Although the secrets of porcelain production had been known in China for centuries, it wasnít until the early eighteenth century that Europeans succeeded in producing a true hard-paste porcelain. Under the rule of Augustus the Strong, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony, a group of men including alchemist Johann Friedrich Böttger worked to develop European porcelain. In 1709 Böttger informed Augustus of their success and the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory was established at Albrechtsburg Castle in Meissen in 1710. The crossed blue swords of the arms of Saxony have been used in different variations as the Meissen trademark since 1722. In 1865 the manufactory moved to the Triebischtal where production has continued with few interruptions. The Staatliche Porzellan-Manufaktur Meissen is now under the ownership of the Free State of Saxony and employs 1100 people. 

In addition to Augustus and Böttger, two other figures are important in the early history of Meissen: color chemist and painter Johann Gregorius Höroldt (1696-1775) and sculptor Johann Joachim Kaendler (1706-1775). Höroldt developed a rich palette of colors and adapted the motifs of Far Eastern porcelain to European tastes. Kaendler created many of Meissenís best-known tableware shapes and figurines, including the Neuer Ausschnitt shape and Monkey Orchestra figurines included in the exhibition. 

Flower painting has been an important part of Meissenís history since its beginning. Just as East Asian trade fueled the drive to develop porcelain in Europe, East Asian (or "Indian") porcelain designs served as models for the first Meissen flower decorations. In the 1730s an independent European style of flower painting developed, derived from models provided by botanical illustrations in woodcuts and engravings. In the mid-eighteenth century, at the end of the Baroque period, Meissen artists developed a more painterly style of flower decoration with greater emphasis on light and shadow, as well as vivid color. This technique became known as Meissen-Manner Flower Painting. 

During the classical period which followed the Baroque, Meissen flower painting became cooler, functional, symmetrical, and very detailed. During this period, the manufactory was under the direction of Count Marcolini, and this style of flower painting was called Marcolini Flower Painting. The Biedermeier, a period of German and Austrian art between 1815-1848 notable for its reflection of bourgeois sensibilities, inspired the creation of the Meissen Rose and Scattered Flowers decorations. At the end of the nineteenth century, during the Jugendstil or Art Nouveau period, Eduard Julius Braunsdorf (1841-1922) created a technique of flower painting known as Naturalistic Flower Painting in which arrangement of flowers, based on nature, were softly painted in vivid colors to arrive at an elegant style. 

The development of new porcelain forms and floral decorations has continued at Meissen into the twentieth century. In addition to new designs, the Meissen Porcelain Manufactory continues to produce works based on decorations and shapes from throughout its long and rich history.