DOI chapter:
Chapter II: Naples - The Museum - Capo di Monte
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.59000#0094
Naples—The Museum—Capo di Monte
a room lined entirely with flowered pottery, as pretty
as it would be uninhabitable. Charles III. had married,
in 1738, the daughter of the king of Poland, and she
brought with her a quantity of china from the famous
fabrique of Meissen. This seemed to give an impulse
to industry in and around Naples. At that time the
fabrication of porcelain was a secret possessed only
by a young alchemist named Frederick Bottger, who
worked under the protection of the Elector of Saxony.
He had re-discovered it from deep study of Chinese
pottery, and jealously guarded it for the king. It
became the fashion among kings and princes to become
patrons of porcelain factories, and Charles also deter-
mined to indulge the taste. Fixing upon the site of
Capo di Monte for his works, after only two months the
building was completed, for the king never permitted
his building projects to be dawdled over. He even
built the church of S. Gennaro, opposite, for the use of
the workers.
When he found himself obliged, in 1759, to go
to Spain, Charles broke up the fabrique he had so
delighted in, took with him all the materials, and
before embarking ordered all the furnaces and offices
to be destroyed, so that not a trace of his secret should
remain. But - this jealous egotism brought him little
success. He never succeeded in Madrid with his
pottery, which would not resist the heat : the cups
cracked when filled with hot liquids. A large collec-
tion of the porcelain may be seen in the palace, very
flowery and often in bad taste, but yet with a strong
39
a room lined entirely with flowered pottery, as pretty
as it would be uninhabitable. Charles III. had married,
in 1738, the daughter of the king of Poland, and she
brought with her a quantity of china from the famous
fabrique of Meissen. This seemed to give an impulse
to industry in and around Naples. At that time the
fabrication of porcelain was a secret possessed only
by a young alchemist named Frederick Bottger, who
worked under the protection of the Elector of Saxony.
He had re-discovered it from deep study of Chinese
pottery, and jealously guarded it for the king. It
became the fashion among kings and princes to become
patrons of porcelain factories, and Charles also deter-
mined to indulge the taste. Fixing upon the site of
Capo di Monte for his works, after only two months the
building was completed, for the king never permitted
his building projects to be dawdled over. He even
built the church of S. Gennaro, opposite, for the use of
the workers.
When he found himself obliged, in 1759, to go
to Spain, Charles broke up the fabrique he had so
delighted in, took with him all the materials, and
before embarking ordered all the furnaces and offices
to be destroyed, so that not a trace of his secret should
remain. But - this jealous egotism brought him little
success. He never succeeded in Madrid with his
pottery, which would not resist the heat : the cups
cracked when filled with hot liquids. A large collec-
tion of the porcelain may be seen in the palace, very
flowery and often in bad taste, but yet with a strong
39