Scheurich was founded in 1928 by Alois Scheurich and Fridolin Greulich as a wholesale business for glass and porcelain in Schneeberg, Germany. The business later moved to Kleinheubach, where its development into a ceramics manufacturer took shape. Specialist histories trace early household-ceramics production to 1948, while the company’s own timeline dates the start of Scheurich KG Keramikfabrik’s production to 1954, using an electric tunnel kiln.

During the 1950s, Scheurich developed the approach that would define much of its mid-century output: versatile forms offered in a wide variety of decorative finishes. Designer Heinz Siery joined the company in 1955, contributing both shapes and production methods that helped support an extensive and adaptable range.

For collectors, Scheurich is particularly associated with the bold colours, textured surfaces and lava-type glazes of the 1960s and 1970s. Its output included vases, jugs, bowls and other decorative ceramics, with familiar forms appearing in contrasting glazes and colour combinations. This variety is an important part of the appeal of vintage West German pottery.

Scheurich’s own timeline records animal figures with built-in clocks among its popular gift and decorative wares in 1956. Its development was therefore broader than the vases most associated with the later Fat Lava period, encompassing changing approaches to decoration and objects for the home.

The relationship between form and glaze is particularly clear in the 401 jug vase. Writing in 2009, Mark Hill reported that Graham Cooley had assembled examples in 136 different glaze treatments. This is a record of one collector’s documented group, not a claim that 136 represents the complete factory range. It illustrates how a familiar shape could take on markedly different appearances through its surface finish.

Hill also identifies the Wien, or Vienna, floor-vase shape as a design by A. Seide, noting versions with and without a handle. These specific examples show why model, size and glaze need to be considered separately when describing Scheurich: sharing a shape does not mean two pieces have the same finish or production date.

The company continued beyond its celebrated art-pottery period, developing a substantial range of containers for flowers and plants. Its continuing production forms a separate chapter from the vintage decorative pieces collected today, while reflecting the same long association with ceramics for the home.

Read more about Scheurich’s company history here, the 401 jug vase’s glaze variations here, and the Wien floor-vase shape here.