Some of the most charming, and amusing, majolica found in the marketplace originated at a pottery in a town in the Hauts-de-France region of French Flanders, called Orchies.
Emile Joseph L’Herminé-Declercq (!855-1931)
History
Emile Joseph L’Herminé, was born in Rebaix, Belgium on December 26, 1855. In his 20s he established a small successful pottery in his home town. In 1879 he married Marie Thérèse Declercq adopting the married name Emile Joseph L’Herminé-Declercq. By 1886 he decided to expand his operation by partnering with his brother Louis, also a potter, and acquired an abandoned tile factory across the Belgian/French border in Orchies France. The area was known for its good clay already being the location of the famous nearby pottery Moulin des Loups at Saint-Armand-les Eaux, a faience factory that had been in operation since 1705.
The factory at Orchiies
Emile brought his workers from Belgium to staff this new pottery, and immediately began production of tile and faience for everyday use. The company soon acquired an old textile factory on Rue del la Poterne and converted it to a second pottery by building three kilns.
In 1904 the company began production of decorative majolica under the name L’Herminé et Cie, specializing in the humorous pieces for which the company would be known. Surviving catalog images show the diversity of subjects they tackled.
By 1908 the company employed 250 adults and children in their two facilities producing faience, earthenware, majolica, porcelain, stoneware and tile. A visit by representatives from the official publication of the Société de Géographie de Lille quoted a tour guide of the factories thus:
"In one [factory], the most important by the size of the facilities and the number of personnel, we make objects of all kinds... In the other, perhaps more interesting, we take care of the interior and exterior ornamentation of buildings… A large oven could hold 18,000 1-liter jars and it takes a wagon of coal to cook its contents.”
The publication went on to describe specifics of the production of the ware including the company’s use of 80 different molds for their wares. The year the publication was issued Emile Joseph L’Herminé was elected mayor of Orchies. His son Adrien assumed management of the pottery. Incidentally, Adrien was married to Marguerite Deschars, the daughter of the director of faience production at Choisy-le-Roi.
At the time the Faïenceries d'Orchies included three distinct sections, one for manufacture of so-called culinary pottery, the second the majolica articles and finally the third the recently constructed work area for the manufacture of opaque, white and decorated porcelain (table services, toilet services).. The entire factory complex was then employing 650 workers.
The decoration room
Shipping area
A moulding room
Unfortunately all of this came to an end six years later on September 25, 1914 when Germany invaded France at the beginning of WW1. Upon hearing of the impending occupation, Mayor L’Hermine evacuated Orchies to prevent the massacre of its citizens.
The invading Germans looted the pottery stock and sent the specialized pottery machinery to Germany. They transformed the use of the facilities, turning the potteries into workrooms, a sawmill and stables for their horses. This is how the grounds remained until the end of the war when the Germans left France in October 1918. As a departing gesture they dynamited the pottery’s furnaces and destroyed the buildings by explosives, leaving nothing but rubble in their wake.
The rubble of L’Herminé et Cie
The rubble of L’Herminé et Cie
The rubble of L’Herminé et Cie
After the war, L’Hermine rebuilt the pottery at Orchies. For his actions in saving the citizens of Orchies he received the French Legion of Honor. It was not until November of 1920 that the factory became functional again.
In 1923 economic factors forced L’Herminé et Cie and the nearby Wandignies Hamage factory of Moulin des Loups to merge becoming Moulin des Loups & Hamage, Orchies. The factory began to prosper again reusing the old majolica designs and focusing on Art Deco decorative items, tableware, utilitarian pottery, sanitary wares and serving vessels. The company followed contemporary tastes, making more modern wares into the 1960s and 70s. Eventually, financial strain closed the company in 1980..
The Majolica
L’Herminé et Cie most of all was known for their satirical majolica pitchers of animals and people.
Orchies majolica Pichet Chat aux Yeux verts
Orchies majolica Pichet Chat à la Mandoline
Orchies majolica Pichet Chien dans son tonneau
Orchies majolica Pichet Coq (le Grand)
Orchies majolica Pichet Coq (le Petit)
Orchies majolica pitcher Edmond Rostand
Orchies majolica pitcher Cacatoès
Orchies majolica Pichet Pélican
Orchies majolica Pichet Renard signé Foubert
Orchies majolica Pichet L'Ane qui brait
Orchies majolica Pichet Coree
Orchies majolica Pichet Cochon
Orchies majolica Pichet Le Chien Policier
Orchies majolica Pichet Ecureuil
Orchies majolica Pichet Lapin a la Carotte
Orchies majolica Pichet Grenouille
Orchies majolica Pichet La Murène
Orchies majolica Pichet Chinois
Orchies majolica Pichet Zouave signé Foubert
Orchies majolica Pichet Nouveau Né signé Foubert
Orchies majolica Pichet L'Ecolier
Orchies majolica Pichet La Femme Cocher
Orchies majolica Pichet Sapeur Pompier
Orchies majolica Pichet Sapeur Pompier
Orchies majolica Pichet Femme a la Hotte
Of course Orchies also made other pitchers as well including the floral pitchers that French majolica companies are known for.
Orchies majolica Pichet Lilas
Orchies majolica Pichet Dahlias
Orchies majolica Pichet Fleuri à motifs de Marguerites
Orchies majolica Pichet Raisins
Orchies majolica Pichet Iris
Orchies majolica Pichet Houx
Orchies majolica Pichet Fleurs de Fraisier
Orchies majolica pansy pitcher
Orchies majolica Pichet Rameaux de Fleurs
Orchies majolica Pichet Tulipe
Orchies majolica iris pitcher
Orchies majolica leaf pitcher
Orchies majolica Pichet à Bandes
Orchies majolica Pichet A la Fenêtre
Orchies majolica bird pitcher
Orchies majolica swan pitcher
The company did, however make general decorative items for use in the home such as jardinieres, plates, vases umbrella stands, banks and serving pieces.
Orchies majolica pig bank
Orchies majolica dog bank
Orchies majolica cat bank
Orchies majolica iris umbrella stand
Orchies majolica cat umbrella stand
Orchies majolica dog umbrella stand
Orchies majolica swan umbrella stand
They also made tiles, mostly for architectural use and signage. Some examples of their tile work.
Orchies majolica faux bamboo tile trivet
Marks
Unfortunately Orchies was inconsistent with their markings. They most frequently used L D to mark their wares for L'herminé & Declercq, surrounded by the O for Orchies. The most well known mark is a windmill, the Moulin-des-Loups. Occasionally however, they only used a catalog number which requires a familiarity with their patterns. The letters on their pieces designate the model, the number specifies the size and the color. Their non majolica wares use an ink windmill mark
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