| This thesis signals a new approach in the study of the Chinese Tea House at Sanssouci. It argues that Frederick the Great's exotic pavilion, although made of sandstone and stucco, is porcelain in essence. The garden building reflects the many meanings of this highly valued commodity and art form in the privileged society of the king and his contemporaries. The pavilion is unique in that it was inspired by the type of sculptural ornament designed to decorate the eighteenth-century table of the nobility.;The Tea House is a thematically integrated structure that demonstrates the influence of porcelain on interior decor and architecture. The designation of the garden building as a Gesamtkunstwerk acknowledges the blending of architecture, painting, and sculpture; characteristics shared by porcelain centerpieces. They exemplify the intermediality associated with the development of eighteenth-century porcelain and the interpretation of Frederick's pavilion. |
