KOVELS; Boch started pottery company in 1809

Mettlach, Germany, is a town known for manufacturing beer steins at the Villeroy and Boch factories since about 1842. They made all types of pottery. It started in 1809 when Pierre-Joseph Boch established a company in the remains of a cathedral built in 786 A.D. To avoid destroying the trees used for the factory's fuel, a coal-burning kiln was developed by 1816. Famous artists were hired to create the designs. There were eight V&B factories making ceramics.