Niderviller pottery
| Industry | Ceramics manufacturing |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1735 |
| Founder | Anne-Marie Défontaine |
| Headquarters | Niderviller , France |
Key people | Jean Louis de Beyerlé (owner from 1748), Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine (owner from 1770), François-Henri Lanfrey (partner and later owner) |
| Products | Faience, hard-paste porcelain |
| Owner | Dryander family (until after World War II) |
Number of employees | 700 (1972) |
Niderviller faience (known in German as Niederweiler) is a distinguished French ceramics producer established in Niderviller, located in the Lorraine region of France since 1735. The company originally specialized in faïence—tin-glazed earthenware—and later expanded its production to include hard-paste porcelain during the mid-18th century, before reverting to faience. Both types of ceramics were notably adorned with rich magenta or pink hues.
History
The factory was founded in 1735 by Anne-Marie Défontaine, who capitalized on the regional expertise of Lorraine under the management of Mathias le Sprit. In 1748, Défontaine’s nephews sold the operation for 90,000 livres to Baron Jean Louis de Beyerlé. Porcelain manufacturing commenced by 1763, facilitated by skilled artisans brought in from Saxony.
Situated outside the jurisdiction of French laws that protected the royal Sèvres porcelain monopoly, due to its location in Lorraine, Niderviller flourished for nearly twenty years. Baron de Beyerlé authored important ceramic technique treatises in 1760 and 1765, playing a key role in advancing porcelain craftsmanship. Beyond ceramics, he held significant positions such as Director of the Strasbourg Mint, where he produced coinage for Kings Louis XIV and Louis XV.
Initially sourcing fine kaolin from Germany, Beyerlé later acquired kaolin deposits near Limoges in France, enabling the production of uniquely white and translucent porcelain. Artistic direction was overseen by his wife, Dame Marguerite Chalons-Drolenvaux. The factory’s glaze quality was comparable to that of Sèvres.
Following the death of Duke Stanisław Leszczyński in 1766 and Lorraine’s incorporation into France, new legal restrictions constrained production due to Sèvres’ monopoly rights. As a result of financial difficulties, Beyerlé sold the factory in 1770 to Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine, who redirected production towards English-style fine earthenware (faience).
The manufactory faced ongoing financial strain amidst fires and prohibitions on soft-paste porcelain manufacture. Custine formed a partnership with François-Henri Lanfrey, who introduced cailloutage, a technique combining faience methods with crushed limestone clay. Despite these efforts, economic challenges persisted; Custine was executed by guillotine in 1793 during the Revolution, leading to temporary closure. The factory endured with a reduced workforce until Lanfrey purchased Custine’s shares in 1802.
Of historical note, Custine presented George Washington with a set of tableware in 1782.
In 1827, Lanfrey’s descendants sold the enterprise to Louis-Guillaume Dryander, formerly associated with Villeroy & Boch. Porcelain production briefly resumed during the Napoleonic era but ceased around 1830. The mid-19th century witnessed a revival that included establishing a German industrial ceramics factory. After territorial changes—becoming part of Germany in 1871 and again during World War II—the company operated under names such as "S.A. Faïencerie de Niderviller" and "Steingutfabriek Niederweiler A.G."
Post-war operations encountered profitability issues and changes in ownership structure. By 1972, "Faïenceries de Niderviller et Saint-Amand" employed approximately 700 workers; since then, employment numbers have declined. The Dryander family retained ownership until after World War II.
Museums exhibiting Niderviller ceramics
Niderviller ceramics are part of the collections in leading museums around the globe, such as the Louvre, Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, Sèvres – Cité de la céramique, Palace of the Dukes of Lorraine, and Musée des Arts décoratifs, Strasbourg. Their works also appear in notable institutions like the Smithsonian Institution, Mount Vernon, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Art Institute of Chicago, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Anthropology at UBC in Vancouver. Additionally, Niderviller pieces are exhibited in the Hallwyl Museum in Stockholm and various museums located in Hamburg, Berlin, Basel, and Zürich.
Staff in 1759
Documentation from 1759 reveals that Niderviller had expanded to employ a considerable number of artisans, including eleven painters and two sculptors, marking substantial development since Jean Louis de Beyerlé established the manufactory circa 1754. Compensation for workers was provided in ‘Sols’ produced in Strasbourg. Notable personnel and their approximate daily wages were:
- François Anstette, production supervisor, about 30 sols/day
- Jean-Baptiste Mainat, factory director
- Michel Martin, painter, approximately 20 sols/day
- Pierre Anstette, painter, around 24 sols/day
- Joseph Secger, painter, near 20 sols/day
- Fréderic Adolph Tiebauld, apprentice painter, about 24 sols/day
- Martin Schettier, apprentice painter, roughly 15 sols/day
- Augustin Ilerman, apprentice painter, close to 20 sols/day
- Daniel Koope, apprentice painter, nearly 12 sols/day
- Michel Anstette, apprentice painter, approximately 24 sols/day
- Jean-Pierre Racket, apprentice painter, about 18 sols/day
- Nicolas Lutze, apprentice painter, around 20 sols/day
- Deroy, apprentice moulder, near 20 sols/day
- Charle Reflects, apprentice sculptor, roughly 24 sols/day
- Jean Thalbotier, apprentice painter, about 20 sols/day
- Philip Arnold, apprentice sculptor, close to 20 sols/day
References
- Gaston Maugras, Pierre Croze-LeMercier, Memoires of Delphine de Sabran, Marquise de Custine, London: W. Heinemann, 1912
Further reading
- Dorothée Guillemé Brulon et al., Histoire de la faïence française. Strasbourg-Niderviller : sources et rayonnement, C. Massin, Paris, 1999, 167 pages.
- Dominique Dubus, La famille Seeger : aperçu des manufactures de Niderviller et de la rue Pierre Levée à Paris aux XVIIIe et XIXe siècles, D. Dubus, Cauge (Évreux), 1984.
- Martine Hassenforder, Les faïenciers de Niderviller, Musée du pays de Sarrebourg (Sarrebourg), 1990. 100 pages.
- Dominique Heckenbenner (ed.), Porcelaines de Niderviller (exhibition catalog from Musée du pays de Sarrebourg: June 29 – September 22, 1996), Musée du pays de Sarrebourg (Sarrebourg), 1996. p. 72.