All Walks of Life

Contents Prefaces

All Walks of Life

A Walk through Meissen & Dresden

The Alan Shimmerman Collection

ALAN SHIMMERMAN

6

My Journey of Collecting VANESSA SIGALAS

8

All Walks of Life: The Alan Shimmerman Collection Alan Shimmerman Interviewed by

VANESSA SIGALAS

The Market for Porcelain Figures Who Were the Buyers?

18

A Few Words of Appreciation

VANESSA SIGALAS

Principal Author’s Acknowledgments

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd 4

26

Johann Joachim Kaendler between Artist and Manufactory Worker

Walking through Meissen

70

VANESSA SIGALAS

72

Life in Meissen as a Porcelain Manufactory Worker

10

MEREDITH CHILTON

MEREDITH CHILTON

VANESSA SIGALAS

with excursions to London, Paris, and St. Petersburg

20

56

A Glimpse of Market Day in Meissen

82

The Marketplace

84

Tyrolean Itinerant Traders

96

Labourers

104

Farmers’ Festivals

108

In the Garden

126

The Fishing Trade in Meissen

134

Viticulture in EighteenthCentury Meissen

142

Craftsmen and -Women in Meissen

146

A Glimpse of the Kitchen

188

In the Kitchen

190

At Home

206

09.11.22 10:45

Appendices

Travelling Europe

214

VANESSA SIGALAS

216

The Meissen Porcelain Criers

Walking through Dresden

328

ANDRÉ VAN DER GOES

330

Dresden in the Augustan Era, 1694 1764

The London Criers

218

The Paris Criers

250

Savoyards

306

Russian Peasants, or St. Petersburg Criers

310

VANESSA SIGALAS

318

The Dutch Peasants

A Glimpse of a Masquerade at Court

368

VANESSA SIGALAS

370

The Court

VANESSA SIGALAS

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

5

564

The Post Eighteenth Century Decoration of Meissen Porcelain Figures: A Collaboration between Art History and Science JENNIFER MASS , VANESSA SIGALAS , AND AARON SHUGAR

568

AARON SHUGAR AND JENNIFER MASS

600

VANESSA SIGALAS

610

A Scientific Assessment of the Meissen Porcelain Figures and Groups in the Shimmerman Collection 414

Entertainment in Dresden

Compositional Analysis of the Porcelain Paste

Commedia dell’Arte and Other Theatrical Performances

426

A Glimpse of a Performance at an Outdoor Theatre

430

In the Chinese Taste

474

Shepherd Lovers

524

VANESSA SIGALAS

530

The Sounds of Dresden

JENNIFER MASS , VANESSA SIGALAS , AND AARON SHUGAR

The History of Porcelain Decoration in the Nineteenth Century

VANESSA SIGALAS 618 The Late Paris Criers – Table of Drawings and Transcriptions

General Notes

642

Bibliography

648

Contributors’ Biographies

657

Addendum

658

Indexes

660

Captions and Credits

668

08.11.22

14:05

My Journey of Collecting

It’s not possible to reduce a thirty-five-plus-year journey of collecting to just a few words. Certainly a collection of over 250 individual figures and this wonderful publication are a testament to the effort made and are, of course, extremely gratifying, but the journey was every bit as exciting.

I’ve met dozens and dozens of fellow collectors and specialists working for museums and auction houses, as well as lecturers, authors, scientists, restorers, and photographers, many of whom have become my friends, and of course Meredith Chilton. Over the many years since we first met, we have become very close, a friendship that is more precious to me than any of the wonderful figures in the collection.

This book would not have been possible without the outstanding scholarship and dedication of the principal author, Vanessa Sigalas. Her tireless devotion and enthusiasm enliven both this publication and my collection. I am profoundly thankful to her.

In addition, I would like to thank the contributing authors, André van der Goes, Jennifer Mass, and above all Aaron Shugar, who became an invaluable addition to the team; the editorial team from Canada and Germany; and of course Arnoldsche, our incomparable publisher.

With the exception of filling in a few obvious gaps, my collecting journey is coming to an end. Thank you to so many for your counsel, your knowledge, your support, and in many cases your friendship.

