A LARGE SWEDISH PORPHYRY 'BLYBERG' TAZZA

This tazza corresponds closely to no. 7 and no. 25 of the 1799 designs by Fredrik Ludvig Rung and no. 25 in the 1805 priced catalogue of the Taillerie de Porphyre at Älvdalen, Sweden, which was illustrated in the 'Prix-Courant des diffrentes pièces de la Manufacture de Porphyre d'Elfdal en Suède, qui se vendant à Stockholm Sous l'adresse de la Direction de la Manufacture des Porphyres d'Elfdal'. The Älvdalen porphyry seam was discovered in 1731 and flourished in 1788 with new techniques introduced by Eric Hagström under the direction of Nils Adam Bielke. However, production was halted after a fire destroyed half of the factory in 1869.
A closely related tazza is at Rosendal Castle near Stockholm, and is illustrated in C. Laine, Rosendal, Stockholm, 2003, p. 306.