Lladro Porcelain Backstamps
Many years have passed since the Lladro brothers signed every one of their creations personally. In those early days, they could hardly imagine that their name, accompanied by a flower and an ancient alchemical symbol, was destined to spread across the globe. By placing their family name on their creations the Lladro brothers made their first move towards the design of the logo that was to become one of the major porcelain trademarks of our age. At first, Lladro was just a small artisan's workshop that used the phrase "Porcelains Lladro" in combination with a representation of the "Nike of Samothrace", a masterpiece of Greek sculpture, to relate the name of Lladro to the ideal of classical artistic creations.
Two decades later, the spectacular growth of Lladro and the need to protect its image throughout the world encouraged the three founding brothers to mark each piece with a symbol that would identify the company. In 1971, a back stamp was created to link science to art, the basis for creation in porcelain, by joining an ancient alchemy symbol with a stylized version of a very popular flower in Valencia known as the "bell flower". This flower was incorporated in tribute to nature, the origin of clay, and to the Spanish region where Lladro was born. The Lladro name was placed under the flower symbol as a final touch to create a forerunner of today's back stamp.
In this way, at the beginning of the seventies, Lladro Figurines began to use its own trademark that defined it activities: artistic work that found its expression in refined techniques. The back stamp remained faithful to its original form until 1986, when it was redesigned. The modifications mainly affected the alchemical symbol, which was simplified, and the typeface used for the logo, which acquired a more stylized shape, maintained down to the present.
The varying marks found on the base of Lladro figurines give us an idea of the way the identifier has evolved with the times. Over the first two decades, a variety of stamps were made, usually done by hand with a pointed instrument before the piece was fired. In 1960 the incorporation of the word "Spain" was a clear indicator of the birth of Lladro's Porcelain export business.
As of 1974, the bright blue logo, the back stamp that certified the porcelain as true Lladro figurine, began to be applied using a small chip placed over the base while it was painted. After firing in the kiln, these back stamps became unmistakable signs of the creation's quality origin. Since then, other symbols and numbers have appeared in combination with the Lladro name. The majority of the signs are marks left by the artisans taking part in the creation process, with some creations requiring up to thirty different interventions. In all cases, they are simply internal control numbers and as such are not interpretable in any way.
The Lladro back stamp may have changed over the years, but the beauty and excellence of the porcelain bearing these symbols has remained the same. Today, the characteristic Lladro flower symbol is a sign of the know how and the skills of the artists working at Porcelain City recognized throughout the world. It is something the three founding brothers could hardly have imagined when they first placed a hand printed Lladro Stamp on their raw porcelain pieces four decades ago.
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