To my beautiful wife, Melissa, your photography is every bit as spectacular as you are. Thank you for attending to the minutest details. Your patience over the three years of photographing these figures is nothing less than marvellous.

It all shows in every photo you took.

ALAN SHIMMERMAN

6



Prefaces

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

6

08.11.22

14:05

My Journey

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

7

SHIMMERMAN



7

08.11.22

14:05

Johann Joachim Kaendler between

Artist and Manufactory Worker

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

26

08.11.22

14:05

BY VANESSA SIGALAS

J

ohann Joachim Kaendler (1706–1775) transformed the history of European porcelain. As a young sculptor, he was employed at the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory at the court of King Augustus the Strong of Saxony (1670–1733).

There he invented and popularized small-scale porcelain sculpture for the European market. The figures Kaendler created represented people from all walks of life, from the aristocracy to tradespeople to simple peasants, and he brilliantly brought them to life with characteristic humour. The story of this ingenious artist is of critical importance to the Alan Shimmerman Collection, as many of the sculptures in the collection are Kaendler’s original creations.

When Johann Joachim Kaendler was born in 1706, the alchemist Johann Friedrich Böttger (1682–1719) was feverishly trying to discover the process for producing hard-paste porcelain, or true porcelain. This was a much-sought secret, as no one in Europe was able to recreate the formula for the beautiful white and translucent wares that were being imported from China. East Asian porcelain had reached Europe through trade and as diplomatic gifts, and by the late seventeenth century porcelain wares were regularly being traded between European states.

Chinese and Japanese porcelain was an especially important export from The Netherlands.

With these imported porcelain pieces being valued as highly as gold, the quest for the arcanum, the secret formula to create porcelain, was on! Many tried and failed. The final success of Böttger in 17081 at the court of Augustus the Strong in Dresden not only sealed his own fate—his knowledge of the priceless secret made him a lifelong prisoner—it transformed Saxony and eventually Europe.

European hard-paste porcelain came to play a major role in diplomatic gift giving and was often used to reinforce political bonds and secure favours.2 The establishment of a manufactory for this “white gold” thus enhanced Saxony’s reputation and state diplomacy. Additionally, the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory was intended to give a boost to the state economy—the manufactory was part of an export-oriented mercantilist strategy.3 Augustus was eager to prove that his Meissen porcelain excelled that of East Asia, with the great prestige and reputation for innovation and taste that this would bring to Saxony and to his own reign.

1

2

3

4

5

He was assisted by Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus (1651–1708) and Gottfried Pabst von Ohain (1656–1729).

Maureen Cassidy-Geiger and Mogens Bencard (2007) discuss the exchange of Meissen wares by European courts in the eighteenth century.

For a discussion of the place of Meissen in Saxony’s mercantilist strategy from 1710 to 1830, see, e.g., Monti 2011.

Nowak 2007, 5. Nowak thinks that Kaendler was born in Seeligstadt.

Usually, however, Fischbach is given as his place of birth.

Gröger 1956, 19–21.

The Young Johann Joachim Kaendler When the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory was founded on January 23, 1710, the three-year-old parson’s son Johann Joachim Kaendler could not know that its material was to become his destiny. His father, who was also named Johann Joachim, was the pastor for two small towns in Saxony, Fischbach and Seeligstadt, which are about 25 kilometres (15 miles) from Dresden. The young Johann Joachim Kaendler might have been born in either one of these towns—his birth is not noted in either town’s records.4 Although the boy was raised in a clerical household, the Kaendler family looked back on a long line of stonemasons and sculptors,5 and the young Kaendler was encouraged to follow his artistic talents.

He is said to have received a well-rounded education in classical mythology from

Johann Joachim Kaendler

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

27

SIGALAS



27

08.11.22

14:05

5.

1. & 2.

3.

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

70

08.11.22

14:07

Walking through

Meissen

4.

1. Albrechtsburg 2. Domplatz 3. Marketplace 4. River Elbe 5. Meissen’s Vineyards

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

71

08.11.22

14:07

Life in Meissen as a

Porcelain Manufactory Worker

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

72

08.11.22

14:07

BY VANESSA SIGALAS

T

1

2

A mile (Meile) varied from place to place and time to time. The German mile, or Landmeile, also known as a Prussian mile, was, for example, 7,532.5 metres (4.68 miles), while the Postmeile in Saxony was 9,062 metres (5.63 miles).

