CHAPTER XII.

THE PORCELAINS OF CENTRAL EUROPE--DRESDEN, BERLIN, HÖCHST, ETC.

Dresden China.--Porcelain in Europe.--The Alchemists.--Augustus II.--Böttger.--Tschirnhaus.--Experiments.--Kaolin discovered.--Höroldt and Kändler.--Fine Art, or Decorative Art.--Lindenir.--Angelica Kauffmann.--Rococo-Work.--Collectors.--Marcolini.--Prices.--Marks. --Berlin.--The Seven Years' War.--Frederick the Great.--Prices. --Marks.--Vienna.--Stenzel.--Maria Theresa.--Lamprecht.--Prices. --Marks.--Hungary.--Herend.--Fischer.--Marks.--Höchst, or Mayence. --Ringler.--Marks.--Frankenthal, or Bavarian.--Carl Theodor.--Melchior. --Prices.--Marks.--Fürstenburg, or Brunswick.--Von Lang.--Prices.--Marks. --Nymphenburg.--Heintzmann and Lindemann.--Prices.--Marks.--Ludwigsburg, or Kronenburg.--Fulda.--Hesse-Cassel.--Switzerland.--Marks.

In this chapter I wish to give some comprehensive account of the famous porcelain of Dresden, which in Europe first came into prominence, and kept its place for so long a time. With this the other manufactories of Central and Eastern Europe will be grouped, for convenience rather than for the purposes of classification. We will take a comprehensive survey of--

1. Dresden, Meissen, or Saxony (it has all these names).

2. Berlin, or Prussian.

3. Vienna and Hungary.

4. Höchst, or Mayence.

5. Fürstenburg, or Brunswick.

6. Frankenthal, or the Palatinate.

7. Nymphenburg.

8. Kronenburg.

9. Fulda.

10. Limbach.

11. Switzerland, etc.

We are apt to think that the mental force of Europe, down to very recent days quite into the last century, was directed almost wholly to the science and the practice of war. A great force certainly was so exhausted; but there was also, after the Renaissance (A. D. 1200 to 1300), a powerful stream turned upon literature, science, art, and religion. The alchemists, in their searchings for the secret of happiness--for the changing of baser things to gold--in their hunt for the fountain of perennial youth, were all chemists; and out of their (what we are pleased to term) "visionary notions" came many discoveries most curious and valuable to man.

When, in 1518, the Portuguese introduced fine Oriental porcelains into Europe, and, after them, the Dutch brought by ship-loads the beautiful productions of China and Japan, they were spread over Europe like water passing its dikes. Every king, every noble, every man of taste, was touched as by a fairy wand, and became inspired with a desire of possession, and also with a wish to create such articles of use and beauty. But the secrets of porcelain were locked in the souls of those keen Orientals, who would not part with their knowledge.

Still the chemists, the alchemists, of Europe were at work, peering with curious eyes into the composition of the most exquisite of fictile ware. The paste, the glaze, the ornament--all were of profound interest. Pottery of various kinds had been made in Europe from the earliest times, but no porcelain.

How could the superior European compete with or equal the inferior Mongol? A hard question.

For a long time it has been believed that the earliest European production of porcelain was in Saxony, about the years 1710 to 1715. But within a late period it has been found that porcelain--soft paste--was discovered and made in Florence as far back as 1575 to 1587, under the direction and patronage of Francesco I. (de' Medici), the Grand-duke of Tuscany. No great quantities were made, and but few pieces of it exist now, of which we may treat hereafter.

The porcelain of Dresden is also called Saxon and Meissen; Dresden being the capital of Saxony, and Meissen the village, some twelve miles from Dresden, where the factories are established.

How were they established, and why?

Augustus II., Elector of Saxony, and afterward by election King of Poland, born in 1670, was a man of expensive habits and luxurious tastes. While a young man he visited Italy and other countries, always indulging these tastes by the purchase of pictures and other works of art. The beautiful porcelains of China and Japan, then rare in Europe, interested him, and he became of course a collector; and so he continued through his luxurious and troublesome life. That I cannot write; it may only be said that he combined with Peter the Great and with Denmark to drive out and keep out of his part of Europe that enterprising and indefatigable fighter, Charles XII. of Sweden, and was himself utterly routed and driven from Poland in 1704. He still retained the throne of Saxony, to which his son succeeded. This elector inherited the tastes and habits of his father, and continued to encourage and support the manufactory of porcelain at Meissen, until, entangling himself with Maria Theresa of Austria in an alliance against Frederick the Great, that restless and irresistible king overran his country, and for a time destroyed the production of porcelain in Saxony (A. D. 1756).

