Kalevala
Finnish jewelry brand known for locally manufactured gold, silver, and bronze jewelry combining Finnish cultural heritage with modern design.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Kalevala is a Finnish jewelry brand operated by Kalevala Koru Oy. Its roots lie in a cultural and fundraising project initiated by writer Elsa Heporauta in the mid-1930s, when Finland was marking the centenary of the national epic Kalevala. Heporauta sought to create a monument honoring the women associated with the epic and established a committee to raise money for the project. When conventional fundraising did not produce sufficient funds, the committee turned to reproductions of ancient Finnish jewelry held in the collections of the National Museum of Finland. The first collection, designed by Germund Paaer, was presented in 1937 and sold quickly, establishing the commercial basis for the brand. The jewelry initiative also became connected to a wider national cultural and social mission. During a 1939 visit to the New York World's Fair, Heporauta promoted the jewelry and Finnish culture through lectures and public appearances. After the outbreak of the Second World War, funds originally collected for the planned monument were redirected to relief efforts, including assistance for war widows and war orphans. The monument was completed in 1940, and the following year the memorial committee was reorganized as the Kalevala Women's Association. Kalevala Koru Oy was incorporated as a limited liability company in 1941, with the association remaining its parent and owner. Kalevala's early identity was built around Finnish archaeological motifs, national history, and craftsmanship. Paaer served as the company's first head designer and created hundreds of pieces, including the Moon Goddess pendant, which became one of the brand's most successful historical designs. Later designers expanded the range beyond historical reproductions. Eero Rislakki introduced a stronger role for gemstones, while Paula Häiväoja and Börje Rajalin helped bring Finnish modernist and contemporary design approaches into the company's collections. In 1989, Kalevala Koru acquired Kaunis Koru, broadening its position in the Finnish jewelry market. The company expanded its design portfolio and international reach through the 2005 acquisition of Lapponia Jewelry, a prominent Finnish design jewelry company. Lapponia continued as a separately incorporated, wholly owned subsidiary. Its association with designer Björn Weckström also connected Kalevala's wider corporate family with internationally recognized pieces such as the Planetoid Valleys necklace, worn by Princess Leia in the 1977 Star Wars film, and the Petrified Lake ring, which John Lennon gave to Yoko Ono. In 2018, the company sold its former Pitäjänmäki property and moved jewelry manufacturing to Konala in Helsinki. In autumn 2020, it introduced the Kalevala brand as a unified contemporary identity bringing together the heritage of Kalevala Jewelry and Lapponia. The rebrand included new products, online stores, and a new Helsinki flagship store. The brand gained additional international media attention in 2020 when Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin appeared in a magazine cover photograph wearing a vintage Kalevala necklace. Kalevala jewelry is manufactured in Finland at the company's Konala factory. Production combines three-dimensional modeling, traditional wax work, casting or sheet-metal forming, and goldsmith finishing. The company uses recycled precious metals and has developed environmental controls for metal residues, coating chemicals, and wastewater. It was also an early jewelry-industry user of atomic-layer-deposition coating for silver. Alongside its commercial activities, the Kalevala Women's Association supports Finnish cultural initiatives, while the Kalevala Koru Cultural Foundation manages charitable work and awards. Since 2020, the company has also hosted a training project in Kenya for young women. Kalevala therefore combines jewelry retail and manufacturing with cultural heritage, Finnish production, design, and social responsibility.
