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Lot Essay
The Imperial Russian Court and more especially under the reign of Nicholas II was most reknown amongst European Courts, for its lavish and expensive gifts to foreign dignitaries coming to Russia.
The responsibility of purchasing and allocating these gifts, under the strict supervision of the Tsar, was given to the Imperial Cabinet which was keeping a number of well detailed ledgers.
These ledgers contain the description of each item, its cost, the name of the Court supplier and the name of the recipient. Thanks to the laborious research of Valentin Skurlov, our consultant in St. Petersburg, we are, now, able to trace the background of one of these Fabergé Imperial presentation snuff-boxes which were the most coveted items amongst Imperial gifts.
In fact, having been awarded the title of Court jeweller in 1884, Fabergé became one of the main suppliers of the Imperial Cabinet.
The present Imperial presentation snuff-box appears to be one of the most documented Imperial presentation snuff-boxes ever produced by the Fabergé firm.
Apart from discovering only recently, who was the original recipient of this unique snuff-box, we discovered the original drawing of the present box in one of the unpublished workshop albums of the Fabergé head workmaster at the time, Henrik Wigström as well as the fact that it was the last box ever delivered by the Imperial Cabinet on behalf of the Tsar Nicholas II on 5 May 1917 two months after, the abdication of the last Tsar in March.
The inscription at the bottom of the life-size drawing in the Wigström album indicates that the box was executed in November 1916 and delivered soon after at the Imperial Cabinet at a cost of 4000 rubles.
The present snuff-box is applied in its center with a painted oval miniature of Tsar Nicholas II signed by the Court miniturist Zuiev dated 1916, wearing the uniform of the 4th Imperial Family Rifle Guards regiment and the Order of St. George which he received on 25 October 1915.
The above miniature was entered in one of the ledgers of the Imperial Cabinet under the number 176 for a cost of 200 rubles on 17 June 1916.
The same miniature reappears in another ledger dated 5 May 1917 attached to the entry of the Fabergé nephrite presentation box with precious stones no. 9 from the reserve of the Cabinet, and written, (down) under no. 11 and set in the presentation box no. 9.
On the opposite page of the same ledger, the number 9 nephrite snuff-box now registered under number 11 is allocated with the following inscription, 'Given to the former Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich for presentation to the members of the French Academy Gabriel Hanotaux and Frédéric Masson'.
The second Imperial presentation box received, at the same time, by Gabriel Hanotaux, listed on the same ledger under number 8 and re-registered under the number 10 with miniature no. 175 is now in the collection of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth of England. Both boxes were allocated two similar miniatures of Tsar Nicholas II wearing the same uniform and the Order of St. George, (miniatures 175 and 176, see entry in the ledger above). For an illustration of the second box see: Munich, Kuntshalle der Hypo-Kulturstiftung, Fabergé, Juwelier der Zaren, (1986), n. 518, ill. Most interesting is that the drawing for both Imperial Presentation boxes appear side by side in the unpublished Wigström album.
Based on the ledgers of the Imperial Cabinet, the present Imperial presentation snuff-box appears to be one of the last two delivered during the reign of Tsar Nicholas II. Both boxes were delivered to Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich on behalf of the Tsar, when the above was already under house arrest.
It is a well-known fact, that sometimes, the Imperial gifts were
presented to the recipients with some delay and the political events in Russia, at the time, can easily explain the situation.
Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich (1859-1919), first cousin once removed of Tsar Nicholas II sometimes considered the intellectual of the Romanov family due to his historical writings appears, without doubt,
the right link between Kerenskii Provisional government and the French academicians acting as diplomats in Russia, an allied country during
the First World war. The Grand Duke had a keen interest in politics and was known to be curious in meeting political figures from all sides,
see: General A. Spiridovitch, Les dernières années de la Cour de Tzarkoie-Selo, (Paris, 1928).
In fact, all the above: the reason of the gift, the choice of the gift, it's preparation, its cost, the way to answer the Tsar for such a gift and its delivery appears with numerous details in the correspondence between the Grand Duke and Frédéric Masson, see: Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich, La Fin du Tsarisme, Lettres inédites à Frédéric Masson (1914-1918), Paris, 1968, pp. 98, 106, 110, 126 and 133.
We are most grateful to Ulla Tillander-Godenhielm and Valentin Skurlov for providing information on the present Imperial presentation snuff-box and a special thanks to Marvin Lyons for pointing out the correspondence between the Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich and Frederic Masson.
