Lot 268
268
AN IMPERIAL RUSSIAN JEWELED AND ENAMEL SILVER, GOLD AND RHODONITE HAND SEAL AND STAND
AN IMPERIAL RUSSIAN JEWELED AND ENAMEL SILVER, GOLD AND RHODONITE HAND SEAL AND STAND
AN IMPERIAL RUSSIAN JEWELED AND ENAMEL SILVER, GOLD AND RHODONITE HAND SEAL AND STAND
AN IMPERIAL RUSSIAN JEWELED AND ENAMEL SILVER, GOLD AND RHODONITE HAND SEAL AND STAND
3 More
A Treasured History: The Stream Family Collection
AN IMPERIAL RUSSIAN JEWELED AND ENAMEL SILVER, GOLD AND RHODONITE HAND SEAL AND STAND

PROBABLY ST. PETERSBURG, CIRCA 1890

Details
AN IMPERIAL RUSSIAN JEWELED AND ENAMEL SILVER, GOLD AND RHODONITE HAND SEAL AND STAND
PROBABLY ST. PETERSBURG, CIRCA 1890
The stand formed as a square rhodonite base supporting a silver-gilt cushion finely engraved with scrolling foliage and applied with gold Imperial double-headed eagles at corners set with diamonds, with a detachable hand seal at the center, the cylindrical gold body with a ruby and diamond-set rim, surmounted by the Imperial crown part-enameled in translucent red and set with rose-cut diamonds, the lapis lazuli matrix engraved with the cypher of Tsesarevich Nicholas Alexandrovich, future Emperor Nicholas II, beneath the Imperial crown, apparently unmarked, with French import marks on the seal
3 ¼ in. (8.2 cm.) high; 3 ¼ in. (8.2 cm.) square
Provenance
Tsesarevich Nicholas Alexandrovich (1968-1918), future Emperor Nicholas II.
Acquired by Matilda Geddings Gray (1885-1971) from Hammer Galleries, New York, 9 October 1946.
By descent to Matilda Gray Stream (1924-2023) and descendants.
Literature
Exhibition catalogue, Loan Exhibition of the Art of Peter Carl Fabergé, Imperial Court Jeweler, 1846 – 1920 at the Hammer Galleries, 1951, p. 42, no. 291A (listed).
Exhibited
Hammer Galleries, New York, Loan Exhibition of the Art of Peter Carl Fabergé, Imperial Court Jeweler, 1846 – 1920 at the Hammer Galleries, 28 March – 28 April 1951, no. 291A.

Brought to you by

Julia Jones
Julia Jones Head of Sale
+212 974 4474

Lot Essay

The cypher on this rare Imperial hand seal is a personal ex libris of Tsesarevich Nicholas Alexandrovich, future Emperor Nicholas II. It was designed by Armin Baron von Foelkersahm (1861-1917) for the Tsesarevich’s personal library in the early 1890s.

Baron von Foelkersahm is best known for his work on the Inventory of Silverware Kept in the Imperial Palace Furniture Depositories, published in 1907. In addition to this scholarly work, he designed more than forty ex libris plates for members of the Imperial family and assembled the largest collection of ex libris in the Russian Empire.

More from A Treasured History: The Stream Family Collection

View All
View All