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Lot 135
A Derby Porcelain Sauceboat, circa 1770, the interior painted in underglaze blue with chinoiserie flower sprays within a cell border, the exterior moulded with two floral panels and a third panel painted with a chinoiserie flower spray on a moulded scale ground within cell borders, 17cm long Ex Bernard Watney Collection, part lot 1176 from the Phillips` Watney Collection Part III
Lot 319
Valentino Panciera Besarel (Italian 182901902): A Carved Wood Figure of a Renaissance Youth, standing wearing a jerkin, carved with a lion holding a book inscribed PAS EVAN TIBI GELI MAR STA CE ME, on a ground of stylised flowerheads, standing holding a staff, on a circular base with scale border and octagonal architectural stand, signed V.BESAREL VENEZIA, 177cm high See illustration
Lot 1389
Fine Signed Hereke Carpet North East Anatolia The raspberry field richly decorated with an allover design of cloud bands, palmettes and leafy vines within floral borders flanked by guard stripes, 376cm by 280cm See illustration The Ottoman Sultan Abdulmecit set up workshops for the production of weaving in the town of Hereke during the mid 19th century. The weavers, who were mainly Armenian, initially concentrated on the production of very fine quality silk rugs and it was only later during the last two decades of the 19th century that the royal workshops began producing fine large scale carpets knotted in wool. Early weavings were probably made exclusively for the Sultan`s personal use. The design of this example is like many, based on classical 17th century pieces. It dates from the 1890`s and is an excellent example of fine quality carpets made in the town. Such examples are now rare and collectable.
Lot 99
*Sopwith `Pup`. A collection of eighty-one original dyeline construction diagrams of this aircraft from the Sopwith Aviation Company Ltd, Kingston-on-Thames, each print approx. 29 x 41in (73.5 x 104cm) correctly folded, each labelled and numbered with Drg. No., Scale 3`-1 foot, 1/2 scale, 1:1 and other sizes, with dates mostly 1917, subjects include Lewis Auto Gun mounting, General Arrangement of Centre Section, Control Column Detail, 80 h.p. Le Rhone Engine Mounting, Bracket for Scarff-Vickers Gun Gear, Main Plane Ribs and others of construction detail, contained in a carton inscribed `If anyone else leaves these drawings in a heap and not folded properly they can find employment elsewhere, Tim` (81)
Lot 198
*Astro-Navigation Height and Azimuth Calculator. A rare specialised astro-navigation instrument ARI made by Dennert & Pape of Hamburg-Altona Werk Nr. 53578, the calculation drum with waxed paper scales operated by a hand-turned notched wheel with fine rack and pinion adjustment, the curved top perspex window (cracked) revealing the degree scales, a second inner drum similarly operated and incorporating a Fest/Los` (Fixed/Free) lever, with scale illumination via twin glow-bulbs (one missing) the electrical plug dated 9 Aug 1938 with `on/off` switch, the upper drum body with panel for calculation recording revealing marked in pencil against Greek and Arabic lettering, `Delta` `Declination`:- 22 deg. 38`N, t=`Hour angle`: = 81 deg 40`, `[?] Phi` `Width` (? angle off):- 55 deg, b= 90-35 deg, X= 70 deg 50`, Y= 105 deg 50`, Az-`Azimuth`:- 85 deg 04`, h-`? Height` inscription indistinct, a further curved panel on the upper surface with complex calculation instructions, one side of the case giving letter code for `Bezeichung` (Declination), `Stunden winkel` (Hour angle East or West), `Breite` (width), 90-, `Azimut` (Azimuth East or West) ? of the Pole, a further list of instructions under the title Rules for Prefixes gives `Width and Declination of the same name` and `Width and Declination without the same name`, with associated calculation table, the calculator and stand mounted on a platform base, 18in (45.7cm) wide. This aeronautical instrument is believed to have been taken from the Messerschmitt Bf 110D which was flown by Rudolf Hess to Scotland on 10 May 1941, apparently in a vain attempt to negotiate a peace treaty between Germany and Britain. The aircraft, which crash landed, was subsequently sent to Morris Motors, Cowley, to be dismantled and the instrument was given to Hans Landstad, a Norwegian engineer who joined Morris Motors in 1914 and designed the first Morris Cowley engine. Part of the aircraft wreckage is now on display in the Imperial War Museum. (1)