In 1706 it appears that a Prussian named Böttger, an apothecary's clerk, in danger of persecution as an alchemist, fled to Dresden for safety. The elector, believing or hoping that he knew the secret of making gold, sent for him, anxious to learn the secret, which Böttger denied that he possessed. The elector thought it best, nevertheless, to put him in charge, for safe-keeping, of his alchemist Tschirnhaus; and with him he worked on, seeking to discover the "philosopher's stone." That he did not discover--few have done so--but, in mixing clays and preparing crucibles, it so chanced that a hard and semi-vitreous pottery was produced, which at once excited attention and sharpened invention. Was it porcelain, or could it be worked into porcelain? From that day Böttger's whole thought and ingenuity were at work to produce porcelain; the philosopher's stone was forgotten, and he and Tschirnhaus worked at their new problem.

While the character of Böttger does not bear careful inspection, there is no question that he was a keen, dexterous, and daring man. The picture we have of him indicates a man of executive force (Fig. 125).

In 1708 some ware was produced by him and Tschirnhaus which approached the characters of Oriental porcelain, but it was not white or translucent. A teapot of this ware in red unglazed, and one in black glazed, are in the valuable collection of W. C. Prime, Esq., of New York (Fig. 126, the two tall teapots on the right and left).

This was not white, nor was it true, porcelain. In 1710, however, they succeeded in making white porcelain of an inferior quality; it was "thick and muddy." Nothing as yet was perfect. What they lacked was the two fine materials known to the Chinese as kaolin and pe-tun-tse.

Kaolin is a native clay, the result of decayed feldspar. It is found in Europe at Aue in Saxony, near St.-Yrieix-la-Perche in France, in Cornwall in England, and in Delaware in America.

Pe-tun-tse is a siliceous stone found in China, and in Cornwall, England, is known as a granite. This last melts at a lower heat, and a mixture of kaolin is essential to give strength and hardness to the work.

Oriental china (and all true porcelain) has the quality of hardness, and, when held up to the light, of translucency.

European porcelains are known as hard and soft, the _pâte dure_ and _pâte tendre_ of the French. The Dresden china is hard.

In 1710 Böttger had not succeeded in making perfect porcelain. He had not yet the perfect clay. But the clay was found; and this, too, was accidental--so we now term it: once, a happy discovery was called "providential." The discovery came at the right moment. It seems that a rich iron-master of Saxony, when riding one day (1711), saw that his horse's feet were held with tenacity in a soft white clay. It struck him that this white clay might be dried and made into hair-powder, then greatly in use. He tried it; it succeeded, and large quantities were sold. The hair-dresser of Böttger used it, and, when Böttger found it was heavy and a mineral, he at once applied it to the production of porcelain. "Eureka!" the secret was found!

It was kaolin, the great clay--the body or bones of porcelain. Doubt fled. Courage was assured.

Augustus at once built the great factory at Meissen, and in 1715 enough porcelain was produced to be offered for sale at the fair of Leipsic. The first ware made was white, and this was ornamented with vine-leaves and grapes in low-relief, or was pierced through the sides or borders. It is doubtful whether any of this white was sold, most of it being disposed of as presents.

The first color used was blue, probably in imitation of the Nanking ware.

Böttger, who appears to have been a sort of artistic scamp, died in 1719, at the age of thirty-seven, a victim of his own vices; but his work was carried onward by others.

The news of this successful discovery spread, like fire on a prairie, throughout Europe, and every device was resorted to to get at the secrets, which were closely guarded at Meissen. Every director and officer was monthly sworn to secrecy; every workman had before his eyes, "Be secret to death!" and it was well known that any traitor would be punished with imprisonment, or worse.

The works were continued, after the death of Böttger, under Höroldt's direction; and it was during this time that the decorations swung clear of Oriental imitation. Painting in colors, and gilding, were employed; vases, dishes, services, were made; delicate copies of paintings were produced; also birds, insects, animals, flowers, etc.

