German Meissen (porcelain), hard-paste porcelain was made at a factory established in 1710 at Meissen, near Dresden, in Saxony, east-central Germany. (The ware was once known as “Dresden” in England, and is still called “Saxe” in France.) From the time that Oriental porcelain first reached Europe, potters in France and Germany—to whom the ingredients of true, or hard-paste, porcelain remained unknown—could only imitate it, using artificial, or soft-paste, porcelain. In 1708, as a result of his research into china clays (seekaolin), an alchemist, J. F. Böttger, produced a white porcelain like that of the Chinese. As a result, Böttger’s patron, Frederick Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony, established the Meissen factory in 1710.
PAIR GERMAN DRESDEN PORCELAIN FLORAL CACHE POTS PLANTERS
During its early period, in the years 1710 to 1719, the factory produced porcelain wares that replicated the shapes of Chinese pieces or imitated those of contemporary silver vessels. At this stage, the porcelain body was a light greyish-yellow rather than pure white, and the decoration, often floral or in the form of chinoiserie, was executed in colours of rather coarse hues. From 1710 to 1730 the factory also produced a red stoneware known as Böttger stoneware.
GERMAN PORCELAIN MEISSEN FIGURINE CLOCK CENTREPIECE MANTLE
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