Lot 264
*Wright Biplane. A good lacquered sterling-silver scale model of the famous `Wright Flyer` machine, which made the first powered flight at Kittyhawk Ohio 1903, highly detailed with cast silver mainplanes, silver-wire bracing to open-work fuselage frame and struts construction, with gilt-wash to detailed engine and propellers, and realistic pilot in prone position, with rotating propellers and movable tailplane, manufactured by Paramount Classics Corp., appears un-numbered from an edition of 1,000 made c. 1976, weight 19 troy oz, w/span 12in (31cm) (1)
Lot 321
*Airbus Industrie A380. A good composition scale desktop model by Space Models, London, finished in company livery, without stand, some minor imperfections, 31.5in (80cm) wingspan, with storage box, together with a desktop model of A318 by Space Models, company livery, 13.75in (33.5cm) wingspan, with storage box (2)
Lot 324
*Bristol Fighter B4639. A good flying scale model of this famous First World War fighting aircraft, the wood airframe covered with fine fabric, authentic pattern dummy stitching to fuselage panels, aluminium engine covers, some cockpit details, the rear cockpit mounted with twin dummy Lewis guns on Scarf ring, the upper and lower mainplanes covered with fine fabric, the upper mainplane mounted with a single pilot operated Lewis gun, with varnished spruce interplane struts and bracing wires, fully operational flying control surfaces the tail fin with operating rudder and fully working tailplane elevators, the main undercarriage with Palmer Cord rubber tyres strut braced with bungee rubber suspension, the tail with hinged and sprung skid, fitted with a 4-stroke miniature petrol engine, dummy radiator shutters, 18in (46cm) diameter, wood propeller and exhausts, finished in overall R.F.C. olive-drab upper surfaces and natural dope undersurfaces, with national markings of the period, 78in (198cm) wingspan (1)
Lot 326
*Comper Swift. A good former flying scale model of the high-wing monoplane of the 1930s, well constructed of fabric-covered wood framing to wings and fuselage, brace v-struts to wings and undercarriage, well detailed with cockpit and upper wing instrumentation, dummy twin-cylinder engine, rotating propeller and aluminium engine-cowling, well refinished in sky-blue and silver livery, registration number G-AARX, w/span 72in (184cm) (1)
Lot 327
*Desk top display models. Nine well presented 1/72nd scale desk top models, comprising Curtiss `Jenny`, Aeronca-100 G-AEVS, NC 818K, North American P-51B `Mustang`, P-51D 413926, Brewster `Buffalo` F.2A2 1412 in the livery of the U.S. Navy, Bristol `Bulldog` K2159, and Focke-Wulf Fw.190A, each in individual display case (9)
Lot 328
*Fokker E-5. A fine and large ? scale former flying model of the potent monoplane of 1918, superbly detailed and presented in the lozenge-pattern camouflage livery of Jagdstaffel 6, excellent attention to detail including dummy engine with finned cylinders and valve-gear, machine-guns, brass-rims to instrumentation board panel, bracing wires, movable flying surfaces with servo-installation in-situ, and the doped fabric with realistic rib-tape detail to tail-plane etc., lacking motor but with authentic polished mahogany propeller to engine-cowling, w/span 83in (210cm) (1)
Lot 330
*Hawker Fury K1927. A fine flying scale model of this famous interwar single seater bi-plane fighter, the fine fabric covered wooden airframe, main planes and tail surfaces with working ailerons, elevators and rudder, interplane struts with bracing wires, the forward fuselage and engine cowling covered in aluminium foil, the pilots cockpit with wind shield, gunsight for the twin Vickers guns mounted in troughs on the upper cowling, the lower fuselage with dummy radiator, rubber tyred main undercarriage sprung with bracing rods and wires, the wheels with spoke discs, and with tail skid, finished in all over silver and RAF markings of the period, fitted with glow plug engine driving an 18 inch (46cm) diameter two-blade propeller, 60.5in (154cm) wingspan (1)
