Meissen

Meißen (Sorbian languages: Mišno, Latin: Misnia, Misena) is a town of about 30,000 near Dresden on both banks of the Elbe in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meißen is the home of Meißen porcelain. Meißen is the capital city of Meißen Rural District

Meissen Meißen
Town
Albrechtsburg and Cathedral
Coat of arms
Location of Meissen within Meißen district
Meissen Show map of Germany Meissen Show map of Saxony
Coordinates: 51°10′N 13°29′E
Country	Germany
State	Saxony
District	Meißen
Subdivisions	12 Stadtteile/Stadtbezirke
Government
• Mayor	Olaf Raschke
Area
• Total	30.90 km2 (11.93 sq mi)
Elevation	106 m (348 ft)
Population  (2023-12-31)[1]
• Total	29,007
• Density	940/km2 (2,400/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	01654–01662
Dialling codes	03521
Vehicle registration	MEI
Website	www.stadt-meissen.de

During World War II, a subcamp of Flossenburg concentration camp was in Meißen.^[2]

Porcelain

Porcelain bells in Meißen

Meißen is famous for the manufacture of porcelain. This is because there are big local deposits of china clay (kaolin) and potter's clay (potter's earth). Meißen porcelain was the first high quality porcelain to be produced outside of China.

The first European porcelain was made in Meißen in 1710, when the Royal Porcelain Factory was opened in the Albrechtsburg. In 1861, it was moved to the Triebisch valley of Meißen, where the Meißen porcelain factory can still be found today.

Notable residents

• St. Benno (1010-1106), Bishop of Meißen
• Heinrich Frauenlob (died 1318), poet
• Johann Klaj (1616-1656), poet
• Johann Elias Schlegel (1719-1749), critic and poet
• Johann Adolf Schlegel (1721-1793), poet and clergyman
• Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843), physician
• Karl G. Maeser (1828-1901), Mormon academic
• Ralf Schumann (born 1962), Olympic shooter

Related pages

• Missingsch
• List of Margraves of Meißen
• Rulers of Saxony
• Saxon Switzerland