Before a porcelain Clara embarks on her journey around the world, to attend gatherings, break the ice at dinner conversations, or mischievously peek out from the shelf, she has already travelled a long path through the Nymphenburg Porcelain Manufactory.

First, the plaster moulds for the rhinoceros figure are retrieved from the archive, where they are stored along with 30,000 other models. Eight different moulds are used for a rhinoceros: four for the legs, two for the ears, one for the horn, and one for the body. These are individually filled with slip in the manufactory’s moulding department. The mixture sets for half an hour to achieve the correct thickness – or rather, thinness. While the skin of real rhinoceroses is four centimetres thick, the porcelain must be just four millimetres thin. The individual parts are then hand-engraved, with each craftsman using their own specially made tools. The pieces are then freed from the seams and assembled in the modelling room, where the complete figure can be admired for the first time. The rhinoceros is then finally retouched and left to dry for several days. After this, the still grey Clara is carefully moved to the kiln. A first so-called bisque firing hardens the porcelain blank at exactly 925 degrees Celsius. From this point, the processes diverge: the glossy Clara is dipped in a glazing bath and fired again for up to 36 hours at around 1,310 degrees Celsius. Figures meant to shine in matte biscuit porcelain undergo white firing at approximately 1,400 degrees Celsius. Whatever final form Clara takes after over a week of work in the manufactory, she always provides conversation, inspires, and captivates at her journey’s end.