Flora Danica custard cup, triangular w. stand no. 20-3575, Royal Copenhagen

Flora Danica - handpainted since 1790
The story of Flora Danica takes its beginning towards the end of the 18th century, during which period Porcelain was referred to as " the white gold". The name Flora Danica comes from the compre- hensive botanical masterpiece Flora Danica, published 1761-1883, in which a large part of the Danish flora has been illustrated on copperplates. All details are modelled and carved by hand, and all pieces are hand- painted in overglase coated with 22 carat gold on the edges. Every piece of a set is itself a work of art and Flora Danica is one of the world's finest and most exclusive services. King Christian VII ordered Flora Danica, probably as a gift for Empress Katherina II of Russia. However the Empress died before the completion of the service and thus it stayed in the posession of the Danish royal family and can be seen at Rosenborg Castle and Christian VII's palace in Copenhagen. Flora Danica is a sublime representative of Danish arts and crafts and today it is pro- ducesd in exactly the same way as it was more than 200 years ago.