Large Fat-Lava Box Vase Nr. 671 Designed by Ursula Beyrau for Gräflich Ortenburg

A large, striking fat-lava box vase with rounded corners and an oval opening. Decorated in shades of matt brown and burnt orange, topped with glossy blue and red lava. Designed in the 1960s by Ursula Beyrau for Gräflich Ortenburg.

GRÄFLICH ORTENBURG was founded in 1946 by Hungarian count Alram Graf zu Ortenburg (1925-2007) on his family’s estate in Tambach, Germany. Several clay pits had been developed on the property in 1939, and upon inheriting it, the Count decided to open a ceramics workshop in a side wing of his castle, Schloß Tambach. Initial production focused on ornately painted vases, bowls, and wall plates, all decorated by hand in an affiliated studio. As the decades progressed, more and more exciting Modernist designs—especially out of Italy—caught Ortenburg’s eye, and he re-aligned the studio’s aesthetic to take advantage of this post-war trend.

In 1949 the workshops in Gräflich began producing coffee and tea services. For cost reasons, only very few pieces were hand-painted at this point. International designers such as Tunisian sculptor Sebastiano Buscetta and American stylist Irene Pasinski were hired; their modern contributions to the product lines helped the company to achieve international success.

GRÄFLICH ORTENBURG’s later production was known for its heavy, rounded, Bauhaus-inspired shapes made of dark red clay. The period’s glazes were luxurious—thick and glassy. These innovations achieved great popularity as the post-war German art pottery industry burgeoned. By 1968, however, flagging sales prompted the Count to close down the ceramics studio and, as he was an avid sportsman, convert his estate into a game reserve. It survives to this day as a wildlife park.