Lot 331
*Sopwith Camel. A good 1/6th scale former flying model of the famous fighter of 1917, well constructed with attention to detail, doped fabric over wood frame, fully rigged with movable flying surfaces, machine-guns, rotary-engine with wooden propeller affixed (motor removed), and realistic pilot to cockpit, finished in authentic livery with distinctive chequer-pattern design to forward fuselage and cowling (1)
Lot 332
*Supermarine `Spitfire` BS435 FY-F. A well constructed flying scale model of the personal aircraft of Sqdn. Ldr. A. G. Willcox, built of wood, composition material and fine-fabric, with operating ailerons, rudder, elevators, the flaps fixed, rubber tyred retractable main undercarriage with tailwheel, fine cockpit detail includes pilot`s seat with harness, gun-sight, various instrumentation, trim wheel and emergency exit crow-bar, fitted with a single cylinder J.TEC engine driving a two-blade, 18in (46cm) diameter wood propeller, 66in (168cm) wing-span (1)
Lot 604
Rolls-Royce Phantom II Sedanca de Ville. An original scale-model by Pocher of Italy, c. 1970s, exceptionally detailed from model-kit, of metal & plastic construction, previously on open display, shows age-wear and some distress and minor detached small components a/f condition, 20in (50cm) length (1)
Lot 641
*British and European Sports & Racing Cars 1920s-1960s. A good group of toys & scale-models representing BMW, Jaguar, Mercedes, Bugatti, Austin-Healey, Aston-Martin, Bentley etc, various makers including Dinky Toys, Corgi, Oro, Vitesse, Lesney `Matchbox` & `Models of Yester-Year`, Brumm, Solido & Tekno etc. (approx. 45)
Lot 644
*Continental & European Sports Cars. A group of toys and scale-models, 1960s-1990s, comprising Ferrari, Jaguar, MG, Morris, Maserati etc, various makers including Dinky Toys, Corgi, Norev, Maisto, Polistil, Auto-Pilen, Burago etc: to include larger-scale Ferrari 456GT Louis Vuitton Concours commemorative edition model in box (25)
Lot 647
*Die-Cast Toys. A group of mid 20th-c. toys & models by Lesney Moko, Matchbox and Models of Yester-Year etc., 1950s-1960s, including early 1st Series issues `00`-gauge line-side scale models, 1st Series `Models of Yesteryear` steam vehicles, commercials etc, and with 2nd Series `Models of Yesteryear` etc., mostly good condition from long-term storage (approx. 40)
Lot 648
*F1 and Grand Prix Racing. A group of fine scale models in part portraying historical Grand Prix cars, 1920s-1950s, seven in glazed display case; together with as new boxed examples including Ferrari, Lotus, Honda, Tyrrell, Porsche etc, various makers including Brumm, Quartzo, Heritage Racing, Minichamps and Vitess etc. (16)
Lot 658
*Rolls-Royce & Bentley in the 1920s-1980s. A good quantity of scale-models & toys by proprietary manufacturers, representing respective products of the 20thC, including Dinky Toys, Corgi Toys, Lesney `Matchbox` & `Models of Yesteryear`, Franklin Mint, Brumm, Airfix and many others, various conditions (approx. 40)
Lot 660
*Ships & Maritime. A group of fine scale boxed models by Skytrex Ltd, including RMS Titanic, RMS Queen Mary, Normandie USS United States, QEII etc and other by Albatross Mauretania and dockside scale model buildings and accessories etc, excellent condition in original box packaging (approx. 21)
Lot 677
*H.M. Submarine `K3`. A fine 1/72nd scale museum quality display model of this steam-powered submarine, built by D. Simpson, finished in pale grey over light blue-grey below the water line, with conning tower, periscopes, forward and rear deck armament, twin folding funnels, upper deck armament, guard rails, cleats and other fittings, all gold plated, with twin radio masts forward and aft stabiliser planes, the bow torpedo doors and twin three-blade propellers gold plated, on stand in oak framed display case, 64in (162.5cm) long, with fore and aft simulated ivory builders plates, inscribed `H.M. Submarine `K3` High Speed Fleet Submarine `K` Class for the British Admiralty Constructed By Messrs Vickers Barrow in Furness, Launched May 1916` The `K` Class submarines were designed and built on the orders of the Admiralty as rumour was rife that the Kaisermarine had developed a high surface speed U-boat. Ultimately, driven by geared