A sculptor named Kändler was employed from 1731 to 1763, and under him figures of many sorts were produced, some of them still quite famous--"The Tailor and his Wife" riding on goats, figures of the Carnival of Venice, figurines of Cupids, of lawyers, doctors, and many professions and trades. He also modeled animals and birds, the twelve Apostles, of life-size, etc.

Chaffers quotes from the _London Magazine_ of 1753: "This fabric, which brings annually great sums of money into the country, is daily increasing in reputation, and is carried to all the courts of Europe. Even the Turks come from Constantinople to purchase it, and the rarest pieces that are made are carried thither to embellish the grand-seignior's and his great officers' houses and seraglios."

Let us quote further from the same: "The sets of porcelain for tea, coffee, or chocolate, may be had for fifteen to sixty guineas. There is one particular kind from which they will abate nothing of one hundred guineas the set; this is a double porcelain, not made at once, but a second layer added to the first form, resembling a honey-comb on the outside, which is of a pale-brown color, the _letts_ or cavities being all painted, as well as the bottoms of the insides of the cups and dishes. This, as all other sorts, may be had painted with landscapes and figures, birds, insects, fruits, flowers: the first being the dearer; the latter, the best executed, being almost equal to Nature in beauty and liveliness of the colors. The grounds of all these different sorts of porcelain are various, some being painted on white, others on pink; some in compartments, others without. The spaces between are sometimes of a white, yellow, or pea-green color; or the whole ground is white, with running flowers. This sort and the pea-green in compartments are the newest made and in the most elegant taste."

Table-services at this time cost from one hundred to one thousand guineas each, according to the number of pieces and the elaborateness of the decoration.

The figure-pieces, some fifteen inches high, were sold at from sixteen to twenty guineas; and the smaller figurines, five or six inches high, for as many pounds.

These Dresden figures of this early period now sell for very high prices, and are much sought for, as are also the figure-pieces of the Höchst and Chelsea factories.

But let us ask ourselves, "Why should we pay such great prices for work which, as _art_, has but a reflected value?" I am sure that no great sculptor will apply his best work to china, or to any material which is so liable to be spoiled in the baking, and to one which, after all, is not suited to what we term high or fine art.

These figures are of value, of course, as illustrations of the possibilities, and also as historical illustrations, of the growth and development of the fictile art. No man will wish to have an Ariadne in china made by an excellent artist, if he can have the same work of the same artist in marble.

We have the same feeling in regard to a fine painting: would any one wish to exchange the Dresden Madonna of Raphael on the canvas for a perfect copy in mosaic, or in the most exquisite Gobelin tapestry? None. And yet the mosaic or the tapestry has cost ten times more of human labor.

The artificialities of life come to be supreme at times, and the human mind, in some stages of development, loses all sense of what is good or bad, in an exaggerated appreciation of what is difficult or uncommon; and, in many cases, a fashion or whim of the hour rides down a sound judgment. Among the more intellectual peoples this prevails.

Assuming that the Orientals are races who perceive or feel, rather than reason--while the reverse of this is true of Europeans and Americans--we find our art often losing its way, which that of the Orientals seldom does. The natural or instinctive soul, by its native sense, is guided in matters of color and decoration more truly than we who attempt to reason out these things. Now, applying this to the facts of fictile art, we find that the Chinese and Japanese never attempted figure-work in porcelain, except in some few cases of burlesques, or of animals and birds. Their work was applied to that which comes into the uses of life--for the table first and mostly; after that for vases, which became works of pure ornament, but yet behind which lay the motive of _use_. In all this, it seems to me, the Orientals were right, and the Saxons wrong.

I believe, then, that the best and purest art will be found in porcelain when applied to the decoration of dinner and tea services, of vases, and of articles which do not attempt to rival sculpture or high art; and those may reach perfection, while the porcelain sculptures will not.

I believe, too, that the best style of decoration for porcelain is not imitative, but suggestive--that is, an elaborate and careful _copy_ of a flower or a figure upon the clay is not so appropriate or so satisfactory as a free translation of the sentiment of the flower or the figure, which suggests it to the soul rather than tickles the eye.

