Lot 41
  • 41

An Imperial Presentation gilt-bronze mounted malachite vase, Imperial Lapidary Workshops, Peterhof or Ekaterinburg, 1846

Estimate
250,000 - 350,000 GBP
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Description

  • malachite, gilt bronze
  • height including plinth 110cm, 43 1/4 in.
of amphora form, veneered overall in cross-cut malachite, the handle brackets cast as Bacchic masks, the handles terminating in scrolls set with rosettes issuing spirals, the square gilt-bronze plinth inscribed 'Donné par S.M. L'Empereur de Russie' and dated 1846

Provenance

Presented by Emperor Nicholas I of Russia, probably to Domenico Antonio Lo Faso Pietrasanta, Duke of Serradifalco (1783-1863), in 1846

Acquired by a private European collector at auction in the 1960s

Thence by descent

Literature

V.B. Semyonov, Malachite, Sverdlovsk, 1987, the design illustrated pl. 24, p. 140

Condition

The vase is in excellent, very well-preserved condition. The surface is clean, smooth and bright. There is one area of successful restoration at the top rim of the base: three small tiles came off during shipping and have been re-attached by a professional restorer. There are no other restorations apparent. The gilt-bronze mounts with some old polish residue; the gilt-bronze plinth with some light scratches as expected. Please note: in the catalogue photo on page 251, there appears to be a loss at the lower right of the base. This is actually sticky residue from an old label, and this has been removed. The vase gives a magnificent impression in person.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

Malachite has been prized for its rich green colour, with dramatic almost black wavy inclusions, since the Neolithic Era, when it was used as a dye.  Ancient Egyptians used it to make highly fashionable green eye-shadow.  The oldest known object carved of malachite is a small pendant excavated in northern Iran and thought to be 10,500 years old.  The Golden Age of malachite was undeniably the 19th century, when huge deposits of workable and especially decorative malachite were discovered in the Ural Mountains of Russia.  The stone became Russia’s national treasure, a passion proclaimed most famously in the Malachite Room of the Winter Palace in St Petersburg, furnished with massive malachite columns and fireplace in the 1830s, where Romanov brides were dressed before their weddings. 

The beauty of Russian malachite was something the country – and in particular Emperor Nicholas I – employed  to impress foreigners, commissioning a number of grand malachite-veneered objects from the Imperial Lapidary Workshops in Peterhof and Ekaterinburg to be sent abroad as presentation gifts.  These included the large urn which the Emperor sent to Queen Victoria in 1839, now at Windsor Castle (RCIN 43957); his consort Empress Alexandra Feodorovna had sent a smaller one to King George IV in 1827 (RCIN 1708). 

The design for this vase (see illustration previous page) was produced by Ivan Ivanovich Galberg (1782-1863) for the Imperial Cabinet, which approved the design on 14 April 1839, according to the notation; Galberg submitted it after the agreed deadline due to an illness.  A small number of vases of this form were produced in two sizes between 1842 and 1846, with prices recorded ranging from 2400 to 2539 roubles for the stonework, the mounts produced by the firm of Nicholls & Plincke and in the workshop of the bronzier Johann Andreas Schreiber.  One vase formed part of the dowry of Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna, who married the future King of Württemberg, Crown Prince Charles, on 13 July 1846.  Another was presented by the Emperor to the 3rd Earl of Mount Edgcumbe in 1846, the Emperor having visited London two years before and presumably made the acquaintance of the Earl. 

A third vase of this form was completed in 1846 and was originally intended to be the vase for the Grand Duchess’ dowry but was instead sent to Domenico Antonio Lo Faso Pietrasanta, Duke of Serradifalco (1783-1863), who served as Court Chamberlain to King Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies, with the plinth inscribed in French, the international language of diplomacy and Royal and Imperial Courts.  

Alexandra Feodorovna, in failing health, spent the winter of 1845-46 in Sicily, and the Emperor joined her for a time, in part because he sorely missed his wife, but also to show monarchical support for King Ferdinand's unstable throne.  Certainly Serradifalco, in his role as Chamberlain, would have taken special care of the Emperor and Empress during their time in Italy, and the vase was an expression of Nicholas' gratitude.  King Ferdinand was presented with replicas of Pyotr Karlovich Klodt's bronze Horse Tamers, still at the Royal Palace in Naples.

A noted archaeologist and architect, the Duke of Serradifalco was later appointed President of the Commission of Antiquities and Fine Art and directed excavations and restorations at important archaeological sites in Sicily.  As a classicist, he surely appreciated his gift from the Russian Emperor.

Sotheby's is grateful to Tatiana Cheboksarova, Galina Korneva and Ekaterina Semenova for their assistance in researching this lot.