turbines of 10,500 h.p., the `K` class, with a crew of five officers and fifty-three ratings, this submarine had at the time (1916) a surface speed of 25 knots and was the world`s fastest. Known as the `Kalamity Kays` the eighteen `K` class built had unhappy lives. Accidents, technical malfunctions and incompetence led to the class becoming rapidly extinct. `K3``s most momentus moment was when, with HRH The Price of Wales abroad, she suddenly and uncontrollably dived, becoming stuck on the sea bed. After much anguish and 20 minutes she was freed and returned to the surface. The Prince was unharmed, but no doubt shaken by the experience. After many other `adventures`, `K3` was eventually scrapped in 1921. (1)
Lot 253
Set of three early 20th Century brown glazed tile plaques depicting a lady collecting kindling, a man reading from a newspaper and a man cutting a quill, 29cm x 14cm, framed Both plaques depicting gentlemen have large scale crazing to the surface, as the plaques are housed within completely sealed frames we are unable to comment on the edges of the plaques, the plaque with the female figure has a small discoloured fault just
Lot 199
"AN IMPORTANT IMPERIAL RUSSIAN ICON TRIPTYCH, FABERGÉ & SIGNED N. EMELIANOV, CIRCA 1912 The central reserve displaying a finely painted image of The Serafimo-Ponetaevskaya Sign Mother of God, characteristically painted with a gem and pearl encrusted veil. The Christ Child as well as the head of the Virgin, encircled with ornate silver repousse haloes, the Virgin’s halo embellished with cabochons. Both hallmarked St. Petersburg, and with Cyrillic maker`s mark FABERGÉ beneath the Imperial Warrant and workmaster`s initials TR for Phillip Theodor Ringe. Below the Virgin are inscribed the standard troparion (left) and kontakion (right) celebrating icons of the “Sign”. And further still lower right the icon is signed in Cyrillic “Painted by N. Emelianov”. Above the Virgin on either side are painted two full length images identified by inscriptions as Angels of the Lord. To the Virgin’s right (viewers left) a vertical panel divided into six sections each depicting a church feast day or other related event. From top to bottom they are; The Birth of the Mother of God, The Entrance of the Mother of God Into the Temple, The Translation of the Relics of Saint Alexander Nevsky from Vladimir to St. Petersburg, Saints Peter and Paul, The Appearance of the Wonderworking Icon of Kazan, and The Translation of the Relics of Saint Theodore Stratelates. To the Virgin’s left (viewers right) a similar vertical panel divided into five sections depicting the following iconographical subjects; The Resurrection, The Transfiguration, The Apostle and Evangelist Saint Matthew, The Dormition, and The Assembly of the Archangel Michael. Further out, the left wing depicts a finely painted full length image of Saint Nicholas whose head is encircled by a silver repousse halo stamped with the workmasters initials TR and who stands beneath an image identified by the Slavonic inscription as the Not-By-Hand-Made Image of Our Lord. Below Saint Nicholas is a reserve divided into four sections depicting various subjects. Clockwise from upper left they are; The Transferring of the Vladimir Mother of God Icon, Saint George, Saints Konstantin and Helen, and the Translation of the Relics of Saint Nicholas. The right wing depicts a finely painted full length image of Saint Seraphim of Sarov whose head is also encircled by a silver repousse halo stamped with the workmaster initials TR and who stands beneath an image of The Old Testament Trinity. Below Saint Seraphim a reserve divided into two sections depicts the following subjects; The Discovery of the True and Life-Giving Cross and an image of The Kazan Mother of God. Each shaped panel separately painted and set into the ornately carved one piece frame displaying an eight-sided cross finial atop the left and right wings and the central section surmounted by a similar cross flanked by a pair of six-winged Seraphim. The wide lower margin with two medallions carved in high relief and depicting Saint George (left) and The Archangel Michael (right). The verso of carved frame lined with brass edging around the border and the entire back covered in kid leather