It is not appropriate, so it seems to me, that a delicate painting of a beautiful girl should be made on the dinner-plate upon which you are to put your squash or your pudding; such delicate penciling should be devoted to art pure and simple--to "fine art," as it is called. Such paintings on china cannot be put to use; they are too costly, and therefore they fail to be either useful art or fine art.

Now, the tendency of European porcelain-decoration is always in this "fine-art" direction, and is always false; that of Oriental porcelain is always in the useful-art direction, and therefore true.

The pure white porcelain of Meissen was not at first sold, but was reserved for the king's use, or for presents to distinguished personages. In later times it was sold, and is still; and the pieces so disposed of have a _scratch_ cut across the _mark_, to indicate that they were not painted in the factory.

The works at Meissen grew in importance and in public favor up to the time of the Seven Years' War (1756 to 1763), when Frederick the Great overran Saxony, broke up the Meissen factory, and removed the workmen to Berlin, where he established the Prussian potteries, which afterward came to be of great consequence.

An English merchant visited the works at Meissen in 1750, and found "about seven hundred men employed, most of whom have not above ten German crowns a month, and the highest wages are forty, so that the annual expense is not estimated above eighty thousand crowns. This manufactory being entirely for the king's account, he sells yearly to the value of one hundred and fifty thousand crowns, and sometimes two hundred thousand crowns (thirty-five thousand pounds sterling[14]), besides the magnificent presents he occasionally makes, and the great quantity he preserves for his own use."

The best period of Dresden production is estimated as being from about 1730 to 1756. During this period the works of Kändler were made, and also the paintings of Lindenir, which are much valued. In Fig. 126 is to be seen a fine plate with a pierced border, in the centre of which are painted birds, in the style introduced by Lindenir. The other pieces shown in Fig. 126 are excellent examples of good Meissen porcelain; the cup and saucer, showing Cupids, is most delicately and elaborately painted. Among those who painted somewhat upon the Dresden china was Angelica Kauffmann, whose figures are pervaded with a certain grace and refinement always charming.

Fig. 127 shows some choice small pieces from Mr. Wales's collection The centre flower-dish is very finely painted with birds, and the meandering lip, intended to confine the flowers, is peculiar.

The two cups and saucers on the right are very richly gilded, the compartments containing delicate flower-painting.

The cup and saucer on the left is one of the best examples of the Marcolini period; the gilded edges are exquisitely done, and the flowers, painted in tender browns and greens--not in high colors or in the colors of Nature--are charming.

Many pieces of the old Dresden porcelain (and of modern work

also) are elaborately decorated with rococo scrolls and flower-work in relief, applied upon candelabra, chandeliers, vases, cups, etc. Unsympathetic buyers will be apt to seize upon these pieces, and they are most common in ordinary collections; but they are very far from being the best or the most interesting. This style of work was introduced and practised by Kändler (1731 to 1763) at the period when the best works were produced; but this style of work is not itself the best, though it may be the most costly.

In Fig. 128 we present one of the most elaborate and magnificent examples of this excessive decoration. Nothing is spared; the painting is most delicate, the flowers most intricate, the figures all most perfectly modeled; and yet upon one it produces satiety. It is overdone. Like an overdressed woman, we have lost the divine creation in her clothes.

In Fig. 129 may be seen a style of Dresden work which has had much popularity; it is costly, for it shows great difficulties well surmounted. But do you care for it as you would for a fine plate or an ample punch-bowl?

It is a candelabrum sold at the Bernal collection, and is thus described: "A pair of superb candelabra, each formed of a female draped figure bearing scroll-branches for five lights, seated on pedestals, round which Cupids are supporting shields-of-arms. These magnificent objects of decoration are twenty-four inches high."

The price was two hundred and thirty-one pounds sterling (eleven hundred and fifty-five dollars).

It may not be amiss to hint to incipient collectors that not all Dresden porcelain is equally beautiful or desirable--which is true of the paintings of Raphael or Murillo--and that every collector should consider the intrinsic excellence of each piece, rather than the mark or name of the factory.

The productions of the Dresden factory have continued down to the present time, but the periods of greatest excellence have been from 1731 to 1756, and from 1763 to 1814.

In 1796 Count Marcolini was made director, and under him was produced some of the finest flower-painting; he also introduced the classic shapes and decorations into the vases; which style of decoration came into wide fashion during the days of Napoleon I., who was an imitator of Cæsar, and of the work of Cæsar's day.

