Meissen two models of dromedary camels

Circa 1760-65

Heights: 6 1/2 and 6 3/4 in. (16.4 and 17 cm.)

Marks: crossed swords to base, one with dot

Kändler completed and delivered a pair of camels, of large size and facing each other, in 1740, so he likely first modeled them that year or shortly beforehand. They were probably intended for an Asian-themed dessert table decoration at a masquerade or other event, perhaps for the entertainment of an Asian ambassador. A pair of camels in parade regalia are in the Dresden Porcelain Collection, from the von Klemperer Collection (Klemperer catalogue, 1927, nos. 769-770, pl. 87), illustrated in Ulrich Pietsch, Meissen Porzellanplastik, 2006, p. 189, cat. nos. 290-91. There is an example like ours in the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, illustrated in Meissener Porzellanplastik des 18 Jahrhunderts, by K. Butler, fig. 379.