“Der Weg von Dresden nach Meißen übertrift an reizenden Aussichten, treflichen Straßen und mannichfacher Abwechslung der Gegenstände alle Art von Beschreibung. Die schönsten Weinberge mit prachtvollen Landhäusern, Ruinen, wie in einem Busch versenkt, Birken: und Tannenwäldchen, Schlösser, gut gebaute Dörfer, Fahrzeuge, die auf der nahen Elbe hinabgleiten, das alles giebt den seltensten Kontrast, und macht den Weg angenehm. Wirtlich fuhren wir mit der sogenannten gelben Kutsche, die 3 Meilen von Dresden nach Meißen in noch nicht vier vollen Stunden. Während des Umspannens der Pferde, das drei ganze Stunden dauerte, besah ich mit einem venezanischen Schiffskapitän und einem emigrierten französischen Bischof aus Toul die berühmte Porzellanfabrik auf dem alten Schlosse, welche für die älteste in Europa gehalten wird … Uebrigens scheint Meißen ein reinliches gut gebautes Städtchen zu seyn, und hat eine treffliche Brücke über die Elbe, und auf dem Markt einige gut gebaute Häuser” (Kaffka 1798, 197–98).

he charming town of Meissen is beautifully situated on the banks of the river Elbe, some 23 kilometres (14 miles) northwest of Dresden (fig. 1). In the eighteenth century, a common workman with business in town would walk there from the capital, but anyone who could afford it would take a carriage.

The carriage took about four hours. It must have been a very scenic ride, for, as the composer Johann Christoph Kaffka (1754–1815) wrote in 1798: “The route from Dresden to Meissen surpasses all description in terms of charming views, pleasant streets, and a wide variety of things to see. The gorgeous vineyards with splendid country houses, ruins as if sunk in the brushwood, groves of birch and fir, castles, well-built villages, river traffic gliding down the nearby Elbe, all of this makes a most uncommon contrast and makes the trip pleasant.

We drove with the so-called yellow coach, the 3 miles1 from Dresden to Meissen in less than four full hours. While the horses remained unhitched, which lasted a full three hours, I visited the famous porcelain factory in the old castle, which is believed to be the oldest in Europe, with a Venetian ship’s captain and an émigré French bishop from Toul. … Meissen seems to be a neat, well-built town and has a fine bridge over the Elbe and a few well-built houses on the market.”2 Within the Saxon state Meissen was an important town. Founded in the tenth century, it was, from 1423 to 1464, the capital of the Electorate of Saxony, before Dresden became the first city of the realm. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, Meissen was brought back into the limelight when Augustus the Strong chose the town for the brand-new porcelain manufactory he had founded in 1710. Once Johann Friedrich Böttger (1682–1719) had managed to produce the first European hard-paste porcelain in 1708, which he was only able to achieve with the help of the physicist and philosopher Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus (1651–1708), a safe and well-located site for production had to be found. After all, the arcanum, as the formula of hard-paste porcelain was termed, was a secret of such immense prestige and economic potential that it had to be protected. The old late-Gothic castle in Meissen, called the Albrechtsburg (fig. 3), built between 1471 and 1524, seemed to be the perfect solution: close to Dresden, it was situated on a river with ease of access to raw materials such as the much-needed wood for the kilns and ease of transportation of goods to clients and fairs. But most of all, owing to its position on an unassailable bluff, access could be controlled and unauthorized entry avoided (fig. 2).

