WHAT DOES THE QUADRIGA HAVE TO DO WITH KPM BERLIN?
It belongs to the capital like the television tower and the currywurst. The Brandenburg Gate stands in the heart of Berlin between the Unter den Linden boulevard and the Straße des 17. Juni - and is a silent witness to the city's exciting history. We'll tell you why the KPM Berlin also finds itself high up on the gate.
Did the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm II suspect that the early classicist Triumphal Gate would go down in history as Berlin's most famous landmark and national symbol ? When he had it built in 1789 based on the designs of Carl Gotthard Langhans, he could not have foreseen the many historical events of the 19th and 20th centuries that are inextricably linked to the building. The quadriga crowning the gate has a particularly symbolic character. The work, based on a design by the sculptor Johann Gottfried Schadow, shows the goddess of victory Viktoria, who brings peace to the city on a carriage of four - a peace that was unstable most of the time, which also left its mark on the Brandenburg Gate. Destruction caused by wars, reconstructions and restorations was not uncommon.
Prussian all-rounder
And so it happened that the victory symbol was replaced in 1814 by a design by Karl Friedrich Schinkel . The architect crowned the pole of the Victoria with an oak wreath that encloses an iron cross and on which an eagle sits with outstretched wings. And it is precisely this artist who connects the Quadriga with the KPM. Karl Friedrich Schinkel not only had a lasting influence on the architecture of classicist Prussia. The multi-talented artist also worked in the areas of interior architecture, design and painting - and achieved outstanding achievements here.
Design for eternity
Schinkel's clear formal language and departure from the sweeping curves of the Baroque were in harmony with the Prussian Enlightenment. Based on his designs, a model treasure was created for the KPM that has lost none of its significance to this day. In 1810 he designed an ANTIQUE SUGAR BASKET for the Prussian Queen Luise, which, with its 2272 individual, hand-made cuts, is a showpiece of classical porcelain baskets. Or the TRUMPET SHAPE vase, which has become a classic with a slim, straight vase body, which is harmoniously accentuated by a flared base and a protruding lip.
Would you have thought that the KPM would also be found at the Brandenburg Gate? In our long history there are numerous such interesting facts that express the close connection between the manufactory and the city . Do you want to know, for example, why the Berlin radio tower is on KPM porcelain ? Have fun uncovering the next secret!
