The Form »Maria«
of the Brand Rosenthal classic

»Maria« is one of the best known classic services. For generations it has been the porcelain most couples wanted for their wedding gift and other occasions. The paragon for the form was a silver tea pot with matching creamer and sugar in 1815. Privy councilor Philipp Rosenthal, the founder of Rosenthal, bought those pieces while traveling in England and decided to have them modeled in porcelain.
The form got its name out of love. Philipp Rosenthal saluted his wife, the French countess Maria de Beurges by giving the form her first name.

The form, first formed in 1916, is surrounded by a dainty curved pomegranate relief which reflects décor elements of the Biedermeier era. This mix of styles contributed greatly to the special and natural charm of the polygon form and made »Maria« a favorite. A characteristic for the service pieces are also the orthogonal handles which are based on the ebony or ivory handles of the silver tea pot copy as well as the square shapes with their light and shades contrasts.
In 1997, even the avant-garde designer Gijs Bakker was so fascinated by the form »Maria« that he put different coloured knitted dresses (»Knitted Maria«) on the coffee pots for the project “Experiments in porcelain - Droog Design for Rosenthal”.

The basis for the success of »Maria« was hard-earned. As the story goes, Philipp Rosenthal said at the beginning of a dealer conference: “You probably ask yourselves why I invited you here. I have heard that you don’t want to buy the form »Maria«. I just have to say the following: If you don’t want to buy »Maria« then you don’t have to buy anything else from me”.

From knife block to press iron - due to its success in the market the service contained more than 100 pieces by 1932. Up until today, »Maria« is the most extensive service within the brand Rosenthal classic. An array of special and additional parts completes the service to an entire gourmet program. Decorative accessories like vases, bowls, candlesticks, napkin rings and more make the form »Maria« an ideal gift collection.

        

BIOGRAPHY
-  Rosenthal AG "1916 - 1996: 80 Jahre Porzellankultur", Selb 
-  Rosenthal AG "Fakten Serviceformen", Selb
-  Schreiber, Hermann "Reicher Junge, armer Hund" in "Die Rosenthal Story", ECON, Düsseldorf