The Porcelain Cabinet has opened at Wawel Royal Castle. The new permanent exhibition presents not only the most outstanding, finely crafted porcelain works from the Meissen manufactory founded by King Augustus II, but also a broad spectrum of 18th century material culture.

The objects on display include a ‘coronation service’ with Polish-Saxon coats of arms, created in the year of the coronation of August III as king of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. This set initiated a series of heraldic services that were ordered by dignitaries related to the court.

The new permanent exhibition at Wawel Castle consists of three rooms arranged in a modern and surprising manner in the spaces of the Royal Private Apartments. The palace interiors of the first gallery, with walls covered in phenomenal carpets decorated with sumptuous Rococo elements, allow one to feel the 18th-century atmosphere. Here one will see examples of the finest Augsburg silverware as well as outstanding paintings and furniture, adding up to a full experience of top-class art.

The second space is dedicated to Meissen porcelain. It is arranged in the shape of a cabinet of mirrors, in which the objects on display are framed, literally floating in the showcases by means of impressive display solutions. This is also where some of the most valuable acquisitions that enriched the Castle’s collection last year are presented. They include a life-size fox with a hen in its teeth (44.5 cm tall) by Johann Gottlieb Kirchner (one of only four preserved in the world), as well as a bunch of charming pugs.

The third gallery of the new exhibition includes the masterpieces of Johann Joachim Kaendler, chief modeller at the Royal Manufactory in Meissen in the 18th century. Here we will see the precious Crucifixion (also known as Golgotha) – a monumental porcelain sculptural composition with a religious theme, stunning in its precision of detail and display of expression. There are only two 18th-century objects of this kind preserved in the world. The second group is in Dresden.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński