Small terrine (with missing cover) with platter (ZKW/2270) from the Swan servicePurchased for the Royal Castle’s collections in 1988.
The Swan Service was commissioned by Heinrich Count von Brühl who was director of the Meissen manufactory in the years 1733–42. The service was to provide table settings for up to 100 people and contained more than 2000 pieces. The service’s iconography is connected to water, and features aquatic plants and animals, both real and mythical. The name derives from the main sculptural motif, that of the swan. The shimmering surface of the water with reeds, water birds among bulrushes are depicted in relief and cover the plates, dishes, platters, cups, etc. while the handles and covers of the terrines are ornamented with full sculptural figures of water divinities.