Stella Polaris ashtray, brown

The ashtray designed by Nanny Still in 1967 belongs to the Stella Polaris series manufactured by Riihimäki Glass. The hexagonal shape and the organic surface texture consisting of bubbles give the ashtray a unique and distinctive appearance. Stella Polaris is a charming decorative item that is a beautiful piece of glass for a collector but works as a charming detail in the interior as well.

The Stella Polaris ashtray was manufactured by Riihimäki Glass until 1975. In addition to the ashtray, the set includes a hexagonal vase. The Stella Polaris series' glassware was produced in several different colors.

Nanny Still

The Riihimäki Glassworks began its operations on February 2nd, 1910. Mikko Adolf Kolehmainen and Aatu Paavo Kolehmainen together with Hjalmar Gabriel Paloheimo, Karl Alfred Paloheimo and Wäinö Bonsdorff founded a limited company with a purpose to build a glass factory in Riihimäki. The first glassware of Riihimäki Glassworks was blown on July 26th, 1910. The production of the glass factory was initially household glass, but already at the turn of the same year, a glass grinding factory was built on the site, where crystal glass grinding started in 1911. The production of packaging glass, such as bottles and cans, began in the same year. From the 1920s onward, Riihimäki Glassworks started to pay more attention to the design side of glass production.

In 1928 organized its first glass design competition. The competition was won by Henry Ericsson, who was later hired for a position of an artistic assistant at the Riihimäki Glassworks. Gradually, art and tableware glass became an important part of the factory’s production. Riihimäki Glassworks employed several notable artists and designers such as Gunnel Nyman, Arttu Brummer, Nanny Still, Aimo Okkolin, Timo Sarpaneva, Helena Tynell and Tamara Aladin. The production of art and tableware glass in Riihimäki Glassworks was discontinued in 1976. The production for window glass had already ended the previous year. Riihimäki Glasswork continued to manufacture packaging glass and plastic packaging until 1990 when all operations were discontinued.