Some idea of the values of pieces of Dresden china may be of use, and I take a few from the great Bernal sale made in London in 1855:

A scalloped cup and saucer, with minute landscapes £ 1 14_s._ $8 50

A pair of cups and saucers, with buildings on gold ground 7 7_s._ 36 75

A coffee-pot, crimson ground, with landscape 9 5_s._ 46 00

A small oval pierced tray, with two figures in green; and a small coffee-pot, with figures after Watteau, 19 8_s._ 6_d._ 100 00

Marks for Dresden porcelain:

The crossed swords are still used.

We often meet with pieces of Dresden china which have an engraved cut or scratch across the swords, which indicates, as before said, that the pieces have been _painted_ outside the factory.

The beds of fine clay in Saxony are much deteriorated; and the productions at Meissen no longer hold so high a place as they once did.

BERLIN PORCELAIN--HARD PASTE.--It was not until 1751 that attempts were made to produce porcelain in Prussia. This was a private enterprise undertaken by a Mr. Wegeley. The _Gentleman's Magazine_ of 1753 spoke of him in this way: "There has been discovered here at Berlin the whole art of making china-ware, without any particular kind of earth, from a kind of stone which is common enough everywhere," etc.

Wegeley worked on for eight years, but could not make the production pay, and abandoned it; when it was taken up by a banker named Gottskowski (1762), who, having capital, pushed it toward success. In 1763 the establishment was bought by Frederick the Great, who made it a royal manufactory, and forced a success.

When Frederick took Dresden, the porcelain-works at Meissen were temporarily suspended. He had an eye to understand the value of the porcelain industries, and he took measures to grace his capital and increase the wealth of Prussia by establishing a great manufactory at Berlin. He carried off from Meissen some of the best examples of the porcelain collection, transported to Berlin tons of the fine clay, and borrowed the best workmen and the most distinguished artists for his new factory; among these the names of Meyer, Klipsel, and Böhme, are mentioned.

The Berlin productions soon rose into fame and obtained a wide circulation. Not only did the king spread the work abroad by means of exquisite presents; he also took measures at home to secure a market. He ordered that no Jew should marry until he had provided himself a sufficient outfit of porcelain from the royal manufactory. Now, the Jew does not like to waste his money, and he at once sought a market for the wares he had been forced to buy. All this advertised and spread abroad the excellent work.

During the collapse of Meissen, Russia became a large customer for Berlin; and its finished and elegant dinner-services went into her palaces and mansions. The best work of Berlin equals the best work of Dresden; its paste is more creamy, and some of its painters were not excelled. A favorite decoration at Berlin was the small Watteau figure-pieces, painted in medallions or reserves. Its examples of pierced or open-worked border plates are excellent.

In Fig. 130 are two examples of these, from Mr. Prime's collection, which are perfectly painted in the naturalistic way. So, too, is the tureen, which has finely-modeled heads for handles, which yet are unsatisfactory. This is one piece of a large dinner-service.

Berlin porcelain ranks high, and good specimens bring good prices.

Two factories continue to produce fine porcelain--one at Berlin, and one at Charlottenberg, which was founded in 1790--and both are under the direction of the state.

The Berlin factory grew to such importance in the last century that it employed seven hundred workmen.

The prices paid for some pieces of Berlin porcelain at the Bernal sale were as follows:

A Berlin coffee-pot, with river-scene and landscape £5 $25 00

A plate, with Salmacis and Hermaphroditus, gold border, 13 10_s._ 67 00

A cup and saucer, deep blue, with female busts in red, on gold ground 4 10_s._ 22 00

A cup and saucer, with pink festoon border and exotic birds 1 10_s._ 7 50

A cup, cover, and stand, pink, with black medallions of the Princess de Lamballe and her cipher 5 15_s._ 29 00

Marks of Berlin porcelain:

Since 1833 the mark has been a double eagle, surrounded by the words "_Porzellan-Manufactur, Königl._"

The mark of Charlottenburg has been the double eagle crowned, holding a sceptre in one hand, a globe in the other.

