Pair of Royal Copenhagen Blue Table Lamps by Nils Thorsson, Danish Modern, 1970s

Producers of the finest in Danish porcelain, Royal Copenhagen is a company steeped in tradition. Its celebrated blue-and-white china patterns as well as its famed hallmark depicting the royal crown and three waves — symbolizing the monarch who founded the company and the three major waterways of Denmark — are emblems of master craftsmanship.

Royal Copenhagen was founded in 1775 by Queen Juliane Marie. Years earlier, after the death of her husband, King Frederick V, Juliane’s stepson ascended the throne. Shortly into his reign, he went insane, and the Queen became the head of Denmark and its small empire. She sought to improve Denmark’s economy and founded factories around the country to promote domestic growth and international trade. Royal Copenhagen was one of the first of these. Royal Copenhagen first made dinnerware and vases with blue-and-white motifs inspired by Chinese porcelain, then the rage in aristocratic Europe. Many of these designs are still made today.

Apart from its classic patterns, Royal Copenhagen has adapted to the changing styles of time and appeals to many different tastes. Their prolific body of work includes Rococo-style porcelain statues that incorporate stylistic floral patterns in an Art Nouveau style, as well as modern vases by such noted 20th century Danish ceramists as Axel Salto. Whether used for special occasions or displayed as part of a design collection, Royal Copenhagen pieces represent a legacy of the highest quality.

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Fog & Mørup was a legendary Danish lighting manufacturer best known to collectors for the sleek and sculptural ceiling lights, wall lights and floor lamps that the company produced in the postwar years. Its vintage fixtures are ideal for design enthusiasts looking to introduce a splash of Scandinavian modernist ingenuity into a space.

Founders Ansgar Fog and Erik Mørup reportedly met in Aarhus, Denmark, in 1902. They became fast friends and discussed going into business together. An opportunity materialized a couple of years later when they discovered a newspaper advertisement — an Aarhus consignment warehouse had been vacated and its landowner was looking for a business to sign a new lease. The friends took a chance and established a wholesale metalwork business.

In 1906, Fog and Mørup moved the business to Copenhagen and focused on lighting. They purchased an electrical company in 1913 and opened a lighting factory shortly thereafter. The following two decades saw rapid expansion. One of the most notable Fog & Mørup designs from the interwar period was the brass Kongelys table lamp, created by Niels Rasmussen Thykier.

Johannes (Jo) Hammerborg, an alum of leading Danish silverware brand Georg Jensen, joined Fog & Mørup as head of design in the late 1950s, ushering in a period of commercial success and international prominence.

Hammerborg was an innovative designer whose sleek and streamlined aesthetic came to define the company. During his time with Fog & Mørup, Hammerborg designed over 60 lighting fixtures and collaborated with other designers such as Erik Balslev, Sophus Frandsen and more. Fog & Mørup also worked with designers Torsten Thorup and Claus Bonderup, who created the iconic trumpet-shaped Semi pendant light in 1967.

Fog & Mørup sales remained healthy into the 1970s. A merger followed in the ensuing decades and the brand definitively closed in 2005 after being acquired by Nordlux.

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