Meissen Porcelain (1710-Present)
Meissen porcelain was the first European hard-paste porcelain, which began developing in the early 18th century.
Chinese porcelain had been perfected over many centuries. By the seventeenth century, both Chinese and Japanese varieties were being imported into Europe in significant quantities, largely through the efforts of the Dutch East India Company and similar organizations in other nations. Due to the long journey and high demand, it became a luxury item in Europe, symbolising wealth, status, and sophisticated taste. European attempts to replicate this prized material, such as Medici porcelain’s brief success in Florence, ultimately failed.
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In the early 1700s, Johann Friedrich Böttger, an alchemist, claimed to have discovered a way to turn base materials into gold. Upon hearing of this, Augustus II of Poland had Böttger placed under protective custody, demanding that he produce gold. Despite years of efforts, Böttger could not fulfil the king’s request. Meanwhile, mathematician and scientist Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus had been conducting experiments to create glass, but his focus shifted towards producing porcelain. He worked with various materials, including kaolin—an essential component of true porcelain—although he hadn’t fully mastered its use. Tschirnhaus oversaw Böttger’s work, and by 1707, Böttger reluctantly began assisting in these porcelain experiments.
After Tschirnhaus’s unexpected death, the knowledge and formula were reportedly passed to Böttger, who, within a week, informed the king that he had successfully created porcelain. Böttger refined the production process with the help of Dutch artisans skilled in firing and painting ceramics. In 1709, Augustus II established the Royal-Polish and Electoral-Saxon Porcelain Manufactory (Königlich-Polnische und Kurfürstlich-Sächsische Porzellan-Manufaktur). Böttger’s laboratory was moved to Albrechtsburg Castle in Meissen, where production officially commenced in 1710, marking the birth of European porcelain manufacturing.
The first type of ceramic created by Böttger was a highly refined, extremely durable red stoneware, often referred to in English as “Böttger ware” (in German: Böttgersteinzeug). This material was modelled after Chinese Yixing stoneware and was particularly used for making teapots and, later, coffee pots. Similar items had been produced by the Dutch and the Elers brothers in England, but Böttger’s version was harder and more durable, allowing for intricate details to be cast or applied and then polished to a high shine before firing. The designs were influenced by Baroque silverwork and traditional Chinese ceramics. In addition, a softer stoneware variety was produced, which was glazed and ornamented.
Böttger’s early creations improved in quality over time but did not initially achieve painted and fired decorations. The first successful embellishments involved gold, which was applied after the initial firing and engraved before undergoing a second, lower-temperature firing. Delicate frameworks, known as Laub- und bandelwerk, were often used to surround painted scenes and were done in red, gold, or puce. Augustus II assigned Johann Jakob Irminger the task of designing new vessels, and by 1720, Johann Gregor Herold became the director. Herold introduced vibrant overglaze colours in 1723, launching Meissen porcelain into prominence. His palette of colours expanded, marking the start of Meissen’s classic period. The enamel paints he developed became the foundation of modern ceramic paint techniques. Early designs often mirrored the oriental styles of Chinese and Japanese porcelain exports, but some European landscapes were included as well.
Friedrich August Köttig developed the iconic “Meissen Blue” underglaze colour. Soon, intricate landscapes, harbour scenes, animals, flowers, and courtly scenes in a chinoiserie style became common on Meissen porcelain. Japanese Kakiemon floral patterns and Chinese famille verte motifs were merged to form a distinctive style known as Indianische Blume (“Indian Flowers”), reflecting Augustus’ vast collection of Asian ceramics. By the 1730s, coloured backgrounds with painted decorations in white panels began to appear. Some pieces even featured designs copied from paintings by Watteau. Meissen also produced plain glazed items, often left white, which were then hand-painted by independent workshops (Hausmalerei) in places like Augsburg and Bayreuth, before being sold independently. Augustus’ patronage helped attract some of Europe’s finest artists and craftsmen to work at Meissen.