28. July 2005.

President Ferenc Mádl today received Mr. Sándor Kiss, the currently acting CEO of the Herend Porcelain Manufactory Ltd., and Mr. József Kovács, the former managing director.

At the meeting held in Sándor Palace the former and acting heads of Herend presented the outgoing president with a special "Julia" Herend set for two. President Mádl acted as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Herend Porcelain Manufactory Ltd. between May 1998 and the time he became President of the Republic.

In the course of the meeting the Herend top brass expressed their thanks to President Mádl for all his devoted work and efforts to enhance Hungary's prestige around the world.

They stressed that the gift of the Herend set was symbolic in as much as Herend porcelain, a real Hungaricum, is also a means to show the world just how excellent and unique Hungary is.

The Julia décor - in brief:
Flower painting is one of the most difficult elements in the world of décors. The Herend painters have done a brilliant job with this family of cups, embellishing them with a special technique which is very rare these days. The so-called "goldunterlag" technique, which requires great expertise, means applying several layers of painting which are fired and then gilded over the top. The magnificent plasticity of the gilding and the brilliant flower painting of this décor as well as the rare form of the cups make this product quite special.