Limoges Porcelain

Is a type of hard-paste porcelain produced in factories in and around the city of Limoges in France. Production in the region dates from the late 18th century.

Limoges had long been a centre for the production of decorative objects, being the most famous centre for the production of vitreous enamel dating back to the 12th century, and also, from the 1730s it was a minor producer of faience earthenware (tin-glazed pottery).

In 1761 Turgot, an early liberal economist was made tax collector for Limoges which included some of the most over-taxed and poorest parts of France. He was keen to encourage local agriculture and industries and following the discovery of kaolin in the poor area of Saint-Yrieix-la-Perche, in 1771 he encouraged the production of hard-paste porcelain.

This was put under the patronage of King Louis XVI’s brother, the comte d’Artois and was later bought by the King in 1784 with a view to the factories producing hard-paste bodies that could be decorated at Sevres, but this never happened.

A number of private factories were founded in Limoges after the French Revolution. Well known names include Haviland & Co, the Allund factory, Martin Freres and Bernardaud.

After the French Revolution a number of private factories were established at Limoges, including Bernardaud and Haviland & Co. Limoges factories also produced undecorated ‘blanks’ for decoration elsewhere, and some were exported to the United States and were used by students learning to paint china, a popular hobby amongst gentile women in the late 1800s.

Manufacturing of high quality porcelain continues today in Limoges.