Meissen Tall Splendour Centerpiece with Cupids by Leuteritz, Around 1880
View Similar Items
Meissen Tall Splendour Centerpiece with Cupids by Leuteritz, Around 1880
About the Item
- Creator:Ernst August Leuteritz (Sculptor),Meissen Porcelain (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 20.08 in (51 cm)Width: 15.36 in (39 cm)Depth: 11.03 in (28 cm)
- Style:Rococo (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1880
- Condition:Repaired: some flower and leaf tips have been professionally restored.
- Seller Location:Vienna, AT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1014423854862
Meissen Porcelain
Meissen Porcelain (Staatliche Porzellan-Manufaktur Meissen) is one of the preeminent porcelain factories in Europe and was the first to produce true porcelain outside of Asia. It was established in 1710 under the auspices of King Augustus II “the Strong” of Saxony-Poland (1670–1733), a keen collector of Asian ceramics, particularly Ming porcelain.
In pursuing his passion, which he termed his “maladie de porcelaine,” Augustus spent vast sums, amassing some 20,000 pieces of Japanese and Chinese ceramics. These, along with examples of early Meissen, comprise the Porzellansammlung, or porcelain collection, of the Zwinger Palace, in Dresden.
The king was determined, however, to free the European market from its dependence on Asian imports and to give European artisans the freedom to create their own porcelain designs. To this end, he charged the scientist Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus and aspiring alchemist Johann Friedrich Böttger with the task of using local materials to produce true, hard-paste porcelain (as opposed to the soft-paste variety European ceramists in the Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy and Spain had been producing since the late Renaissance). In 1709, the pair succeeded in doing just that, employing kaolin, or “china clay.” A year later, the Meissen factory was born.
In its first decades, Meissen mostly looked to Asian models, producing wares based on Japanese Kakiemon ceramics and pieces with Chinese-inflected decorations called chinoiserie. During the 1720s its painters drew inspiration from the works of Watteau, and the scenes of courtly life, fruits and flowers that adorned fashionable textiles and wallpaper. It was in this period that Meissen introduced its famous cobalt-blue crossed swords logo — derived from the arms of the Elector of Saxony as Arch-Marshal of the Holy Roman Empire — to distinguish its products from those of competing factories that were beginning to spring up around Europe.
By the 1730s, Meissen’s modelers and decorators had mastered the style of Asian ceramics, and Augustus encouraged them to develop a new, original aesthetic. The factory’s director, Count Heinrich von Brühl, used Johann Wilhelm Weinmann’s botanical drawings as the basis for a new line of wares with European-style surface decoration. The Blue Onion pattern (Zwiebelmuster), first produced in 1739, melded Asian and European influences, closely following patterns used in Chinese underglaze-blue porcelain, but replacing exotic flora and fruits with Western varieties (likely peaches and pomegranates, not onions) along with peonies and asters.
During the same period, head modeler Joachim Kändler (1706–75) began crafting delicate porcelain figures derived from the Italian commedia dell’arte. Often used as centerpieces on banquet tables and decorated to reflect the latest fashions in courtly dress for men and women, these figurines were popular in their day, and are still considered among Meissen’s most iconic creations. Kändler also created the Swan Service, which, with its complex low-relief surface design and minimal decoration is considered a masterpiece of Baroque ceramics.
The rise of Neoclassicism in the latter half of the 18th century forced Meissen to change artistic direction and begin producing monumental vases, clocks, chandeliers and candelabra. In the 20th century, Meissen added to its 18th-century repertoire decidedly modern designs, including ones in the Art Nouveau style. The 1920s saw the introduction of numerous animal figures, such as the popular sea otter (Fischotter), which graced an East German postage stamp in the 1960s. Starting in 1933, artistic freedom was limited at the factory under the Nazi regime, and after World War II, when the region became part of East Germany, it struggled to reconcile its elite past with the values of the Communist government. In 1969, however, new artistic director Karl Petermann reintroduced the early designs and fostered a new degree of artistic license. Meissen became one of the few companies to prosper in East Germany.
Owned by the State of Saxony since reunification, in 1990, Meissen continues to produce its classic designs together with new ones developed collaboratively with artists from all over the world. In addition, through its artCAMPUS program, the factory has invited distinguished ceramic artists, such as Chris Antemann and Arlene Shechet, to work in its studios in collaboration with its skilled modelers and painters. The resulting works of contemporary sculpture are inspired by Meissen’s rich and complex legacy.
Find a collection of authentic Meissen Porcelain on 1stDibs.
