History

The Herend Porcelain Manufactory was established in 1826 in the small Hungarian town of Herend, in the Bakony Hills of western Hungary. Its early years were financially precarious until Mór Fischer purchased the company in 1839 and transformed it into one of the world's leading porcelain manufacturers. Fischer exhibited Herend's wares at the Great Exhibition in London in 1851, where the company's extraordinary hand-painted pieces attracted global attention — and a significant commission from Queen Victoria.

Queen Victoria's Pattern

The turning point came when Queen Victoria admired a Herend dinner service decorated with delicate Chinese-inspired butterflies and flowers. Her purchase of the service for Windsor Castle prompted Herend to name the pattern 'Victoria' — it remains one of the house's most popular patterns to this day, along with the Rothschild Bird (commissioned by the Rothschild family in the 1860s) and the Chinese Bouquet. These royal and aristocratic associations elevated Herend to the highest tier of European porcelain.

Hand-Painting

What distinguishes Herend from all competitors is the degree of hand-work in every piece. Each item is painted entirely by hand by artisans who undergo years of training to master the precise brushwork required for Herend's intricate patterns. The manufactory employs over 1,200 people, the majority of them painters. No transfers, no decals: every butterfly, every flower, every gilded detail is applied by hand. A complex dinner plate may require several hours of a single painter's attention. The entire city of Herend is economically dependent on the porcelain works.

Patterns & Collections

Herend maintains over 4,000 different designs in its archives, though the core commercial range focuses on approximately 100 patterns. The most celebrated include: Victoria (butterflies and flowers), Rothschild Bird (exotic birds in flowering branches), Chinese Bouquet (in blue or green), Printemps (spring flowers), and Indian Basket. Each pattern is applied in multiple colourways. Herend also produces sculptural figurines — animals, birds, characters from Hungarian folklore — that are among the most collected porcelain figurines in the world.

Prices

Entry Herend pieces — small figurines, individual teacups — begin around $100–200. A single dinner plate in the Victoria pattern is approximately $300–400. A five-piece place setting ranges from $800 to $2,000 depending on the pattern. A complete formal dinner service for twelve can cost $15,000–50,000. Herend is sold at its own boutiques, at major department stores and at herend.com.