History
Kalevala's history began with a cultural initiative rather than a conventional commercial jewelry venture. In 1935, the centenary of Finland's Kalevala epic prompted writer Elsa Heporauta to seek a way to celebrate Finnish culture and honor the women represented in the epic's poetic tradition. She helped establish a monument committee whose proposed subject was Louhi, a major figure in the national epic. The committee was unable to raise enough money through a general collection, so it developed a commercial fundraising model based on reproductions of ancient Finnish jewelry held by the National Museum of Finland. Designer Germund Paaer created the first forty pieces, drawing on archaeological finds and historical Finnish forms. The collection was presented at a tea event hosted by First Lady Kaisa Kallio in 1937 and sold rapidly. This success marked the beginning of Kalevala jewelry manufacture. Heporauta promoted the pieces abroad during the 1939 New York World's Fair, where she delivered numerous lectures and met Eleanor Roosevelt. The Second World War changed the use of the collected funds: instead of serving only the monument project, they were directed toward social relief, including homes for war widows and support for war orphans. The Louhi monument was completed in 1940 in a smaller form than originally intended. In 1941, the memorial committee became the Kalevala Women's Association, and Kalevala Koru was incorporated as a limited liability company. The association remained the company's parent organization and retains a cultural and nonprofit mission. Aino-Mari Mecklin was the first chief executive, serving from 1941 to 1950, while Paaer became the first head designer. During this period he produced hundreds of designs, including the Moon Goddess pendant, later recognized as one of the company's most commercially successful pieces. The postwar decades brought a gradual broadening from archaeological reproductions to gemstone jewelry and modern Finnish design. Eero Rislakki became head designer in 1951 and was particularly associated with the use of gemstones. Paula Häiväoja worked with Kaunis Koru and Kalevala Koru and became the company's first female head designer. Börje Rajalin held the head designer role during two periods and helped introduce a more modern design language. In 1989, Kalevala Koru purchased Kaunis Koru, a company founded by former Kalevala Koru director Martta Ritvanen. Management changed substantially in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Marja Usvasalo became chief executive in 1988, followed by Laura Lares in 2007, Riitta Huuhtanen in 2012, and Kirsi Paakkari in early 2019. The company expanded through its 2005 acquisition of Lapponia Jewelry. Lapponia, founded by designer Björn Weckström and Pekka Anttila in 1963, had a strong international reputation and remained a separately incorporated subsidiary under Kalevala Koru. The acquisition connected the company with Weckström's internationally known designs, including the Planetoid Valleys necklace worn by Princess Leia in Star Wars and the Petrified Lake ring associated with John Lennon and Yoko Ono. In 2018, Kalevala Koru sold the Kalevala Mansion in Helsinki's Pitäjänmäki district, formerly used as a jewelry factory, and moved manufacturing to Konala. The factory remains central to the brand's Finnish production model. In autumn 2020, the company launched Kalevala as a unified brand that brought together the heritage of the former Kalevala Jewelry and Lapponia identities while adding new designs. The change was supported by new online stores and a Helsinki store on Keskuskatu. The same year, a vintage Kalevala necklace worn by Prime Minister Sanna Marin on a magazine cover produced substantial media attention, including coverage outside Finland. Kalevala jewelry continues to be manufactured in Finland using a mixture of digital modeling, handmade wax work, metal casting or forming, and goldsmith finishing. The company reports the use of recycled gold and a high proportion of recycled silver, as well as systems for recovering metal residue and treating process chemicals and wastewater. Its broader institutional identity remains connected to Finnish cultural philanthropy through the Kalevala Women's Association and the Kalevala Koru Cultural Foundation. Since 2020, its social initiatives have included a training center project in Kenya for young women.
- 2020
Kalevala brand is launched
[1]The company introduced Kalevala as a unified brand incorporating the legacies of Kalevala Jewelry and Lapponia.
- 2020
Kalevala Training Center project begins in Kenya
[1]The company began hosting an education project intended to train young women in data processing, hairdressing, or tailoring.
- 2018
Manufacturing moves from Pitäjänmäki to Konala
[1]The company sold its former Kalevala Mansion property and moved jewelry production to its Konala facility in Helsinki.
- 2005
Lapponia Jewelry is acquired
[1]Kalevala Koru acquired Lapponia Jewelry, which continued as a wholly owned subsidiary and added an internationally recognized Finnish design portfolio.
- 1989
Kaunis Koru is acquired
[1]Kalevala Koru purchased Kaunis Koru, expanding its Finnish jewelry operations.
- 1951
Eero Rislakki becomes head designer
[1]Rislakki succeeded Germund Paaer and became particularly associated with gemstone use in the company's jewelry design.
- 1941
Kalevala Koru is incorporated
[1]The memorial committee became the Kalevala Women's Association, and Kalevala Koru was incorporated as a limited liability company.
- 1940
Louhi monument completed
[1]The monument project was completed in Helsinki in a reduced form, with funds also redirected to wartime social relief.
- 1939
International promotion at the New York World's Fair
[1]Elsa Heporauta promoted the jewelry and Finnish cultural project in the United States through lectures and public appearances.