Before Augustus the Strong decided to establish his porcelain manufactory at Albrechtsburg Castle, Meissen’s economy was mainly based on local craftsmanship. By this time, though, the town’s crafts were in decline and the town’s wealth was dwindling. However, thanks to the additional business the manufactory was creating, the difficult economic situation started to improve in the 1730s and the town grew. While in 1719 only twenty-six workers were employed at the manufactory, this number had increased significantly by the mid-century. The workers would bring in their families, and in 1751 a manufactory report lists 553 manufactory workers, 398 wives, 719 children, and 138 servants, who together

Life in Meissen

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

73

SIGALAS



73

08.11.22

14:07

1

Goose Seller

This charming porcelain group captures a precise but very ordinary moment on a typical market day in eighteenth-century Germany. A young maid is handing over the money for a goose she is about to buy. The goose is sitting on the peasant’s lap, ready for the maid to take it home and for the cook to prepare it for dinner. The maid and peasant seem to be holding a conversation; maybe he is singing the praises of his poultry or is giving her a compliment. He has grain in the bag to feed to the geese. Although print sources have been suggested as the inspiration for the group15 and might have been seen by Kaendler (fig. 2 and p. 89), the taxa’s reports’ wording “in his usual attire” might suggest the group as having been inspired by real peasants from the area.

Kaendler depicts this transaction with a lively sense of detail and realism, but not without humour. The group warrants closer examination, and this lets us see Kaendler’s humorous side: one of the chickens has managed to pick a hole in the woven basket and is poking its head out, trying to escape its fate.

88



15

See, e.g., Georg Pencz (1500–1550), Der Markt (The Market), sixteenth century, Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum Braunschweig, Monogrammist IB AB 3.25; see Andres-Acevedo, in Antonin 2019, 37.

Walking through Meissen

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

88

08.11.22

14:08

1

Goose Seller

Meissen Porcelain Manufactory Johann Joachim Kaendler (1706–1775) Original year of modelling: 1745 Date of porcelain paste: c. 1730–65 Date of decoration: 18th century Hard-paste porcelain No marks Model no. 720 h. 16.1, w. 17, d. 11.9 cm (6 5⁄16, 6 11⁄16, 4 11⁄16 in.)

Shimmerman Collection no. MPBP_10 PROVENANCE

Purchased from Christie’s London, November 21, 2005, lot 93 EXHIBITION

Detail of fig. 2.

Au pays de l’or blanc. Une collection privée de porcelaine de Meissen (In the Land of White Gold: A Private Collection of Meissen Porcelain), Musée Ariana, Geneva, April 29–September 27, 199916 Savour: Food Culture in the Age of Enlightenment, Gardiner Museum, Toronto, October 17, 2019–January 19, 2020 Savor: A Revolution in Food Culture, Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, Connecticut, February 29– March 13, 2020, and September 5– January 3, 2021 Kaendler’s Taxa, November 20, 1745 “1. Grouppée, vorstellend einen Bauern in seiner gewöhl. Kleidung wie er auf seinem Fäßgen sizet, und eine Gannß in Händen hält, neben sich aber einen Tragekorb stehen hat, darinnen noch eine Ganß und Hühner befindl. neben ihm ist eine Weibes-Person, so ihm abkauffet, und ihm Geld reichet, u. einen Marckt-Topff in Händen hält, worinnen ein Karpffen, neben dem Bauer stehet ein Sack mit Aeppfeln _ _ _ 16 Thlr. --” (1 Group of a peasant in his usual attire, sitting on a small barrel and holding a goose in his hands, beside him a basket containing another goose and chickens, next to him a woman who buys from him and offers him money, holding a market pot in her hands containing a carp; next to the peasant there stands a sack with apples _ _ _ 16 talers --)17 Meissen Directory of Models, 1730–1831 (transcript), after 1900 “720/Gruppe 2 Bauern m. Gänsen/15.5 16.5 12 /Kaendler/Taxa” (720/Group 2 peasants with geese/15.5 16.5 12/Kaendler/Taxa)18 16 17 18

Christie’s catalogue, Christie’s London, November 21, 2005, lot 93.

Cited after Rafael 2009, 65.

Meissen, Manufactory Archive, BA III H 121, 28.

The Marketplace

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

89

SIGALAS



89

08.11.22

14:08

In the Garden

Fig. 20 Gardener Couple, Dresden, ivory, perhaps South Germany, jewellery work Johann Heinrich Köhler (1669–1736), c. 1720–25, ivory, silver-gilt, gold, enamel, traces of paint, precious stones, glass, and Baroque pearls, incl. pedestal and tree: h. 21 cm (8 ¼ in.). Grünes Gewölbe, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, VI 206.

