Statuette of a general

• probably the young heir to the throne Frederick Augustus II., later Elector of Saxony and August III. King of Poland (1696-1763),
• Meissen
• around 1712
• model probably by Benjamin Thomae (1682-1751)
• Böttger stoneware
• height: 16.1 cm

The very finely worked statuette of a general is one of the earliest works from the porcelain factory founded in Meissen in 1710. Objects made from this red stoneware, so-called Böttger stoneware, are incredibly rare. The statuette used to belong to Emma Budge, whose exquisite art collection was auctioned off in 1937 in Berlin by Paul Graupe/Hans W. Lange. As a Jew, the collector and her family were subjected to countless reprisals by the National Socialists. The statuette was therefore restored in 2001 to the Jewish Claims Conference.

After many years of negotiations it was ultimately acquired as one of the highlights of the high quality Schwerin porcelain collection. This significant acquisition was made possible through the support of the Ernst von Siemens art foundation, the states’ cultural foundation, the HERMANN REEMTSMA FOUNDATION and the Rudolf-August Oetker foundation.