Faience pottery developed from the 17th century onwards in Quimper's Locmaria quarter. Inspired by Breton culture, faience-making reached its peak in the 19th century, with a unique manufacturing process. Soon there would be competition from new arrivals on this profitable and popular market. In the early 20th century, three big names were known all over France: La Grande Maison de la Hubaudière, Porquier-Beau and Henriot.
Quimper faience is entirely decorated by hand and the manufacturing process has many stages: creating the mould, preparing the clay , calibration, pressing, casting, finishing, and the first firing. Then come enamelling, freehand decoration and the second firing.
The last big faience house, Henriot-Quimper, offers workshop tours and sells its collections on the premises.
To find out all about this world-famous local craft, don't hesitate to visit the museum dedicated to it, located in a former faience works in Locmaria. Collection pieces from the 18th century appear alongside contemporary pieces, some of which are unique!