Fig. 21 Harte Müh und saure Garten Arbeit (Hard Labour and Bitter Gardening), published by Martin Engelbrecht (1684–1756), Augsburg, 2nd quarter eighteenth century, hand-coloured engraving with stippling. George Gazer Gallery, New York.

As the print exemplifies, gardening was, and is, hard manual labour (fig. 21). This gardener has filled her apron with fresh produce from the garden. She seems to be caught in the moment and has not had the time to button up her bodice properly. Two buttons probably came undone when she stooped to grab the cucumbers or radishes. It must be a sunny day, as she is wearing a so-called Schaubhut, a broad-brimmed sun hat made of straw with the rim pulled down, worn mostly by women in the countryside (fig. 20). In her right hand she is holding a large radish. In addition to garlic and onions, radishes are found on the supposed “peasant coat-of-arms” in late medieval satirical engravings. These illustrate what was seen as the inappropriate (and even laughable) aspiration of the peasant and middle classes to be on the same social level as the nobility.89

126



89

Hess 2017, 229.

Walking through Meissen

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

126

08.11.22

14:09

18

Female Gardener

Running title 

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

127

127

08.11.22

14:09

22

Fisherman with Net

Meissen Porcelain Manufactory Probably Johann Joachim Kaendler (1706–1775) Original year of modelling: c. 1745 Date of porcelain paste: c. 1730–65 Date of decoration: 18th century Hard-paste porcelain Small underglaze blue crossed swords on back of base Model no. 1220 h. 19.6, w. 8.4, d. 10.5 cm (7 11⁄16, 3 5⁄16, 4 ⅛ in.)

Shimmerman Collection no. MPBP_8 PROVENANCE

Purchased from Yvonne Adams Antiques, Worcestershire, England, July 18, 1988 Oldest Surviving Mould Book of the Meissen Manufactory, c. 1780–c. 1810 “165 [?] / Fischer mit einen durchbrochenen Hahmen vor sich habend / 9 / 1220”102 (165 [?] / Fisherman with an openwork net before him / 9 / 1220) Meissen Directory of Models, 1730–1831 (transcript), after 1900 “1200 / Fischer mit Netz / 18.5 10.5 10” (1200 / Fisherman with net / 18.5 10.5 10)103 The Fisherman is usually combined with the Fisherwoman (cat. no. 21).

The model number 1220, however, would indicate that the fisherman is later than the woman (she has model number 380). She is mentioned in Kaendler’s taxa report. The entry there suggests that there had been an earlier fisherman to whom she was modelled as its partner.

102 103

Meissen, Manufactory Archive, BA III H 164, 218.

Meissen, Manufactory Archive, BA III H 121, 148.

22

140



Fisherman with Net

Walking through Meissen

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

140

08.11.22

14:10

23

Female Peasant Selling Fish

Meissen Porcelain Manufactory Possibly Peter Reinicke (1711–1768) Original year of modelling: c. 1750 Date of porcelain paste: 18th century* Date of decoration: 18th century Hard-paste porcelain Underglaze blue crossed swords on back of base Model no. 1573 h. 13.6, w. 6.9, d. 6.6 cm (5 ⅜, 2 11⁄16, 2 ⅝ in.)

Shimmerman Collection no. MPLC_10 PROVENANCE

Purchased from Yvonne Adams Antiques, Worcestershire, England, January 19, 1993 EXHIBITION

Savour: Food Culture in the Age of Enlightenment, Gardiner Museum, Toronto, October 17, 2019–January 19, 2020 Savor: A Revolution in Food Culture, Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, Connecticut, February 29– March 13, 2020, and September 5– January 3, 2021 Meissen Directory of Models, 1730–1831 (transcript), after 1900 “1573 / Bauersfrau / 13.5 7. 5.5” (1573 / Female peasant / 13.5 7. 5.5)104 Included in the German Democratic Republic sales catalogue, 1963, in English as “Peasant’s wife”; modeller and year are listed as unknown.105 104 105

23

Meissen, Manufactory Archive, BA III H 121, 62.

