The imperial Porcelain Plant has existed since 1744. Russian scientists after numerous experiments managed to make porcelain dough which was improved with time. Before only the Chinese kept the secret of the porcelain formula, they called it “White gold”.
At first in Russia snuffboxes were made of porcelain. One such snuffbox used to cost as much as the annual salary was of the craftsman who made it. They started making porcelain services as soon as furnaces in which porcelain could be cooked had been invented. Several plates from this service are still in the Museum of Imperial Porcelain. The design is a net with flowers entwined in between.
Porcelain changed, emperors replaced one another, new works of art were created, and even after the revolution the plant was not closed. It began to produce agitation (propaganda) porcelain which is also a very interesting avant-garde art form.
In the 40th years, years of Blockada (Siege of Leningrad) a special design was created. Today’s brand of the factory – the Cobalt Net. Golden lines are applied manually. The cobalt net symbolizes the cracked ice of the Neva river and at the same time reminds that first porcelain service was made long time ago in the 18th century for the empress Elizabeth, the Happy Empress.
