By on March 27, 2012 - 1:16 am in Denmark, Historical Places / no comments
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Long before Danish architecture, furniture design and Lego made Danish arts and crafts famous and created a worldwide demand for such products, the royal porcelain had already put Denmark on the world map. As early as 1790, Flora Danica was famous far beyond the country's borders. Today Danes, Americans and Japanese each buy a third of Royal Copenhagen's production.
After several generations where royal porcelain has been deemed to be distinctly middle-class, it now finds itself "in" with the younger generation of Danes who have, for instance, begun collecting Blue Pheasant (the Japanese have always been particularly fond of Blue Fluted porcelain). Today the younger generation no longer buys porcelain figures of bears, polar bears and dogs - these remain very popular abroad however.
By far the most expensive porcelain service is Flora Danica, which has a gilded rim and Danish floral motifs. The first service was finished in 1790 and was originally intended as a gift for the Russian empress, Catherine II. She died before the gift was finished and so the service remained the property of the Danish royal family. It took one man 12 years to paint all 1,802 pieces of the service by which time he had ruined his eyesight. The 1,802 pieces were sufficient for 100 settings. There remain 1,530 pieces of the original service, a fact which suggests that the Danish royal family take very good care of their porcelain.
Today, a complete Flora Danica dinner service for 24 people costs around DKK 1 million. This, however, includes 2 ice bells, each of which costs DKK 100,000.
The Danish royal family continue to buy Flora Danica as official gifts, although this is not the reason for the name royal porcelain. The factory was founded in 1775 by a Danish chemist. King Christian VII bought shares in the company as early as 1779. The king was mad and his mother, Juliane Marie, greatly influenced his financial transactions. Born in Germany where her brother had a porcelain factory, she too was determined to increase her public standing by having her own factory.
As time went on, the royal family lost their shares in the company, and in 1985, Royal Copenhagen was bought by Carlsberg, which has amalgamated the design studio Bing & Grøndahl, Georg Jensen, Holmegaard, Kosta Boda, Ôrrefors and Illum's Bolighus under the Royal Scandinavia name (their offices are situated at Amagertorv).
It was in fact Queen Juliane Marie who came up with the idea for the factory logo, namely the 3 blue lines symbolising the Little Belt, the Great Belt and the Sound.
Ordinary tours - Tour length: 1 hour.
- Price: DKK 25
If you'd like to see how porcelain has been manufactured over the past several hundred years, arrange to go on a Royal Copenhagen guided tour of the factory which is situated in Smallegade in Frederiksberg.
The tour begins at the Welcome Center where visitors view a video recounting part of the factory's history. The best-known service is Blue Fluted, which is either ribbed or comes with a semi-blond or full-blond rim. Blue Fluted remains extremely popular, not least with the Japanese.
The tour moves on to the factory yard where you get some idea of the 40,000 square metre area housing 1,000 employees. The visitor is then led in to the painting workshop where painters paint up to 15 plates a day using special brushes. The most difficult aspect of the Blue Fluted service is the candelabre, which alone takes 3 days to complete.
There is also a visit to the museum wing where you can view some of the factory's earliest porcelain services. Here too you will find early examples of other creative pieces of handicraft such as stoneware which were attempted over the years. The tour is rounded off with a visit to the showroom where current porcelain dinner services are on display to the public.
VIP tour - Length: 1 hour.
- Price: DKK 50
This higher priced tour includes a visit to the workshops where employees manufacture the porcelain, and closes with a short course in porcelain painting. The factory is not interested in giving too many VIP tours as this tends to disrupt work for the staff. VIP tours are for the same reason not arranged during the factory's holidays in July.
The tour begins in the same way as the ordinary tour but soon leads to the glazing room. It is a remarkable thing to behold the 37-metre long kiln through which the porcelain has to pass to burn at a temperature of 900 C°. There is an even larger kiln measuring 48 metres for the glazed porcelain. Here the porcelain takes 46 hours to pass through the kiln and burns at a temperature of 1400 C°. There is also time for a quick look at the foundry as well as the shops where the porcelain is joined, glazed and painted. This is the place where the 3 ladies who have worked at the factory for 29 years sit and do their work.
Here, you get the distinct impression that you are dealing with a true handicraft, where every separate piece of the service is made by hand. If, for instance, the painters want to make a Blue Flower porcelain service, they can choose from 16 different flowers. This creates a diversity and individuality of style, which is not to be found on a mass-produced dinner service. Certain rules have to be observed; the circle in the centre must be perfectly round otherwise the plate is rejected. A great deal is indeed rejected if the slightest mistake is found. Many of these seconds (you will often need a microscope to spot the error) find their way to the factory shop at Søndre Fasanvej at considerably reduced prices.
Do-it-yourself
- Tour length: approx. 2 hours (including the tour itself).
- Price: DKK 125
If you have a porcelain painter hiding away inside you then a brief hands-on painters' course is just the place for you to dazzle and shine. The course instructors have a trained eye and are immediately able to spot whether the visitor is someone with a natural talent or someone who has had experience in the trade.
First and foremost it is about trying things yourself. It looks so easy when the painters at the workshops create blue flowers on the white plates. After careful instruction you are given the chance of decorating a hollowed egg with the famous Blue Flower pattern. Blue Fluted is the easiest pattern for this purpose. It quickly becomes clear why it is so important for the paint brushes to be cut the way they are. Whatever you do, don't give up. It takes the professionals many years of hard practice before they become as adept as they are.
Table, set thyself!
- Course length: approx. 2 hours (including guided tour).
- Price: DKK 125
"Table, set thyself!" This is how the fairy tales read and as if by magic, the table suddenly sets itself. Things are not quite that easy in reality however, and if you want to do things the "correct" way, it can quickly develop into something of an art. Royal Copenhagen offer a 1-hour course in table-setting where the art can be learned.
The course is held for 10-30 people at a time on the first floor of the Welcome Center. It can be concluded with lunch in the library (here you'll find books, porcelain figures and view of the factory courtyard with its tall trees). The course begins with the instructor explaining something of the history of Danish table-setting. When exactly did the wild and barbaric Danes learn to eat with a knife and fork? When were women allowed to sit at the table? When did they start using tablecloths and napkins? Today, we eat off royal porcelain and white damask using cutlery. It's all a far cry from the Vikings who attacked their food with their fingers, drying them on the hair of slaves.
Once everyone has had a chance to study the table setting, everything is removed. Course participants then enter the library where porcelain and cutlery have been jumbled together. In groups of 4, participants try to set a table. It's usually hilarious and very instructive. Even those familiar with Miss Manners can take home a tip or two. Participants are given a glass of wine or water as refreshment and the whole seance is tied up at the end with a diploma.
A Danish cold buffet is available in connection with pre-booked tours, as is coffee, sandwiches and brunch for parties of at least 10. The Welcome Center is happy to arrange dinner at the factory for parties of no less than 50.
Round off your tour by visiting the Royal Copenhagen factory shop on Søndre Fasanvej - or, if you can afford it, pay a visit to the shop at Amagertorv which sells firsts from the factory production. Rest those tired feet at the Royal Copenhagen tea room, where you can drink out of your newly acquired porcelain.
Tags: Copenhagen Copenhagen County Danish art Danish arts Danmark dansk kunst Denmark Flora Danica Historical Places København Københavns Amt rejseguide rejsende undren rejser tips rejsetips tourist guide travel advice travel guide Travel Tips travelers wonder turistguide VIP tour
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