and stamped in Cyrillic ?.??????? beneath the Imperial Warrant and with St. Petersburg address. Height 23.3 inches (59.4cm).Width 16.4 inches (41.5cm).Provenance:Colonel Dmitrii Nikolaivich Loman, circa 1912, presumably a gift from Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. With Bowater Gallery, London, where acquired by Mrs. Harold Leather of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, accompanied by original receipt of purchase dated August 10, 1970. Thence by descent to her son, Sir Edwin Leather (1919-2005) former Governor of Bermuda, and acquired by the present owner from the estate of Sir Edwin Leather.The Mother of God of the Sign icon known as the Serafimo-Ponetaevskaya was imbued with particular significance for Tsar Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra Feodorovna. As the last icon of this iconographic type to be declared miracle-working in Russia (1885), it became for the Imperial couple a symbol of Holy Rus reborn and triumphant in the modern age, and a direct link to the miraculous powers and protection of Saint Serafim of Sarov, to whom the Empress Alexandra was especially drawn. When the couple attended the celebrations marking the canonization of the Nizhnii Novgorod saint in 1903, the Ponetaevskaya icon was one of three venerated for their connection to Serafim’s life and work. The Empress was given a copy to mark the occasion and this icon accompanied her until her final days and death in Ekaterinburg in 1918. The Ponetaevskaya icon was particularly associated with Tsarskoe Selo, which in 1901 became the official Imperial residence and from 1909 was the site of the Fedorovsky Gorodok, an elaborate complex intended to recreate the spirit and culture of an idealized Russian past in a modernized idiom. It is with Colonel Dmitrii Loman, the driving force behind the construction and conception of the Fedorovsky Gorodok and a trusted member of the Imperial family’s inner circle, that the offered lot is associated.The icon’s name derives from the Serafimo-Ponetaevskaya convent, established in 1864 in memory of Saint Serafim (1754/9 - 1833), whose hermitage was located at nearby Sarov. The convent was famous for its icon painting workshops, and in 1879, a novice named Klavdia Voiloshnikovna made a copy of an icon of the Sign that had been acquired from the artist Pavel Sorokin who oversaw the painting studio. In addition to the canonical features of Sign icons - the half-length figure of the Mother of God with her hands raised in prayer and the Christ Child encircled by a nimbus within Her womb - the icon that Voiloshnikovna copied had several distinctive features. The Mother of God’s eyes are lifted to heaven and a pearl and gem encrusted veil sheathes her head and shoulders, imparting to her face a teardrop-shaped contour. The faces are rendered in the painterly style popular in the nineteenth century and have a certain sentimental sweetness. On May 14, 1885 the icon performed the first of many miracles and by the end of the year was officially proclaimed miracle-working by the Holy Synod.In 1909 an exact copy of the icon arrived at Tsarskoe Selo as a gift from the Abbess of the Ponetaevskaya convent. That same year, Tsar Nicholas II approved construction of a temporary church to serve the devotional needs of His Majesty’s Own Regiment, who were permanently stationed there. Dedicated to Saint Serafim of Sarov, the church was an experiment in resurrecting an idealized Russian past. It was appointed with an iconostasis designed by Prince Mikhail Putyatin (see fig. #3 & #4) and filled with icons painted by noted iconographer Nikolai Emelianov executed in the 17th century style. The Ponetaevskaya icon occupied a place of honor in the church, along with relics associated with Saint Serafim.At the same time Nicholas and Alexander gave permission and funds to build a permanent cathedral on the grounds of the Alexander Palace at Tsarkoe Selo, where their family might worship surrounded by their most devoted troops as well as their favorite sacred images. Consecrated in 1912, the cathedral contained two churches. In the upper church dedicated to the Feodorovskaya Mother of God icon, a five-tiered iconostasis was installed, filled with new icons