Maria Laach Refectory Bowl

This small series of monastery tableware is built around the soup bowls which are used by the monks in the Maria Laach refectory at mealtimes. The simple stoneware bowls and the other pieces of tableware are produced in the monastery pottery, where the traditional Westerwald clay is cast in plaster moulds or turned on a potter's wheel, as are the plates and cups. The glaze is transparent and enhances the individual character of the clay. It is food-safe and can be machine washed. All pieces are manufactured material-intensively and therefore highly durable. Only where function dictates, for example at the brim of cups, mugs and bowls, the stoneware is finished more thinly. The decor is applied by hand and in a deep sky blue called "Maria Laach blue".

The manufacture of ceramic ware has a long tradition in the Benedictine monastery of Maria Laach in the Eifel. In fact, the monastery is located in a region which has been known for this hand craftsmanship for hundreds of years. In that regard, the monastery went through a renaissance in the early 20th century at the hands of a Bauhaus school trained monk, Theodor Bogler. Under the direction of Brother Kilian, the ceramic workshops have now been reopened. The monks are able to apply all the classic techniques with the potter's wheel and casting mould. In addition, the monastery employed a porcelain painter trained in Meissen, the home of the famous Meissen porcelain. In the monastery's workshop, she performs the full palette of her art. For this tableware, the glazing is more reserved and limited to a few lines in the typical "Maria Laach blue".