- 1937
First Kalevala jewelry is presented
[1]Germund Paaer's first forty designs, based on ancient Finnish jewelry finds, were presented at a Helsinki tea event and sold quickly.
Products and positioning
A Finnish design jewelry brand positioned around national cultural heritage, locally manufactured craftsmanship, modern Nordic design, and responsible materials and production.
Jewelry · 1937
Heritage jewelry
Kalevala's heritage-oriented jewelry draws on archaeological finds, Finnish history, and motifs associated with the Kalevala epic. The earliest commercial pieces were reproductions or interpretations of ancient jewelry, establishing the brand's distinctive connection to national culture. The range includes necklaces, pendants, rings, earrings, and other pieces made in precious metals and bronze.
Pendant · 1940
Moon Goddess pendant
Designed by Germund Paaer in the 1940s, the Moon Goddess pendant is among the best-known and most commercially successful designs in Kalevala's history. It represents the company's early ability to translate Finnish cultural and historical themes into recognizable jewelry forms.
Necklace · 1977
Planetoid Valleys necklace
The Planetoid Valleys necklace was designed by Björn Weckström for Lapponia Jewelry. Its international profile was strengthened when it was worn by Princess Leia in the 1977 Star Wars film. The design remains in production within the Kalevala corporate family and represents the company's modernist and internationally recognizable design heritage.
Ring
Petrified Lake ring
The Petrified Lake ring is a Björn Weckström design associated with Lapponia Jewelry. It is notable for its sculptural modernist approach and for the reported connection to John Lennon, who gave the ring to Yoko Ono.
Jewelry collections · 2020
Contemporary Kalevala collections
The contemporary Kalevala collections combine the brand's historical Finnish references with modern Nordic forms. They include gold, silver, and bronze jewelry produced at the Konala factory, using digital modeling alongside handmade and traditional goldsmith techniques.
Marketing campaigns
- 2020Kalevala brand relaunch
Finland · International online markets
The company launched a unified Kalevala identity combining the former Kalevala Jewelry and Lapponia brands, supported by new products, online stores, and a Helsinki retail location.
Outcome. The relaunch created a single contemporary brand platform while retaining the company's historical and Lapponia design heritage.
- 2020Sanna Marin magazine-cover visibility
Finland · International media
Prime Minister Sanna Marin wore a vintage Kalevala necklace in a Trendi magazine cover photograph.
Outcome. The image attracted extensive Finnish and international media attention to the necklace and the brand.
- 1939New York World's Fair promotion
United States · Finland
Elsa Heporauta brought Kalevala jewelry and the associated Finnish cultural project to the New York World's Fair and supported the effort with a program of public lectures.
Outcome. The initiative increased international exposure for the jewelry and generated press attention, including coverage of Heporauta's meeting with Eleanor Roosevelt.
Brand decisions
2020
Unify Kalevala Jewelry and Lapponia under KalevalaStrategyBackground
The company sought to combine the heritage of its two jewelry identities while introducing new products and a more unified retail presence.
Action taken
Kalevala launched a new brand identity, new online stores, and a new Helsinki store on Keskuskatu.
Aftermath
The company presented Kalevala as a single contemporary brand incorporating both historical Finnish motifs and Lapponia's modern design legacy.
2018
Relocate manufacturing to KonalaStrategyBackground
The company's former jewelry factory was located at the Kalevala Mansion in Pitäjänmäki, Helsinki.
Action taken
After selling the Pitäjänmäki property, the company moved manufacturing to Konala in Helsinki.
Aftermath
The Konala site became the company's manufacturing location and later hosted a factory outlet.
2005
Acquire Lapponia JewelryM&ABackground
Lapponia was regarded as an internationally important Finnish jewelry design company.
Action taken
Kalevala Koru acquired Lapponia Jewelry and made it a wholly owned subsidiary while retaining its separate corporate status.
Aftermath
Kalevala gained access to Lapponia's internationally recognized design heritage and later incorporated that heritage into the unified Kalevala brand.
1989
Acquire Kaunis KoruM&ABackground
Kalevala Koru sought to expand its position in the Finnish jewelry sector.
Action taken
The company purchased Kaunis Koru, which had been founded by former Kalevala Koru director Martta Ritvanen.
Aftermath
The acquisition broadened the company's domestic jewelry portfolio.
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