Höganäs

The company as we know it today was started in 1797 by Erik Ruuth and Carl Bagge, but the foundations were laid in the 1500s when Melchior Huscher begin excavations on behalf of the Danish King Frederick II. In 1660 gets Maria Sofia De La Gardie privileges for coal mining and in 1737 founded Jonas Alströmmer Skåne Coal Authority. 1786 assumes Count Erik Ruuth Skåne Coal Authority's privileges and in 1797 he founded Höganäs Coke Works together with his colleague and merchant Carl Bagge.

 

 

Höganäs has over the years become synonymous with salt-glazed material, but where does the idea and who discovered the technology? There is some research that says that the technology should have existed in Germany as early as the 1350's, others say 1500s. There are also English documentations says that the technique of salt glaze was "widely distributed" in Staffordshire during the early 1700s, which in turn dates the English production to later 1600s.

In an article about the inventions dated 1877, we find a story under the headline "Happy coincidences". On an estate a few mil from Burslem (Staffordshire) is a maid in the process of heating a strong brine solution to be used for salting pork. The vessel she uses are of unglazed earthenware and placed over an open fire. When she moved away from the kitchen boiling brine over, a chemical reaction occurs when the hot mixture flowing over the edge and spreading around lerkärlets exterior.

In artiken are the following explanation. "Some elementer of the liquid bound themselves with a few others on the by the strong heat heated lergrytan of which a glasartadt over moves or enamel occurred as non solved itself when the vessel blifit afkylt. It innocent brown lerkärlet reached historical notoriety". A potter from Burslem who heard about the event assumed glazed pottery could possibly be liked. He introduced the technique and "England has subsequently earned millions of pounds on this interim invention". Unfortunately no date specified in the document when it should have occurred.