VIENNA PORCELAIN--HARD PASTE.--The Vienna manufactory was started about 1717 to 1720, and was a private enterprise. The principal man was Stenzel, who had escaped from Meissen, and was warmly welcomed at Vienna. He possessed the Meissen secrets, and was able to give character and value to the Vienna ware. The early examples were thicker and coarser than that of Dresden, and the paste was grayer and less pure. It was not till 1744, when Maria Theresa purchased the works, that Vienna porcelain rose to its best estate. This beautiful and capable woman for a long time was a prominent figure in the politics of Europe. Her father, the Emperor Charles VI. of Hapsburg, during his life secured to her the succession of the Austrian throne, by an agreement with the other powers called the "Pragmatic Sanction," which, however, proved a treacherous security, so that wars and rumors of wars followed her.

The porcelain-works were, however, not neglected, and the patronage of the court, and the fashion the courtiers made, secured a good success; so that, in 1785, more than five hundred workmen were employed.

Not only were the products largely used in Austria, but there came a great demand from Turkey. The first work was, of course, a following of Dresden. The best painters possible were engaged, and animals, landscapes, and figures, were applied.

About 1796 a painter named Lamprecht painted excellent animals, and his pieces bear his name; they are rare. Some of the other painters were Perger, Furstler, Wech, and Varsanni. Nigg was a painter of rare flower-pieces.

The Turkish demand caused the production at Vienna, and also in Hungary, of what may be called Oriental or Asiatic styles of decorations. Figures, of course, gave way to arabesques--for no true Moslem copies the human figure--and more and richer colors were used.

The best work was made during the latter part of the last century, when a style of decoration of burnished gold in relief upon dead gold was used, which is now much prized. The work went on, with varying success and at great cost, till 1856, when it was given up.

Some of the pieces at the Bernal sale were as follows:

A plate with green border and white stars, with flowers £2 2_s._ $10 50

One with brown and gold border, with flowers 1 1_s._ 5 00

A plate with lilac border, and friezes, from gems in Indian-ink 37 16_s._ 189 00

A cup and saucer, beautifully painted, with Venus and Cupid, after Sir Joshua Reynolds 8 15_s._ 44 00

The teapot and cup and saucer in Fig. 131 are Vienna work, and are excellent examples both of paste and coloring.

The three lower pieces in Fig. 131 are _Hungarian_; the bowl and sugar-bowl are highly colored, and are very Oriental in both color and decoration. The plate with fish is a direct imitation of the Chinese.

Marks for Vienna porcelain:

HUNGARY.--Toward the end of the last century a porcelain-factory was at work in Herend, at which porcelain of an Oriental character and much richness was made. This was doubtless intended for the Turkish and Asiatic markets. A piece bought in Ispahan, as Oriental, is now pronounced to be Herend, and was purchased by the South Kensington Museum in 1863.

Some pieces figured on the lower line of the engraving (Fig. 131) show the Oriental character of the decorations, but not the bright and rich colors.

The word "Herend" is found impressed on the ware; sometimes in incised letters.

In 1839 Fischer established a porcelain-manufactory, which, I believe, is still at work. Sometimes he used the shield of the arms of Austria for a mark, and at others his own initials, =MF= (Morris Fischer), combined.

HÖCHST (OR MAYENCE) PORCELAIN--HARD PASTE.--Mayence, or Mainz, was once a small state or duchy, presided over by the elector, who was archbishop of the state. Pottery had been made there for many years; and at last, in 1740, an escaped workman from Vienna, named Ringler, taught them the secrets of porcelain. He seems to have been a man of force--one who worked for excellence--and under his direction some of the best porcelain was made. When the manufactory became a state establishment, the services of an artist named Melchior were secured as modeler and decorator. He was one of those rare men who have an innate sense of the beauties of form and proportion, which study had made more keen and true.

His figures and small groups rank highest of any for their spirit, grace, and delicacy, and command to-day extreme prices. The letter "M" is engraved on the bottom of many of Melchior's productions, in addition to the wheel, or wheel and crown, which was the common mark for the factory.

The vases and table-ware partake of the general character of the Dresden, which led all the rest; it had a good sale, and, being never produced in great quantities, the pieces are not now very common. They are desired in all good collections, and the prices are high.

One day, when Ringler had taken too much wine, his workmen stole from his pocket the secret for mixing the paste, and from this many of the smaller manufactories of Germany took their start. The factory was destroyed by the French in 1794.

