Description
This kovsh (ceremonial cup) is carved from an unusually large piece of nephrite, a type of jade. The underside of the handle is inscribed May 6, 1911. In the old style (Julian) calendar, May 6 was Nicholas II’s birth date, and the kovsh therefore might have been intended as a presentation gift to celebrate the tsar’s 43rd birthday, although the marks on the metal show that it was made years earlier.




"Kovsh" with Imperial Eagle
Conservation
The silver and gold handle and spout of the kovsh were cleaned using precipitated chalk to remove tarnish. The metal elements were then coated to reduce tarnishing in the future.
Silver and gilded silver elements were cleaned using precipated chalk in a slurry to remove tarnish. After polishing, the silver elements were coated to reduce tarnishing in the future.
Date | Description | Narrative |
---|---|---|
7/24/1959 | Treatment | cleaned; coated |
1/23/1988 | Treatment | cleaned |
1/23/1988 | Examination | examined for condition |
2/28/2002 | Treatment | examined for condition; other |
9/27/2017 | Examination | Treated for exhibition. |
9/27/2017 | Treatment | Cleaned for exhibition |
Exhibitions
- Russian Art: Icons and Decorative Arts from the Origin to the Twentieth Century. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. 1959-1960.
- A Millennium of Christianity: Russian Art from The Walters Art Gallery. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. 1988-1989.
- The Fabergé Menagerie. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus; Portland Art Museum, Portland. 2003-2004.
- Fabergé and the Russian Crafts Tradition: An Empire's Legacy . The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. 2017-2018.
Provenance
Acquired by Alexandre Polovtsoff (Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Polovtsov), Paris; purchased by Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1930; by bequest to Walters Art Museum, 1931.
Inscriptions
[Mark] On handle: 88; [Inscribed] May 6, 1911
Credit
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1930
Creator
- Russian (Artist)
Period
1899-1903Accession Number
57.1076Measurements
H: 4 1/8 x W: 12 5/8 in. (10.5 x 32.1 cm)Geographies
- Russia, St. Petersburg (Place of Origin)