Lot Essay
For similar examples see a version now in the Forbes collection as illustrated in Saint Petersburg, State Hermitage Museum, Fabergé: Imperial Jeweller, 1993, p.347, as well as drawings on p.415-340.
During the second half of the 19th century, Russia was searching for a new aesthetic idiom, one that would finally reverse the Westernization so uniformly imposed by Peter the Great. There began an inrospective quest on the part of the Intelligentsia and artists for beauty within the people, the land and the legends they inspired. The result was a renewed interest in pre-Petrine traditional forms which came to be known as the Slavic Revival.
Fabergé's Moscow workshops responded to this demand being historically beter equipped to interpret the themes than Saint Petersburg whose roots were so tied to the West. The Moscow branch catered to the demands of members of the Empire's wealthiest merchants, who made up a large part of it's clientele. This segment of society was extremely supportive of this popular movement. A case in point was the famous railroad magnate Sava Mamontov, who went so far as to transform his Estate at Abramtsevo into an artist's colony. His patronage attracted a circle of artists who incorporated traditional peasant crafts, and folklore into their aesthetic.
Recently published Faberge drawings From the State Hermitage Museum confirm the important debt owed by the creators of this kovsh to the artists of Abramtsevo. In the shape of a traditional drinking vessel and enriched with heroic knights of Russian legend forging ahead in battle, the kovsh synthesizes themes found in primitive woodcarving, Medieval epic songs or Bylinas, and early gemsetting.
The finely sculpted figures applied to the kovsh owe a particular debt the Viktor Vasnetsov who was commissioned by Mamontov to illustrate themes from history and folklore. While the Forbes kovsh seems to draw from The Tale of the Armament of Igor which was the subject of Vasnetsov's After Prince Igor's Battle With the Polovtsy(1880), the above example may have been inspired by a different work. The kovsh is very reminiscent of Vasnetsov's large canvas entitled Bogatyrs dated 1898 portraying the three heroes Ilya Murometz, Dobinya Nikitich, and Alyosha Popovich. A Faberge drawing from the State Hermitage Museum based on this canvas further supports the connection between the Moscow workshops and the paintings of Vasnetsov.
While the exact author of the kovsh remains a mystery, it stands as a wonderfully crafted work from Fabergé's Moscow workshop. It also serves as a powerful symbol of Russia's great pride in her rich heritage. A tradition that was never truly burried, despite attempts on and off throughout history from the Tartars right through to the Soviets to suppress it's essence.
During the second half of the 19th century, Russia was searching for a new aesthetic idiom, one that would finally reverse the Westernization so uniformly imposed by Peter the Great. There began an inrospective quest on the part of the Intelligentsia and artists for beauty within the people, the land and the legends they inspired. The result was a renewed interest in pre-Petrine traditional forms which came to be known as the Slavic Revival.
Fabergé's Moscow workshops responded to this demand being historically beter equipped to interpret the themes than Saint Petersburg whose roots were so tied to the West. The Moscow branch catered to the demands of members of the Empire's wealthiest merchants, who made up a large part of it's clientele. This segment of society was extremely supportive of this popular movement. A case in point was the famous railroad magnate Sava Mamontov, who went so far as to transform his Estate at Abramtsevo into an artist's colony. His patronage attracted a circle of artists who incorporated traditional peasant crafts, and folklore into their aesthetic.
Recently published Faberge drawings From the State Hermitage Museum confirm the important debt owed by the creators of this kovsh to the artists of Abramtsevo. In the shape of a traditional drinking vessel and enriched with heroic knights of Russian legend forging ahead in battle, the kovsh synthesizes themes found in primitive woodcarving, Medieval epic songs or Bylinas, and early gemsetting.
The finely sculpted figures applied to the kovsh owe a particular debt the Viktor Vasnetsov who was commissioned by Mamontov to illustrate themes from history and folklore. While the Forbes kovsh seems to draw from The Tale of the Armament of Igor which was the subject of Vasnetsov's After Prince Igor's Battle With the Polovtsy(1880), the above example may have been inspired by a different work. The kovsh is very reminiscent of Vasnetsov's large canvas entitled Bogatyrs dated 1898 portraying the three heroes Ilya Murometz, Dobinya Nikitich, and Alyosha Popovich. A Faberge drawing from the State Hermitage Museum based on this canvas further supports the connection between the Moscow workshops and the paintings of Vasnetsov.
While the exact author of the kovsh remains a mystery, it stands as a wonderfully crafted work from Fabergé's Moscow workshop. It also serves as a powerful symbol of Russia's great pride in her rich heritage. A tradition that was never truly burried, despite attempts on and off throughout history from the Tartars right through to the Soviets to suppress it's essence.