1877-1931
Willow, with its intricate details, is also a landscape motif like Japan. This has been a very popular theme, in slightly different variations, at a number of factories; for instance the Rörstrand Willow pattern differs to some extent from that used at Arabia.

There are a number of different tales about how this pattern first came to be created. One popular explanation concerns a romantic story about a mandarin, his daughter and her lover. The two doves in the picture are supposed to be the young lovers who were changed into birds by the gods while they were eloping. The willow is in the centre of the picture because it starts to shed its leaves as the lovers flee.

Perhaps the more plausible explanation is that the pattern is nothing more than an ordinary Chinese river view, with its hills, pagodas and willows. This landscape was most probably the real source of the willow pattern, and clever marketing then added the romantic story.

The pattern is mentioned in the 1877 catalogue. It did not reappear until 1917, and was subsequently included in all the catalogues up to 1931. Edvin Linqvist has found evidence suggesting that the Willow pattern was also in use at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the last century.