This modern mug "The Hunter Rabbit" is made in a complex technique of large relief pottery. At the manufacturer's factory, the mugs are stored in a disassembled form. However, they are also used for making figurines.
In our case, the mug is made using the molds of the parts that were developed over 130 years ago by the talented craftsmen of the Schierholez & Sohn factory. In the late 19th-century catalog of the Schierholz & Sohn factory, the "The Hunter Rabbit" figurative mug is listed as item 53. You can find out about this by following the link: [link]
The Schierholz factory was founded in 1816 by two merchant brothers from Arnstadt named Heuacker, one of whom died soon after. In 1817, Christian Schierhol, who came from a wealthy merchant family in Arnstadt, became a partner in the company, and later that year, he acquired the remaining Heuacker brother's share.
On December 29, 1817, Schierhol was granted the sole license to manage the factory.
You can read more about the Schierholz family business, which spans several generations, in a research article by mug collector Frank Loevi, which can be accessed by clicking on this link: [link]
As I continue my story, I will continue to draw information from Frank Loevi.
In 1877, the company was headed by Max Schierholz and Arthur Schierholz, the grandchildren of Christian Schierholz. However, Max Schierholz left the company after about ten years. By 1887, Arthur Schierholz became the sole owner and manager of the factory.
Around the same time, in April 1886, Edmund Haase was hired as a fashion designer. Although little is known about Edmund Haase today, he created designs for the Meissen porcelain company that were used to decorate the Bavarian king's castles in Linderhof, Herrenchiemsee, Berg, and even in Neuschwanstein, the "castle of dreams" for King Ludwig II of Bavaria. Given this information, there is no doubt that Haase was one of the most skilled designers of his time. According to the company, Haase was responsible for the design of the figurative mugs produced in the late 19th century. It can be concluded that the earliest production of Schierholz shaped mugs began after 1886, when Haase joined the factory.
In 1899, after Arthur's death, the company became a limited liability company and changed its name to Von Schierholz Porzellan Manufaktur Plaue G.m.b.H.
It would appear that character stein production at the Schierholz factory effectively ceased in 1899 and did not begin again until sometime after 1930. When production resumed, surprisingly little use was made of existing molds. Instead, a small series of new molds was created, which included, among others, both the “Skull” and “Skull on Book” steins.
It is interesting to note that the limited resumption of character stein production by Schierholz coincides with the failure in 1930 of a primary rival, Ernst Bohne Söhne.
The city of Plaue, like the rest of Thuringia, was annexed by the GDR after World War II. Von Schierholz Porzellan Manufaktur Plaue G.m.b.H. was nationalized and renamed VEB Porzellan Manufaktur Plaue in 1972. After the reunification of Germany in 1990, the company regained its original name, Von Schierholz Porzellan Manufaktur Plaue G.m.b.H., and the range of distinctive mugs was reintroduced using mostly the original Von Schierholz designs. See the link for details: [link]
In 1995, the company known as Schierholz & Sohn in the late 19th century was sold to Seltmann-Weiden Enterprises, which currently owns more than half a dozen German porcelain manufacturers. See the link for details: [link]
However, there is no evidence that the new owners of the Schierholz factory have continued to produce distinctive porcelain.
At the same time, it is known that after 1995, the company Domex/Gerz began to sell replicas of Schierholz models, the shapes of which were developed in the period 1887-1890 by the designer Edmund Haase. However, this was no longer porcelain. Replicas of the late 90s of the 20th century were already made of ceramics.
It is important to emphasize that the "Hunter Rabbit" mug in its current form is essentially a product of late 19th-century design. Moreover, it is listed as number 53 in the catalog of shaped beer mugs produced by Schierholz & Sohn. You can view the original version in the catalog by clicking on this link: [link]
You can watch a video about this mug at the following link: [link]
View the collection of Paulo Vik Falcon
| type | character stein | material | earthenware |
| producer | other | mold | 53 |
| designer/decorator | other | ||
| capacity | 1/2 | ||
| design date | 1995 | ||
| height | 30.0 cm (appx. 11.7 inches.) |
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