19th Century Meissen porcelain parrot with brightly coloured plumage naturalistically modelled and perched on a tree-stump applied with leaves and flowers.
In 1731 the Meissen manufactory began a new genre in European porcelain, producing several hundred life-size and near-life-size porcelain birds and animals. Porcelain birds have their origins in the tradition of maintaining collections of living animals and birds in menageries and aviaries, which were viewed as emblems of royal power and enlightenment. These collections often included exotic birds such as parrots, admired for their rarity.
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