The responsibility of purchasing and allocating these gifts, under the strict supervision of the Tsar, was given to the Imperial Cabinet which was keeping a number of well detailed ledgers.
These ledgers contain the description of each item, its cost, the name of the Court supplier and the name of the recipient. Thanks to the laborious research of Valentin Skurlov, our consultant in St. Petersburg, we are, now, able to trace the background of one of these Fabergé Imperial presentation snuff-boxes which were the most coveted items amongst Imperial gifts.
In fact, having been awarded the title of Court jeweller in 1884, Fabergé became one of the main suppliers of the Imperial Cabinet.
The present Imperial presentation snuff-box appears to be one of the most documented Imperial presentation snuff-boxes ever produced by the Fabergé firm.
Apart from discovering only recently, who was the original recipient of this unique snuff-box, we discovered the original drawing of the present box in one of the unpublished workshop albums of the Fabergé head workmaster at the time, Henrik Wigström as well as the fact that it was the last box ever delivered by the Imperial Cabinet on behalf of the Tsar Nicholas II on 5 May 1917 two months after, the abdication of the last Tsar in March.
The inscription at the bottom of the life-size drawing in the Wigström album indicates that the box was executed in November 1916 and delivered soon after at the Imperial Cabinet at a cost of 4000 rubles.
The present snuff-box is applied in its center with a painted oval miniature of Tsar Nicholas II signed by the Court miniturist Zuiev dated 1916, wearing the uniform of the 4th Imperial Family Rifle Guards regiment and the Order of St. George which he received on 25 October 1915.
The above miniature was entered in one of the ledgers of the Imperial Cabinet under the number 176 for a cost of 200 rubles on 17 June 1916.
The same miniature reappears in another ledger dated 5 May 1917 attached to the entry of the Fabergé nephrite presentation box with precious stones no. 9 from the reserve of the Cabinet, and written, (down) under no. 11 and set in the presentation box no. 9.
On the opposite page of the same ledger, the number 9 nephrite snuff-box now registered under number 11 is allocated with the following inscription, 'Given to the former Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich for presentation to the members of the French Academy Gabriel Hanotaux and Frédéric Masson'.
The second Imperial presentation box received, at the same time, by Gabriel Hanotaux, listed on the same ledger under number 8 and re-registered under the number 10 with miniature no. 175 is now in the collection of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth of England. Both boxes were allocated two similar miniatures of Tsar Nicholas II wearing the same uniform and the Order of St. George, (miniatures 175 and 176, see entry in the ledger above). For an illustration of the second box see: Munich, Kuntshalle der Hypo-Kulturstiftung, Fabergé, Juwelier der Zaren, (1986), n. 518, ill. Most interesting is that the drawing for both Imperial Presentation boxes appear side by side in the unpublished Wigström album.
Based on the ledgers of the Imperial Cabinet, the present Imperial presentation snuff-box appears to be one of the last two delivered during the reign of Tsar Nicholas II. Both boxes were delivered to Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich on behalf of the Tsar, when the above was already under house arrest.
It is a well-known fact, that sometimes, the Imperial gifts were
presented to the recipients with some delay and the political events in Russia, at the time, can easily explain the situation.
Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich (1859-1919), first cousin once removed of Tsar Nicholas II sometimes considered the intellectual of the Romanov family due to his historical writings appears, without doubt,
the right link between Kerenskii Provisional government and the French academicians acting as diplomats in Russia, an allied country during
the First World war. The Grand Duke had a keen interest in politics and was known to be curious in meeting political figures from all sides,
see: General A. Spiridovitch, Les dernières années de la Cour de Tzarkoie-Selo, (Paris, 1928).
In fact, all the above: the reason of the gift, the choice of the gift, it's preparation, its cost, the way to answer the Tsar for such a gift and its delivery appears with numerous details in the correspondence between the Grand Duke and Frédéric Masson, see: Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich, La Fin du Tsarisme, Lettres inédites à Frédéric Masson (1914-1918), Paris, 1968, pp. 98, 106, 110, 126 and 133.
We are most grateful to Ulla Tillander-Godenhielm and Valentin Skurlov for providing information on the present Imperial presentation snuff-box and a special thanks to Marvin Lyons for pointing out the correspondence between the Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich and Frederic Masson.