VEB Porzellan-Manufaktur Meissen 1963, vol. 2, Peasants, 1.

Female Peasant Selling Fish

The Fishing Trade

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

141

SIGALAS



141

08.11.22

14:10

The great Meissen collections of the past are largely represented by Comedy and court-related figures. The Criers, Hawkers, Peasants, Musicians, and Artisans are the primary focus of my collection. These figures were simply not targeted as sufficiently important enough by any of the past collectors. The Tailor’s Wife (cat. no. 34), for example, from the Artisan series, was previously in the Pauls-Eisenbeiss Collection and it was my good fortune that they decided to sell her. Years later, I was in Basel and had the opportunity to view the Pauls-Eisenbeiss Collection, and the curator explained that the Seamstress just didn’t fit into their collection. And that describes the difference between my collection and most of the other great collections. The Seamstress is magnificent, she’s important, and she belongs where she is.

ALAN SHIMMERMAN

172



Walking through Meissen

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

172

08.11.22

14:11

Running title 

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

173

173

08.11.22

14:12

Fig. 18 Garçon Boulanger (Baker Boy), from Caylus’s Études prises dans le bas peuple ou les Cris de Paris, 1746, etching with some engraving. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 53.600.588(59).

This print did not survive in the Prints and Drawings Archive of the Meissen Manufactory.

66

Fig. 19 Le Vieilleux [sic] (Vielle Player), from Caylus’s Études prises dans le bas peuple ou les Cris de Paris, 1737, etching with some engraving. Meissen Manufactory, Prints and Drawings Archive, VA 6544.

Bread Boy

Like most of the early Paris Criers, the porcelain figure is very close to the print.

However, Reinicke incorporated a couple of modifications: in the print the bread boy is gazing at the ground while the Meissen figure looks straight at us. He seems to want to interact with us and maybe sell us some of his bread.

256



The Meissen archive has twelve engravings from different suites, this one among them.

The engraving has the “PM” for Porzellanmanufaktur (porcelain manufactory) stamp as well as “No. 22” and “No. 19” written in two different hands.

Travelling Europe

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

256

08.11.22

14:15

66

Bread Boy

Meissen Porcelain Manufactory Peter Reinicke (1711–1768) and maybe Johann Joachim Kaendler (1706–1775) Original year of modelling: 1747 Date of manufacture: 18th century* Date of decoration: 18th century Hard-paste porcelain No marks Model no. 877 h. 18.7, w. 8, d. 10.8 cm (7 ⅜, 3 3⁄16, 4 ¼ in.)

Shimmerman Collection no. MPPCE_2 PROVENANCE

Purchased from Christie’s New York, December 14, 2015, lot 226 Reinicke’s Work Report, August 1747 “1 Figur 10 Zoll hoch mit einem Trage Korbe mit Brodt, einen französischen Brodträger vorstellend, in Thon boussirt” (1 Figure 10 inches high with a basket with bread, representing a French bread boy, modelled in clay)86 PICTORIAL SOURCE

Garçon Boulanger, Bouchardon/Caylus 86

Meissen, Manufactory Archive, BA III H 117 (transcript), 78.

67

Hurdy Gurdy Player

Meissen Porcelain Manufactory Peter Reinicke (1711–1768) and maybe Johann Joachim Kaendler (1706–1775) Original year of modelling: c. 1745 Date of porcelain paste: c. 1730–65 Date of decoration: 18th century Hard-paste porcelain Underglaze blue crossed swords on back of base Model no. 960x h. 20.2, w. 9.6, d. 8.4 cm (7 15⁄16, 3 13⁄16, 3 5⁄16 in.)

Shimmerman Collection no. MPPCE_3 PROVENANCE

Purchased from Yvonne Adams Antiques, Worcestershire, England, February 1, 2002

67

Hurdy Gurdy Player

PICTORIAL SOURCE

Le Vieilleux [sic], Bouchardon/Caylus

The Paris Criers

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

257

SIGALAS



257

08.11.22

14:15

Fig. 28 Drawings for Crier with Triangle, Set 1–3. Meissen Manufactory, Prints and Drawings Archive, VA 145, 139-3 & 140-2.

