Fürstenzug
The Fürstenzug (Procession of Princes) is a mural of Meissen porcelain tiles on the outer wall of the Stallhof that shows the history of the Saxon ruling house of Wettin as a procession of riders.
Fred Romero from Paris, France Wikimedia Commons CC BY 2.0
What it is
The mural is on the outer wall of the Langer Gang (Long Passage), the range that closes the Stallhof on its north side. The wall faces the Schlossplatz and Augustusstraße.
The mural shows 35 margraves, electors and kings and a further 59 scientists, artists, craftsmen and farmers.
History
The history painter Wilhelm Walther first made the picture on the wall in 1872 to 1876, as a sgraffito (scratched plaster). The sgraffito weathered quickly, and the picture was transferred to porcelain tiles.
The tiles were made at the Meissen porcelain manufactory between 1904 and 1907. Porcelain painters at the manufactory painted them from Walther's full-size drawings, known as cartoons. The original cartoons are kept in the Kupferstich-Kabinett of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden.
The Stallhof
The Stallhof is part of the Residenzschloss complex. It was built in the late 16th century, finished in 1591, and used for tournaments and jousting.