painted by Emelianov in the same 17th century style and lavishly adorned with silver basma. On the lower level, space was carved out for a crypt church and it was here that the temporary church’s altar, icons, relics and fixtures were transferred. To the Ponetaevskaya icon was added a copy of the Umilenie Mother of God that had been Saint Serafim’s personal icon, together with an icon of the saint himself. A second Ponetaevskaya icon hung nearby in the empress’s own private chapel, donated by the empress’s sister, Grand Duchess Elizaveta Feodorovna in 1912 and adorned with a sumptuous silver oklad and costly embroidered veil (Fig.1).The offered triptych of the Ponetaevskaya Mother of God with Saints Nicholas and Serafim can be securely traced to Dmitrii Loman (1868-1918), a Colonel in His Majesty’s Own Regiment, whose energy and organizational talents made him an indispensable and sympathetic aide to the Imperial couple and was by all accounts very close to the Empress, who was the Godmother of Loman’s son, Yuri. A contemporary photograph dated to 1914 shows the icon hanging in the upper corner of Loman’s office located in the refectory at Tsarskoe Selo (Fig.2). Colonel Loman served in countless capacities that reflected the Emperor and Empress’ trust. In addition to being churchwarden of the cathedral, during WWI he served as the Empress’ representative on the Tsarskoe Selo Military Hospital Train No. 143 and similar trains under the protection of the grand duchesses. He was also on friendly terms with Grigorii Rasputin (Fig.3) who was a frequent visitor and was one of the few people actually present at his burial. Loman’s great passion was the preservation of early Russian art, music, and popular culture, and his collections of liturgical and folk art were intended to serve as inspiration for the revival of a single national style in all facets of contemporary life. In 1915, he was instrumental in creating the Society for the Renaissance of Artistic Rus, a group that included the leading artists and architects working in a neo-Russian style. The society’s goals included the study and preservation of Russian antiquities, the revival of pre-Petrine aesthetic traditions adapted to contemporary conditions, publishing textbooks on Russian art for schools, and restoring the purity of the Russian language. The complex of buildings that grew up around the Feodorovsky Cathedral, the Feodorovsky Gorodok, was to be a prototype for the realization of these goals on a national scale.In every sense the offered triptych is a microcosm and memento of the Feodorovsky Cathedral whose construction and decoration Loman oversaw. The painting is the work of the Palekh- trained Moscow-based court iconographer and restorer Nikolai Sergeevich Emelianov. Having proved his ability to interpret the spirit of 17th century icons in a modern idiom with the iconostasis for the temporary church, Emelianov was among a select group of iconographers (including Mikhail Dikarev) commissioned to provide icons for the cathedral’s upper church (Fig.4). Emelianov also prepared the drawings for the mosaic icons that marked the multiple entrances to the cathedral. In addition to the iconostasis, in 1910-11 Emelianov painted 102 icons for the cathedral itself, including “an icon of the Mother of God of the Sign with attendant angels,” of which the present icon may have been the model for the Loman triptych. Icons by Emelianov from the Feodorovsky Cathedral and other late Imperial churches are preserved in the State Museum of the History of Religion and, like the present icon, are generally signed in the lower right corner. So pleased were the royal family with his work, that Emelianov was awarded a silver medal on a Vladimir ribbon for his icons in the Feodorovsky Cathedral together with the Emperor’s “personal thanks.”The elegantly elongated figures of the two attendant saints - the tsar’s name saint Nicholas and Saint Serafim himself - and the miniature painting of the marginal scenes of festivals and saints are subtly adapted to the distinctly modern features of the Ponetaevskaya Mother of God. An exceptionally rich visual rhythm is created by the variations in scale and size of the scenes that flank that central image and create a