Although diminutive, the porcelain figure of Augustus the Strong (Augustus II, Elector of Saxony and king of Poland) represents both a powerful leader and the results of his determination to discover the formula to produce porcelain, a secret well-guarded by its Asian manufacturers. Augustus pursued his quest by hiring Johann Friedrich Böttger, whose preliminary experimentations produced the stoneware Coffeepot and Pilgrim Flask displayed in this case. In 1709, Böttger discovered the necessary ingredients to produce hard-paste porcelain, most importantly white kaolin clay. Under Augustus' patronage, Meissen, the first European porcelain manufactory, was established in 1710. This example of Augustus in armor, similar to the Largillierre portrait in Gallery 115, was executed in the first decade of European porcelain manufacture. Johann Joachim Kändler, appointed court sculptor by Augustus, became the master modeler at Meissen in 1733. As a sculptor, he preferred to ornament the porcelain with richly molded details, as seen in the intricately molded plate from the Swan Service made for Meissen's director, Count Heinrich von Brühl.
Purchase: the Lillian M. Diveley Fund with additional contributions from an anonymous donor and Mr. and Mrs. Earl D. Wilberg