The mark of the Höchst ware was a wheel, with or without the crown.

FRANKENTHAL, (OR BAVARIAN) PORCELAIN--HARD PASTE.--Hannong, a Strasburg potter, having discovered the secret of porcelain, and being forbidden to use it in France, sought work in the palatinate at a town called Frankenthal in the year 1754. Soon after this, Ringler, who had had the care of the works at Höchst, having had his secrets stolen, left that place in disgust, and offered his services to Hannong at Frankenthal, and was gladly received. Together they at once brought their productions to a point of great excellence; and when, in 1761, the Elector Palatine, Carl Theodor, purchased the works, and made them a state establishment, they grew into great fame.

Melchior, whose figures had made the work of Höchst so famous, was induced to come to Frankenthal, where his skill and taste were made most useful.

Examples of this porcelain are much sought for.

The excellence of the work declined afterward; and about the year 1800, the country being overrun by French armies, the works were ruined and the tools were sold.

The prices at the Bernal sale were about the same as the best Dresden.

We give some form-marks supposed to belong to Frankenthal:

The first, the crest of the palatinate, was used from 1755 to 1761.

PH combined, sometimes found on this porcelain, marks the work of Hannong.

The crown, with the letters C. T. (Carl Theodor), indicates the late period from 1762 to 1798.

FÜRSTENBURG (OR BRUNSWICK) PORCELAIN.--The interest excited by the production of porcelain at Dresden, Vienna, and Höchst, inspired many of the rulers of states with a desire to establish manufactories of the beautiful wares in their own dominions; among whom was Charles, Duke of Brunswick (1750). One of the Höchst workmen was secured to superintend the works at Fürstenburg; but he soon died, when Baron von Lang was placed in charge. He was an accomplished chemist, and his skill, with the funds put at his disposal by the duke, enabled him to produce work equal in decoration to that at Dresden, though the paste is not considered so fine. Fine vases, groups, and dinner and tea services, were the result, which are now much prized.

At the Bernal sale a Fürstenburg cup, cover, and stand, painted with flowers and surmounted by a flame, sold for six pounds ten shillings sterling (thirty-two dollars).

The mark is a cursive letter _F_ more or less rudely done in blue.

In Fig. 132 is seen a basket from Mr. Wales's collection, made at Fürstenburg, which is carefully modeled, though it bears very little decoration.

NYMPHENBURG, in Bavaria, had a small porcelain-manufactory as early as 1746 or 1747, but it seems to have had only a fitful and uncertain existence until after the death of Carl Theodor, when the Frankenthal workmen were taken to Nymphenburg, carrying with them skill, taste, and knowledge. The manufactory received many favors, and much good work was done. Among the known artists employed were Heintzmann, who painted landscapes; Adler, who did the figures; and Lindemann. Some of the white pieces made at Nymphenburg bear the impressed stamp of the factory, and painters' marks also, when decorated outside the walls of the manufactory.

The establishment is said to be still in existence. Nymphenburg was once a royal palace, a few miles from Munich.

At the Bernal sale some pieces sold as follows:

A Nymphenburg basin with an elaborate painting of a battle, in Indian-ink £10 $50 00 A cup and saucer with figures, in Indian-ink and gold 2 10 00 A basin with figures and scrolls, in Indian-ink and gold 2 12_s._ 6_d._ 13 00 A basin with medallions in Indian-ink, figures in colors, and gold scrolls 14 70 00 A basin with three landscapes 4 20 00

The marks of the Nymphenburg are--

Besides these more important manufactories of porcelain were a number of less note, which sprang up during this period of active interest; such as those of _Ludwigsburg_, or _Kronenburg_, _Fulda_, _Hesse-Cassel_, etc.

In THURINGIA, also, were a number of small establishments, many of which produced fine work.

Marks of Ludwigsburg, or Kronenburg:

Mark of Fulda, in Hesse (1763 to 1780):

Marks of Limbach, in Saxe-Meiningen (about 1760):

In SWITZERLAND, at Nyon and at Zurich, small factories went to work, whose productions are sought for by collectors; but they do not reach the importance of the leading German establishments. The manufactory at Nyon (1712) had sometimes a fish, and sometimes a painter's name in script-letters, as _Guide_, or _G_.