Peter the Great: A Russian Petrine Silver Presentation Kovsh. Maker unknown, Likely Moscow Armory, ca. 1690, and with scra...

Description

Peter the Great: A Russian Petrine Silver Presentation Kovsh
Maker unknown, Likely Moscow Armory, ca. 1690, and with scratched inventory number F5176
4-1/4 x 7-1/2 x 5-1/8 inches (10.8 x 19.1 x 13.0 cm)
348 grams (11.18 troy ounces)

PROVENANCE:
Presented by Tsar Peter I (later Emperor and "the Great"), circa 1715;
Emperor Nicholas II of Russia, at the Winter Palace until 1917;
Nationalized by the decree of the Soviet Authority, 19th of July, 1918;
Likely sold abroad (1922-1928);
With Hammer Galleries, New York, 1938;
Private Collection, Hollis, New York;
Clark Auction, New York, November 20, 2022, lot 575;
John Atzbach Antiques, Bellevue, Washington, acquired from the above;
Acquired from the above by the present owner.

ILLUSTRATED:
Hammer Galleries (Catalogue), 1938, illus. fig. 10.


Russian silver in the late seventeenth century is notable for its strict adherence to traditional forms, many of which have no analogues in the west. Craftsmen of the period in the silver workshops of the Kremlin and in the workshops around Moscow issued a stream of engraved and parcel gilded kovshi, bratiny, and charki, as well as liturgical objects such as icon covers, chalices, chandeliers and holy water basins, and plates of varying forms, sometimes ornamented with pearls and gems.

The offered lot is an exceptional example of the last flourishing of this period before Tsar Peter I "The Great" began his efforts at westernization, exposing Russian silversmiths to the works of Dutch, German, English, and French masters in his effort to modernize. This kovsh is in a form which would remain largely unchanged from the 17th century until the 20th, and in many ways it is as modern as its later descendants with its elegant lines and restrained engraved decoration.

The work clearly belongs to the last decade of the 17th century: As it is unmarked, it was likely made before Peter the Great's laws on hallmarking were introduced in 1700, and the title of Imperator' or Emperor (adopted in 1721) is not used.

The inscription is in vyaz', an ancient liturgical lettering style, and which reads: "By the Grace of God, the Sovereign and Grand Duke Peter Alexeievich Autocrat of all the Russias" and about the rim, a secondary inscription reads: "presented by the Sovereign Tsar Peter Alexeievich in the year 1715 for loyal service." The inscription embraces four rondels, one of which bears the image of Tsar Peter in the manner of a western engraving.

To whom the kovsh was presented is unknown, but according to a Hammer Galleries catalogue from 1938, this piece from the first Romanov Emperor either remained in or returned to the Imperial Collections. By the time of the Revolution, it belonged to the last Emperor Nicholas II.

Masterpieces of Russian Enamel from an Important American Collection

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