- Meissen Splendour Clock 'The Four Seasons' by E.A. Leuteritz, Around 1880By Ernst August Leuteritz, Meissen PorcelainLocated in Vienna, ATThe clock case was designed by Ernst August Leuteritz using old moulds in the Rococo style: The clock case rises on a base with gold-highlighted rocailles, richly decorated with deli...Category
Antique 1880s German Rococo Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Meissen Splendour Clock With Gardener Figures On Pedestal by Leuteritz, Ca 1880By Ernst August Leuteritz, Meissen PorcelainLocated in Vienna, ATThe clock and the pedestal were designed by Leuteritz using old forms in the Rococo style: The clock case rises on a rock base with gold heightened rocailles, richly decorated with d...Category
Antique 1880s German Rococo Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Meissen Splendid Centerpiece With Music Playing Children, by Leuteritz, Mid-20thBy Ernst August Leuteritz, Meissen PorcelainLocated in Vienna, ATThe centerpiece was designed by Leuteritz using old forms in Rococo style: High, round rocaille base, centered a high column, covered on the front and back with large rocaille panel...Category
Mid-20th Century German Rococo Centerpieces
MaterialsPorcelain
- Very Large Meissen Handle Vase With Bouquet Paintings & Gold, by Leuteritz, 20thBy Ernst August Leuteritz, Meissen PorcelainLocated in Vienna, ATVery large handled vase in baluster form in baroque style on mounted funnel-shaped stand with bead ring in relief, raised handles on the sides in the form of curled acanthus twigs, w...Category
Early 20th Century German Baroque Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Meissen Splendour Centerpiece with Dancing Gardener Children Kaendler circa 1860By Johann Joachim Kaendler, Meissen PorcelainLocated in Vienna, ATFour gardener children, two girls and two boys, dancing hand in hand in a circle around a palm-like plant, on the crown of which rests a breakthrough bowl, the figures are wearing el...Category
Antique 1860s German Rococo Centerpieces
MaterialsPorcelain
- Meissen Snake Handle Vase With Soft Flower Painting, by Leuteritz, c 1865 H:48cmBy Ernst August Leuteritz, Meissen PorcelainLocated in Vienna, ATVery large double snake-handled vase in baluster form on a mounted funnel-shaped base, the handles raised at the sides in the form of coiled pairs of snakes, white ground, the front ...Category
Antique 1860s German Baroque Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Antique German porcelain group of Venus with Cupid by MeissenBy Meissen PorcelainLocated in London, GBAntique German porcelain group of Venus with Cupid by Meissen German, c. 1750 Height 20.5cm, width 11cm, depth 12cm This charming Meissen porce...Category
Antique Mid-18th Century German Rococo Figurative Sculptures
MaterialsPorcelain
- Meissen Porcelain Strut Mantel ClockBy Howell James & Co.Located in Norwich, GBA Meissen porcelain oval shaped Strut clock with two putti and well modelled trailing flowers and wreath decoration. (The back of the case at 12 o’clock carrying the crossed swords m...Category
Antique 1870s English Victorian Mantel Clocks
MaterialsPorcelain
- Antique Meissen Porcelain Figurine of Cupid Holding an Arrow & Flaming HeartBy Meissen PorcelainLocated in Hamilton, OntarioThis antique figurine was made by the renowned Meissen factory of Germany is approximately 1850 in the period Dresden style. The figurine is done in early paste porcelain and depicts a cherub, or Cupid seated on a stump, holding an arrow with an outstretched hand, and cradling a flaming heart...Category
Antique Mid-19th Century German Romantic Figurative Sculptures
MaterialsPorcelain
- Meissen Cobalt Ground Pâte-sur-pâte Figural Vase, Attributed to LeuteritzBy Ernst August Leuteritz, Meissen PorcelainLocated in West Palm Beach, FLMeissen Cobalt Ground Pâte-sur-pâte Figural Vase, attributed to Leuteritz Germany, second quarter 19th century We are pleased to offer an extraordi...Category
Antique Late 19th Century German Vases
MaterialsPorcelain
$4,760 Sale Price20% Off - Large Rococo Style Porcelain Mantel Clock by MeissenBy Meissen PorcelainLocated in London, GBLarge Rococo style porcelain mantel clock by Meissen German, 19th century Measures: Height 66cm, width 33cm, depth 25cm This superb mantel clock is a truly wonderful example of ...Category
Antique 19th Century German Rococo Mantel Clocks
MaterialsPorcelain
- Set of Five Allegorical Porcelain Sculptures by MeissenBy Meissen PorcelainLocated in London, GBSet of five allegorical porcelain sculptures by Meissen German, c. 1975 Measures: Height 15cm, width 10cm, depth 8.5cm The five figures in this set are allegorical of the senses...Category
Vintage 1970s German Rococo Figurative Sculptures
MaterialsPorcelain