New Book | Danish Porcelain: 250 Years
From ACC Art Books:
Elliot Todd, Danish Porcelain: 250 Years of Royal Copenhagen and Bing & Grøndahl; Volume 1: A Legacy in Porcelain, Stoneware, and Faience; Volume 2: A Collection of Works (New York: ACC Art Books, 2025), 936 pages, ISBN: 978-1788841504, £125 / $175.
This detailed two-volume set offers an unparalleled scholarly insight into the history of Danish porcelain. Renowned for its ceramic industry, Denmark earned its status as a leading porcelain exporter through intense rivalry with other firms across Europe. With its factories excelling time and time again at the largest international expositions of the 19th and early 20th century, Danish porcelain took its own place on the world stage. Founded in 1775, Royal Copenhagen remains one the oldest porcelain manufacturers still in operation today. Throughout its history, the factory has experienced numerous highs and lows and has weathered more than 130 years of competition from the Bing & Grøndahl Porcelain Factory. After 1882, the two factories were located less than a mile apart, with their flagship stores eventually competing side-by-side for sales in the heart of Copenhagen.
Danish Porcelain was inspired by a two-generation collection of Royal Copenhagen and Bing & Grøndahl porcelain, stoneware, and faience begun by the author’s father in 1947. Developed over the past 20 years, this is the first comprehensive publication to critically review the history of both factories, from their beginnings to their eventual merger. Featuring detailed appendices and over 2400 images, these two volumes comprise an important source of information on the history of Danish porcelain, including the many technical and artistic successes of the late 1880s that revolutionized production worldwide.
Elliot Todd is a second-generation collector of Danish porcelain, stoneware, and faience from the factories of Royal Copenhagen and Bing & Grøndahl. Dr. Todd recently retired as Professor Emeritus from a major American university and is internationally recognized as a leading researcher and educator.
Enfilade 
I pre-ordered the set, which just arrived. Coverage of the late 19th and 20th centuries is spectacularly rich, and I’m extremely glad and grateful to have it. However, readers interested in the founding period of Royal Copenhagen may wish to know that, out of 935 pages in the two volumes, a total of 46 address the years from 1775 to 1884.
Thanks, Jeffrey, for the additional information. Hugely helpful. -Craig
The best references on Royal Copenhagen produced from 1775 to 1884 come from Lauritz Dorenfeldt and are summarized in the book. However, only one of the following is in English. See:
Dorenfeldt, L.G. (1998) Kongelig dansk: Blåmalt porselen fra den kongelige
Porcelainsfabrik 1775–c.1820. Oslo: C. Huitfeldt Forlag A/S.
———. (1999) ‘Royal Danish Blue-Decorated Porcelain’. Antiques
156:166–175.
———. (2000) ‘Blue-painted porcelain’ in Royal Copenhagen 1775–
2000: 225 Years of Design. B.B. Laursen and S. Nottelmann (eds.).
Copenhagen: Nyt Nordisk Forlag Arnold Busck.
———. (2000a) Kongelig dansk 2: Blåmalt porselen fra den kongelige
Porcelainsfabrik 1820–1923. Oslo: C. Huitfeldt Forlag A/S.
———. (2002) Kongelig dansk 2: Blåmalt porselen fra den kongelige
Porcelainsfabrik 1820–1923. Oslo: C. Huitfeldt Forlag A/S.
———. (2004) Kongelig dansk: Blåmalt porselen fra den kongelige
Porcelainsfabrik 1775– ca.1820. Copenhagen: Nyt Nordisk Forlag Arnold
Busck.
———. (2015) ‘The German influence on porcelain with blue underglaze
decorations from The Royal Copenhagen Porcelain Factory 1775–1810’.
Keramos. 228: 35–62.
———. (2016) Kongeligt porcelæn – Brogetmalet porcelæn fra den kongelige
Porcelainsfabrik 1775-1810. Copenhagen: Nyt Nordisk Forlag Arnold
Busck.