The colourful painting with floral decoration on this figure is very different from the drawing—which was apparently what the client wanted and on which he noted in French, “they can be dressed in different colours.”126 It therefore seems as if the painter could choose the design for this figure at his discretion.

274



126

“[O]n peut Les habillier de Differentes Couleurs.”

Travelling Europe

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

274

08.11.22

14:16

74

Crier with Triangle

Running title 

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

275

275

08.11.22

14:16

Dresden in the Augustan Era, 1694 1764

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

330

08.11.22

14:19

BY ANDRÉ VAN DER GOES

There is hardly any place in EUROPE more devoted to pleasures and diversions Jonas Hanway, 17531

W

1 2

3 4

Hanway 1753, vol. 2, 234.

Lady Mary, letter XV to Frances Erskine (née Pierrepont), Countess of Mar (1690–1761), in Montagu 2013, 32.

Montagu 2013, 32.

Montagu 2013, 32.

eary and rather shaken by the hazardous journey from Prague, in a post chaise, passing along the precipices above the river Elbe by moonlight with her “postilions nodding on horseback while the horses were on a full gallop,”2 Lady Mary Wortley Montagu (1689–1762) reached Dresden on November 19, 1716. She stayed for only twenty-four hours in Dresden and wrote to her sister: “The town is the neatest I have seen in Germany; most of the houses are new built, the elector’s palace very handsome and his repository full of curiosities of different kinds.”3 She devoted the rest of her letter to describing the ladies of Dresden and the mistresses of Elector-King Augustus II: “They are very genteelly dressed, after the French and English modes, and have generally pretty faces, but they are the most determined minaudières [simperers] in the whole world. They would think it a mortal sin against good breeding if they either spoke or moved in a natural manner. They all affect a little soft lisp, and a pretty pitty-pat step; which female frailties ought, however, to be forgiven them in favour of their civility and good nature to strangers, which I have a great deal of reason to praise.”4 These words set the stage for the fascinating world of the Meissen figures of the eighteenth century.

To appreciate Meissen figures fully, it is not enough to admire their great technical or sculptural qualities, or their creativity, for, more than that, they afford us a glimpse of the world of an ancien régime with the colourful elegance of its courtiers and where even the common people and the poor have become decorative performers. These figures bring a society back to life and, more specifically, a court and town of nearly three hundred years ago, the echoes of which can still be heard in the music of its composers and seen in the paintings of its artists.

Yet, though delightful and telling, paintings are always two-dimensional. But the figures are three-dimensional and can be turned around and thereby almost seem to move. It would only take a Pygmalion to kiss them to life.

What better way to meet the personas portrayed by the figures than to stroll through the Dresden depicted by Bernardo Bellotto (1722–1780) in his paintings created in the times that Johann Joachim Kaendler (1706–1775) was making many of his figures? Bellotto (known under the sobriquet of Canaletto the Younger) worked in Dresden from 1747 to 1758, and it is to him that we owe urban views of Dresden painted with such precision that they almost allow us to walk through the streets and admire the monumental buildings, often lavishly decorated with sculptures and ornaments. But more than that, he populated the streets and squares of the town with society in all its colourful diversity, ranging from street vendors and beggars to aristocrats and royalty, of whom some persons can even be identified.

And it is there, on the streets and squares, in palaces, houses, and other buildings

Dresden in the Augustan Era

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

331

VAN DER GOES



331

08.11.22

14:19

121

390

Writing Cavalier



Walking through Dresden

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

390

08.11.22

14:22

Fig. 5 Le Château de carte (The House of Cards), etching by Pierre Filloeul (1696– 1754) after a painting by Jean-BaptisteSiméon Chardin (1699–1779), 1737. The British Museum, London, 1922,0410.287.

25

26 27

Pietsch and Antonin 2006, 20, cat. no. 13.

The figure has the accession number PE 529.

Menzhausen 1993, 185.

Pietsch and Banz 2010, 314, cat. no. 341.

