Meissen porcelain in the Liria Palace.

To talk about porcelain we must understand that these are part of ceramics.

Ceramics is the art of turning clay into an object after it has been shaped and fired in an oven. This definition encompasses all types of clay manufacturing, whether porous (terracotta) or compact (stoneware and porcelain).

Its origin dates back to the 7th and 8th centuries in China, which had a monopoly for almost ten centuries. It was marketed through Indian companies and, although it was very expensive, in the 17th century European monarchies bought it in large quantities since it was a symbol of prestige.

At a certain point, the European nobility began researching the recipe for porcelain with the aim of creating their own manufactures and avoiding export from the East.

The Meissen Manufactory was the first Western porcelain manufactory. Founded at the beginning of the 18th century, it is still active today.

Its founder, Augusto Li the Strong, hired Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus, (1651-1708) mathematician, philosopher and doctor, who in 1709 discovered how to make porcelain with kaolin clay. After his death, Johann Friedrich Böttger (1682-1719), heir to the recipes, began the pioneering production of porcelain throughout Europe in 1713. Most of the objects were glazed and polychromed.

The factory had specialized departments where artisans, artists and secretaries worked, a model that was copied throughout Europe. In Meissen, all kinds of dishes and chocolate, tea and coffee services were manufactured, as well as figures surrounding watch boxes, animal figures and a large number of jars decorated with flowers and birds in relief. The customers of the manufacture were courtiers, diplomats and politicians and, of course, Augustus II and his successors who turned Meissen porcelain into their business card.

One of the Meissen Manufactory's most successful productions was the Galanteries. They were sets of small objects that royals and nobles surrounded themselves with and that made the person who owned them gallant. This intention to appear was maintained during the time when in order for people to like you had to have unique objects that would give you greater status. Inside the Palace we find this type of object in the Goya Hall.