In the beginning, there was Porin Matti
The Porin Matti heating stove has been one of the best-known products of Rosenlew’s Pori machine shop for decades. The stove was designed by Svante Palkola, who was working as a technician in the company at the end of the 1930s.
At that time, the Finns lived in very cramped conditions, and continued to do for a long while. Heaters that were low on wood consumption and suitable for small spaces were required. To begin with, four sizes of Porin Mattis were made. The steel-framed Porin Matti, already fitted to the wall, was very popular, especially after the war.
The 1960s, an unprecedented decade of design, also changed the look of Porin Matti. The famous Timo Sarpaneva, who worked at Rosenlew at the time, revamped the design language of Porin Matti. The color options that were introduced were now red, olive green and gray. At the same time, the door of the stove, for example, was streamlined.
However, Rosenlew gave up its classic stove in 1974. Polartherm in Western Finland acquired it for its production, continuing to make it until 2002.
After a short break, in 2009 the PK-Levy company, based in Nurmes in Eastern Finland, took over manufacturing the Porin Matti.
So, thousands of Finnish homes and summer cottages can continue to enjoy the heat given out by the starkly beautiful side of Porin Matti. The classic lives on.
Source: the Rosenlew museum and the Tamperelainen city newspaper
Download a brochure in Finnish from 1940 (source: the Finnish National Library)
