Meissen Marks: How to Identify and Date Them

The mark is two crossed swords painted in underglaze cobalt blue (inspired by the Saxon Electoral coat of arms), usually painted on the base of the piece and often accompanied by auxiliary marks such as a year symbol, a decoration number, and a painter's number.

• circa 1720 to around 1730 (early period): Meissen only gained the ability to apply marks consistently after inventing the underglaze cobalt-blue painting technique in 1720; early marks were not standardized, and various abbreviated marks appeared, including K.P.M. (Royal Porcelain Manufactory), M.P.M. (Meissen Porcelain Manufactory), and K.P.F. (Royal Porcelain Factory).
• From 1731: On the recommendation of factory inspector Johann Melchior Steinbruck, the crossed-swords mark (drawn from the Saxon Electoral coat of arms) became generally established as the factory mark from this point; the design itself changed little afterward, though successive directors occasionally added details such as stars or numbers to distinguish batches.
• 1875: After Germany's Imperial Act on the Protection of Trade Marks came into force, the Meissen porcelain factory formally registered the crossed-swords trademark that year.
• From 1948: A year mark began to be added to the base of pieces, allowing the specific year of production to be precisely recorded.

Dating can draw on auxiliary marks beyond the crossed swords themselves, such as year symbols, decoration/painter numbers, and the quality-grade grinding mark on the base: first-choice pieces usually have no grind mark on the base, while second-choice pieces have a grind mark below the mark.

The official website states that, besides the crossed-swords mark, various auxiliary marks can also appear, including decoration numbers, painter numbers, year marks, and quality-grade marks, but no specific text distinguishing a 'genuine crossed-swords mark' from a 'fake crossed-swords mark' could be found on the retrievable official pages, so this was not included under common_fakes_or_confusions.

Turn the piece over and light the mark from a low angle with a lamp or phone torch, which throws the impressed or engraved lines into relief; a printed or painted mark wants soft, even light instead. Fill the frame with the mark, then take a second shot of the whole piece. Do not clean tarnish off silver before photographing; the mark reads better dark. The app matches the mark and shape to the notes above.