“Mademoiselle / Depuis que j’ai eu la permission …” (Mademoiselle / Since I have been allowed …). Thus begins the letter the gentleman is about to write to an unknown lady whom he is probably courting. The arrow on his little pocket watch lying on the table points to XII. Is it midday or midnight? The half-burned candle right next to his letter indicates that he is writing at night. A gilt snuffbox, a red pen, an inkwell, and a sander complete the arrangement on the desk.

Although the figure of the Writing Cavalier was produced many times, each figure shows a slightly different arrangement of the writing utensils and, even more astonishingly, each letter is unique. The gentleman in the Dresden porcelain collection, for example, starts his letter with “Mademoiselle, pardonnez moi” (Mademoiselle, forgive me …),25 while the letter in the Pauls-Eisenbeiss Collection reads, “Mademoiselle, je ne me consoleres [sic] pas aisement …” (Mademoiselle, I shall not easily console myself …).26 Not all letters are in French; sometimes they are in German. Many are addressed to an anonymous lady for whom the writer seems to yearn; some, however, are written to a rival suitor.27 Clearly, both the repairer who was responsible for assembling the small accessories on the table and the painter enjoyed a fair degree of freedom finishing these figures.

The Court

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

391

SIGALAS



391

08.11.22

14:22

128

Johann Georg Wenzel

The figure of Wenzel is one of the rare instances of figural sculpture at Meissen where a real person has been portrayed and identified as such by the modeller.

Johann Georg Wenzel (1700–1752) was the courtly huntsman (Hofjäger) of Electoral Princess Maria Anna (1728–1797), the daughter of Augustus III and Maria Josepha.

Like her father, Maria Anna was very fond of hunting and was said to be an excellent shot. She had her own favourite dog when participating in the par force hunt (see essay “Dresden in the Augustan Era”), which she wanted to have portrayed in porcelain.70 So, the figure faithfully portrays the dog as well as the hunter.

406



70

Pietsch 2006, 25, cat. no. 19.

Walking through Dresden

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

406

08.11.22

14:22

Running title 

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

407

407

08.11.22

14:22

133

438

Greeting Harlequin



Walking through Dresden

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

438

08.11.22

14:24

Fig. 28 Départ des comédiens italiens en 1697 (Expulsion of the Italian Comedians), engraving by Louis Jacob (1696–c. 1760) after a lost painting by Antoine Watteau (1684–1721), 1729. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, S.3774-2009.

124

125

For more information about gestures for commedia dell’arte characters, see Chilton 2001a, chapter 3.

Chilton 2001a, 126.

Mime, gestures, and poses, often exaggerated, were extremely important for every Italian comedian. They were carefully thought out and rehearsed and were distinct for each character.124 The Meissen Harlequin is greeting or welcoming his unseen audience, maybe inviting them to watch a play that is about to begin. His deep bow “clearly reflects an actual movement that was performed by the dancers in this role and was most likely adapted by choreographers from the commedia dell’arte itself.”125 The Greeting Harlequin of the Shimmerman Collection shows one of the most sophisticated and genuine decorations on Meissen porcelain. The patterns on his jacket alternate from diamond-shaped patches in yellow, turquoise, and purple (for the arms) to a fish-scale pattern in a deeper purple. One leg of his hose is red with scratched-out flowers and a row of applied flowers in black; the other is grey with applied flowers in green.

Commedia dell’Arte

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

439

SIGALAS



439

08.11.22

14:24

137 & 138

Avvocato

Both Avvocato figures are wearing a Venetian domino, a wide coat worn over a costume popular during Carnival. The Avvocato, or lawyer, in the Italian comedy was an alleged scholar who turned out to be a confusing and annoying wiseacre.

It has been pointed out, however, that the Meissen figure is rather generically dressed, “as neither his costume nor his posture has anything to do with the legal profession, nor do they indicate an actor dressed as lawyer.”151 A domino, or Fledermaus (bat) as it was called in Dresden, was indeed not a costume in the sense of a certain role but rather showed the state of being disguised. The Avvocato with the yellow domino wears also the matching bauta, a short length of cloth covering the shoulders and worn as a hood on which a three-cornered hat was placed.

446



151

Chilton 2001a, 58.

Walking through Dresden

Shimmerman_221108_INNEN_PRINT.indd

446

08.11.22

14:24