Two lustre glaze vases from Kähler (Denmark), ca. 1900

Two small Kähler vases with lustre glaze manufactured around 1900, both marked with 'HAK'. The dark red one is 9 cm and the more coppery one 8.5 cm. In Denmark Herman August Kähler (1846-1917) finished developing his lustre glazes in 1889 and thanks to his glaze and the pottery skills of Karl Reistrup they were able to participate in the World's Fair in Paris in the same year. Karl Reistrup designed some very characteristic (and slightly OTT) vases and bowls decorated with eagles' heads, elephants' trunks, lobsters etc. Other Danish potteries followed suit - several other potteries developed their own lustre glazes and it was all the rage (like everywhere else in the art nouveau movement). Later it went completely out of fashion and the modernist potters did not use it at all.