Sun bottle, 1/4, neodymium

Helena Tynell designed the sculptural Sun bottle in 1963. Beautiful Sun bottle was originally designed as an art glass bottle, but gained popularity as a vase. The Sun Bottle, which was produced by Riihimäki Glass in 1964-1974, was officially called The Sun and was nicknamed as Flower bottle. The lovely Sun bottle is a beautiful but also a functional glass object. It has gained popularity as a beloved collector classic.

The narrow centre of the Sun bottle was the biggest challenge in its manufacture. The Sun bottles were made in four different sizes and in a wide range of colours. Small Sun bottles were completely machine-made, while medium-sized ones were partly semi-automatic and large ones were blown into a mould.

The Sun bottle is part of the Pirtti glass series designed by Helena Tynell, also known as the Vanha Kartano (Old Manor) series. In addition to the Sun bottle, the glass series also includes glass objects called Aitanlukko, Emma, Kaappikello, Piironki and Ahkera Liisa.

Helena Tynell

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.