The gallery of Meissen animals

More about the book

In the field of porcelain production, the supreme artistic and technical achievement of the18th century was arguably the Meissen porcelain animals created from 1731 and 1736 for the Japanese Gallery of Elector Augustus the Strong of Saxony. The resulting menagerie of 80 animal and bird sculptures was the result of the collaborations between the sculptor Johann Gottlieb Kirchner and artists Johann Joachim Kaendler, and reflected the natural history collection and live menageries of the elector. Includes chapters on their historical and topographical significance, and a catalogue of fired and projected models.