A pair of Meissen porcelain nodding pagodes
A pair of Meissen porcelain nodding pagodes
Two figures sitting cross-legged; with nodding heads, hands, and tongues. Metal mountings. Blue crossed swords mark with large pommels, marked to the interiors. One of the man's hands and the tips of the shoes restored. H 31 cm.
Last quarter 19th C., model by Johann Joachim Kaendler, ca. 1730.
These bizarre porcelain sculptures remain one of the manufactory's most fascinating products to this day. Frederick II was so intrigued by them that in the late Autumn of 1762, in the latter phase of the Seven Years' War, he ordered "10 pagodes with nodding heads, each 1 ft high", of which six have survived and can still be viewed in the Chinese House at Sanssouci. According to Wittwer, the 10 pagodes comprised five male and five female figures which were displayed on brackets. The draught from the windows moved the heads, tongues, and hands, giving the illusion of porcelain come to life.
Literature
Wittwer, Friedrich der Grosse und das Meissener Porzellan, in cat.: Triumph der blauen Schwerter, Dresden-Leipzig 2010, p. 143 f.
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A pair of Meissen porcelain nodding pagodes
Two figures sitting cross-legged; with nodding heads, hands, and tongues. Metal mountings. Blue crossed swords mark with large pommels, marked to the interiors. One of the man's hands and the tips of the shoes restored. H 31 cm.
Last quarter 19th C., model by Johann Joachim Kaendler, ca. 1730.
These bizarre porcelain sculptures remain one of the manufactory's most fascinating products to this day. Frederick II was so intrigued by them that in the late Autumn of 1762, in the latter phase of the Seven Years' War, he ordered "10 pagodes with nodding heads, each 1 ft high", of which six have survived and can still be viewed in the Chinese House at Sanssouci. According to Wittwer, the 10 pagodes comprised five male and five female figures which were displayed on brackets. The draught from the windows moved the heads, tongues, and hands, giving the illusion of porcelain come to life.
Literature
Wittwer, Friedrich der Grosse und das Meissener Porzellan, in cat.: Triumph der blauen Schwerter, Dresden-Leipzig 2010, p. 143 f.
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Time, Location
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