded two attempts had already been made to establish a porcelain manufactory in Berlin.
In 1751 the Berlin wool manufacturer Wilhelm Caspar Wegely was granted the royal privilege to set up a porcelain manufactory in Berlin. Furthermore, Frederick granted exemption from duties for the import of essential materials and assured him of the exclusion of all competition.
Wegely hired first-class craftsmen from his competitors, and appointed the porcelain sculptor Ernst Heinrich Reichard to the post of chief modeller. However, technical difficulties and the Seven Years’ War between Prussia and Saxony soon proved to be the enterprise’s downfall. In 1757 he dissolved his company and sold its inventories, equipment and materials to the Berlin businessman Johann Ernst Gotzkowsky.
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Wikipedia