Biri
Biri
Glassworks
Biri
glassworks was from the beginning owned by ‘Det Kongelige
Octroyerede Nordske Compagnie’ also called ’Det Norske
kompani’ (‘The Norwegian
company’).
Caspar
Hermann V. Storm ran the company with support from Earl Adam
Gottlob Moltke, the minister of the king of Denmark
and Norway
- Frederik V’s almighty.
Storm’s
plan was to turn the glassworks (glass production) into a
national industry and make them supply both countries (Denmark and Norway)
with everything needed of
glass. One of these glassworks became Birid/Biri glassworks. He led the
company
from 1753 until 1766.
The
preparations for Biri Glassworks started after extensive surveys in
1763. The glasswork was by the company given to Calmayer to run, one of
the
companies most considered official.
He
started the work with all the enthusiasm and personal skills he was
known for, and in 1764 he informed the leadership that the new glass
house was
fully finished to start production.
The
glassblowers were hired from Germany
and the Aas glassworks in Norway,
that specialized mainly in window glass and bottles.
Due to
lack of roads the transport of glassware was preferably done in
the winter by sled to avoid damage to the glass, but also by boat on lake Mjøsa
to Christiania and Drammen
where the company had big magazines/storages (Christiania Magasin that
was
built in 1785-88).
The
glasswork became the King’s property in 1976 as well as the rest
of
the glassworks existing at that time.
In
1814 Norway became
independent from Denmark
and the ownership went from the Danish-Norwegian king to the Norwegian
state. On
March, 30 in
1824 the state sold its 3 glassworks to 3 different private owners. The
Biri
glassworks was sold to a company owned by H. Berg, G.F. Lundh, C.
Kauffeldt and
S. Muus that also bought the Hurdal
Glassworks
and later in 1841 bought the Hadeland Glassworks. They owned the glass
storage
in Christiania (Christiania Magasin)
as well.
Biri
Glasswork closed down in 1844 and all the production was
transferred to Hadeland. In 1841-42 a new product was manufactured at
Hadeland - glass
floats for fishnets after a model invented by Chr. Berg and Faye in Bergen. This
product
conquered a big inland marked and in 1855 the leadership decided that
Hadeland
glassworks was going to produce finer glassware, and reopen Biri
glassworks for
the purpose to to produce bottles and probably glass floats.
The
Biri Glassworks went very well until 1873 when they had to stop the
production for 5 months because the ovens had to be replaced, and in
1872 they
got hard competition from Laurvig glassworks. In 1874 the Swedes were
let into
the Norwegian marked, a new glasswork named Øhrs, later Halden
made it even harder
for Biri. In 1879 Biri Glassworks was closed down for good.
Another
reason to be mentioned is the ”great depression”, a long
lasting economical crisis from 1875 to 1895 with a strong fall in
prices on the
world marked. Great Britain suffered the most which had connection to
new
industrial countries such as the USA and Germany.
Norway
was one of the countrys that suffered a lot during those years
due to Norway’s close relation to Great Britain.
Biri
glasswork has also been known under the names ‘Birid
Glasværk’ and ‘Biri
Glasfabrique’.
The
production was mainly window glass and bottles of green glass.
The
glassworks was located on the farm called ‘Svene’ (in
today’s Gjøvik
municipality).
According
to the Norwegian glass float and bottle collector Leif Mjølstad glass
marked ’B.V’ was found on the Biri glassworks’
property.
Sources: ’Den
Norske Flaskeindustri’ by S.C. Hammer 1931,
’Glassboken’ by Ada
Polak 1958, ’Vel Blåst! Christiania Glassmagasin og
norsk glassindustri' 1739-1989’ by Rolv Petter Amdam,
Tore Jørgen Hanisch and Ingvild Pharo 1989, Wikipedia
Biri Glassworks 1865
'B.V' marked float sized 5" in diameter. The color is moderate green.
With a netting. From our collection.