She-wolf with three wolf cubs

The Meissen factory made hundreds of life-size animals in porcelain for the Japanese Palace of the Elector of Saxony and King of Poland Augustus II the Strong, in Dresden. Making such large works in porcelain was no easy task, and the first attempts produced items in a greyish substance that tended to crack, with numerous imperfections. It was only in 1731, and in particular with Johann Joachim Kändler, who became the head modeller in 1733, that a high level of quality was achieved, with sophisticated modelling and a more brilliant look to the porcelain.