Meissen (district) covered by the "Amtshauptmannschaften" Meissen, Dresden and Großenhain. In 1939, these were renamed "Landkreise" (districts). In the administrative reform of 1952, several municipalities were transferred to the districts of Freiberg and Döbeln. In 1990, the old district borders were restored, and in 1996 parts of the district Dresden-Land were added. In August 2008 the district of Riesa-Großenhain was added to the district to give it its current size. The main river of the district is the Elbe, which also flows through the city of Meissen. Meissen (district) Meissen () is a district ("Kreis") in the Free State of Saxony, Germany.
Meissen porcelain landscapes and port scenes, animals, flowers, "galante" courtly scenes and "chinoiseries", fanciful Chinese-inspired decorations, were to be found on Meissen porcelain. The "Kakiemon" vases and tea wares of Japanese export porcelain were imitated as "Indianische Blume" ("Flowers of the Indies"). Paintings by Watteau were copied. Wares were also sold in solid glazed colors, to be enamelled in private workshops ("Hausmalerei") and independently retailed. The support of Augustus' patronage attracted to Meissen some of the finest painters and modellers of Europe as staff artists. The Albrechtsburg was utilized to protect the secrets of the manufacture of the white gold. As a