Our collection is exclusively from Artoria Limoges; the leading manufacturer of porcelain giftware in Limoges, France. For generations, this family-owned factory has charmed the world with its elegant porcelain creations. Located on the banks of the Vienne River, near the center of town, the factory has successfully developed an expertise which relies upon traditional artisan methods of hand-crafting porcelain objects. Each piece is made of world renowned Limoges porcelain, and is sculpted by a team of expert sculptors and mold-makers; fine details in the porcelain are refined by professional finishers, the piece is then fired in a kiln once, to achieve a dry state, then dipped in an enamel glaze which covers the entire object, re-fired at the extremely high temperature of 1400 degrees Celsius (2552 Fahrenheit), hand decorated by Artoria's team of master artists, and fired again several times at lower temperatures. Artoria is perhaps best known for its extensive line of hand-painted Limoges boxes, which are all hinged by hand. It has developed literally thousands of these boxes, in all styles and shapes. A great many have been retired throughout the years having reached the set limited production run. These boxes range from the traditional round, square, or oval boxes with floral patterns to the highly whimsical boxes which often draw on modern inspirations. The boxes, all of which are modeled after the original hinged snuffboxes used by the French aristocracy in the 18th century, have been enormously popular among collectors since the mid-20th century. Each box represents a miniature masterpiece and is only released by the artist after it has been reviewed and approved for its flawless attention to every detail. Like other important pieces of artwork, each piece is numbered and comes with its own Certificate of Authenticity which verifies that the box is a genuine Artoria Limoges porcelain piece.
