Porzellansammlung: Dresden Porcelain Project

Foto, fünf Monumentale unterglasurblaue Vasen vor einer spiegelnden Lackwand

Please note that currently the Böttger Hall and (from 1 August to 21 October 2022) the East Asia Gallery are not accessible.

The Dresden Porcelain Project

In 2014, an international team of experts began researching and cataloguing the comprehensive, extant royal holdings of Augustus the Strong (1670–1733) comprising around 8000 East Asian porcelain objects. The results will be published on an innovative digital platform that will not only showcase the objects but will also focus on the history of the collection.

The Historical Collection

In the early 18th century, Augustus the Strong converted the Japanese Palace in Dresden into a porcelain castle to display his opulent collection of Chinese and Japanese porcelain. These royal holdings are still one of the world’s largest and most important East Asian reference collections from the 17th and 18th centuries. This is because 8000 of the initially more than 29,000 East Asian ceramic objects are still extant in the Porzellansammlung today, which, in combination with the preserved archival documents, make this collection unique.

Foto, Blick auf ein imposantes historisches Gebäude — **Japanese Palace, Dresden**

The Inventories of the Japanese Palace

The six inventory books from 1721 and 1779 are the most important sources to consult when researching the historical collection of Augustus the Strong. These inventories not only provide insight into how the porcelain was received at the court but also offer an understanding of Augustus the Strong‘s key collecting principles. They have proved invaluable to the project and this is the first time they will be published.

Scan, Buchseite mit handschriftlicher Listung von Objekten — **Page from the Japanese Palace Inventory of 1779**

Provenance

All the objects are marked with a ‘palace number’ that corresponds with the inventory entries. This number was either incised and blackened, or painted directly onto the porcelain body. This unique correlation between the objects and the historical documentation made it possible to identify almost 8000 porcelain pieces from the royal collection within the Porzellansammlung.

Foto, Unterseite eines Tellers einer eingeritzten Nummer N 334 Zickzacklinie — **Palace Number on a Chinese plate**

Highlights

Foto, weißer Elefant aus Porzellan mit in die Höhe gerecktem Rüssel und farbiger Decke über dem Rücken — **Elephant** Japan, Arita, 1680 - 1700

Foto, Monumentalvase mit unterglasurblauem Dekor in horizontalen Sektionen — **Dragoon vase** China, Jingdezhen, around 1700

Foto, Schale in grün-dominierten Aufglasurfarben mit zwei Vögeln im Spiegel — **Dish** China, Jingdezhen, around 1700

Fisch als Vase, geöffnetes Maul dient als Öffnung — **Fish-shaped wall vase** Japan, Kyoto, 1700 - 1730

Schale, bemalt mit Blütenzweigen — **Dish** Japan, Kyoto, 1723 - 1735

Foto, Kanne aus dunklem Steinzeug mit golddekorierten Blättern in Relief — **Teapot with relief** China, Yixing, 1690 - 1720

Foto, Deckelvase dekoriert mit Blumen und Landschaften — **Covered vase** Japan, Arita, 1700 - 1720

Segelschiff aus Porzellan mit Besatzung — **Figure of a ship** China, Jingdezhen, 1690 - 1720

Figur einer vielarmigen Göttin auf einem Lotusthron — **Goddess Goumu** China, Dehua, 1675 - 1725

Foto, Fischbassin mit Löwenhenkeln — **Fish basin** China, Jingdezhen, 1700 - 1720

International Team & Exchange

A team of more than 35 renowned international senior and junior experts from Europe, China, Japan, Taiwan and the US is researching the royal porcelain holdings. The intensive collaboration is accompanied by workshops at the museum.

Foto, Wissenschaftler stehen um einen Tisch, an dem Professor Ohashi ein Porzellan zeigt

International Workshop 2018

The Dresden Porcelain Project - Workshop

The Digital Publication

An innovative digital platform – The Royal Dresden Porcelain Collection – has been developed to showcase the entire reference collection in combination with the extant archival material. The interconnectedness of the different materials allows not only for an explorative approach but also for an ongoing contextualisation in different, curated narratives. This novel and aesthetically ambitious presentation of the objects will inspire our professional and general readers alike.