Q: Before it goes to the charity shop, can you please tell us what these markings are on the bottom of a small bowl my Mum has?
A: This mark with two crossed hammers, crown, and the word “Czechoslovakia” was used from 1960 to 1990 by Manufaktura Pirkenhammer, a porcelain factory in Brezova, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic). The porcelain factory started in Pirkenhammer, Bohemia (now Brezova, Czech Republic), in 1803. The crossed hammers symbolize Pirkenhammer. The factory changed ownership and name several times. Czechoslovakia was formed in 1918, after the end of World War I. It was separated into Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993. Manufaktura Pirkenhammer is still in business in Brezova.