continuous horizontal band along the lower edge. The three panels are set within a carved wooden framework that echoes the elongated gables of the iconostasis designed by Vladimir Pokrovsky for the upper church (Fig 5.). The carved relief roundels on the lower margin reference the mosaic icons of Saint George and Saint Michael that Emelianov designed to mark the north and south entrances into the cathedral (St. George appropriately designated the officers’ entrance). Reflected in the cabochon-studded haloes is the rich intricacy of 17th century devotional icons that established the aesthetic ideal espoused by enthusiasts like Prince Shirinsky-Shikhmatov and Loman himself. The fact that they were made in the workshops of the Imperial silversmith Fabergé reflect the status and importance of the person who commissioned the offered triptych. The carving borrows some of the stylized folk motifs from the furnishings designed for the cathedral by Nikolai Bartram and executed in the workshops of the Moscow Zemstvo at Sergiev Posad. Here too a balance is sought between the lushly ornamented upper half in the neo-Russian style and the neoclassical simplicity of the lower section, so typical of Fabergé’s work in burl and Karelian birch.Clearly, the triptych is a testament to Loman’s deeply held conviction - one he shared with the Imperial couple - that a renaissance of Old Russian values in contemporary life was a goal within reach. In the absence of a presentation plaque or other documentation we can only speculate as to its origins. It would certainly have been a fitting gift of appreciation and remembrance from the Empress for whom Loman had proved so indispensable. It is displayed in Loman’s office near an assortment of personal photographs depicting Tsar Nicholas II and the Empress of the type known to have been given by the royal couple to those whom they held in high esteem. However, perhaps the best clue as to who might have commissioned this icon rests in the fact that it was decorated by the firm of Fabergé. For it is well known that when the Tsar and Tsarina wanted to favor someone special with an extraordinary gift they would call upon the workshop of Fabergé to fulfill such requests. When all known facts are taken into consideration, Imperial silversmith Fabergé, court iconographer Emelianov, and the triptych being situated in the office of dutiful royal confidant and administrator Dmitrii Loman, it is fair to presume that the offered lot was indeed a gift from Nicholas and Alexandra to Loman most likely upon the completion of the cathedral in the fall of 1913 which Loman oversaw, including the task of primary fundraiser. After decades of decay and destruction, in 2009 a concerted restoration of the Feodorovsky Cathedral at Tsarskoe Selo was undertaken and the iconostasis reconstructed on the basis of several surviving icons by Emelianov. Loman’s son Yuri (1906-1988) survived the times or terror, successfully adjusted to communist rule and towards the end of his life penned a biography, “Memories of the Empress’ Godson”. The Society for the Renaissance of Artistic Rus of which Loman was instrumental, ceased its activities in October 1917. Loman perished (was shot) during the terror of 1918 and by 1928 the old icons from the Feodorovsky Cathedral had been dispersed, some made their way to the Russian Museum, while others, including some painted by Emelianov went to the State Museum of the History of Religion. Others, like the offered lot, thankfully found safe haven elsewhere and after decades of silently preaching in places far removed from the splendor of Tsarskoe Selo, are now being enjoyed by a new generation of enthusiasts who have come to appreciate the true geniuses of those artisans who created a unique Russian style that has now risen from the ash heap of history to reign again in splendor."
Lot 389
A RUSSIAN SILVER-GILT AND CLOISONNÉ ENAMEL SERVING SPOON, KHLEBNIKOV, MOSCOW, 1888. The large circular bowl overall enameled with flowerheads, strapwork, and clovers, twist handle with crown form enameled finial above a band of fish-scale enameling, interior of bowl engraved in Russian "Nizhny Novgorod." Length 7.25 inches (18.4 cm).
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