Meissen Manufactory

Meissen Porcelain Manufactory stands beside the Elbe in the small town of Meissen. It began in 1708 when August the Strong ordered experiments that led to Europe’s first hard-paste porcelain. The first workshop opened in the Albrechtsburg castle above the town in 1710. The factory’s crossed-swords mark is the oldest continually used luxury brand in the world. Johann Friedrich Böttger led the early research, guided by Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus and a team of Freiberg specialists. Gottfried Pabst von Ohain supplied the kaolin that turned grey paste into white porcelain. Johann Gregorius Höroldt developed the first overglaze colours, introducing chinoiserie scenes and the later Zwiebelmuster. Visitors walk through a modern experience area that shows every stage of porcelain making. They see the kilns, the painters’ tables and the moulds used for figures and tableware. The buildings sit in the Triebisch valley below the castle, surrounded by vineyards and the river’s wide bends.