What do the numbers pressed into the base mean?

Those are pressnummern. They're stamped to identify the specific workman, or 'repairer', who assembled the hollow moulded parts into a finished shape before firing. The factory needed them for piece-rate pay. It isn't just admin. If a figure failed in the kiln due to poor joints, management knew exactly whose wages to dock.

My grandmother left me a large dinner service with painted flowers and insects all over the plates, why did they paint bugs on tableware?

The practice started in the eighteenth century as a practical solution. Painters used small insects or scattered leaves to hide minor firing faults or iron spots in the glaze. Over time the scattered bugs became a popular decorative style in their own right. It allowed decorators to show off their skill at painting while masking the natural imperfections of early porcelain production.

Why are some figures missing their hands or fingers?

Projecting parts like fingers and applied flowers are naturally fragile. They take the brunt of regular household dusting. Over centuries of display, these delicate extremities simply snap off. It is the standard wear you expect on early pieces.

I was looking at a teapot and the gold around the rim looks very dull instead of shiny like modern china, is that normal for these?

Early gilding on Antique Meissen was applied using gold powder suspended in a medium like honey. When it comes out of the muffle kiln, it naturally has a matte finish. Workers had to rub the gold with an agate tool to make it shine. On areas that saw heavy use like teapot rims, that burnished surface wears away over time to reveal the duller gold beneath.

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Antique Meissen represents Europe's earliest successful production of true hard-paste porcelain, encompassing thousands of forms from elaborate dining services to intricate cabinet figures initially designed to dress royal dessert tables.

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