Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Hippopotamus
(18th and 19th Centuries )
This baby hippo was purchased by Henry Walters, the founder of the Walters Art Museum, on a trip to St. Petersburg in 1900. It was one of four hardstone animals that he acquired for his collection on this cruise. Henry, ever ahead of trends, was one of the first Americans to shop at the newly opened store belonging to Carl Fabergé, jeweler to the Russian royal family. He would have known Fabergé's exceptional work from the Paris World's Fair, which he had visited in this same year. Henry went on to purchase two Imperial Easter Eggs by Fabergé following the Russian revolution. Today the Walters has a rich collection of Russian art from the time of the Romanovs.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1900, by purchase [from the factory]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 2017-2018 | Fabergé and the Russian Crafts Tradition: An Empire's Legacy . The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
| 2014-2016 | From Rye to Raphael: The Walters Story. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. |
| 2003-2004 | The Fabergé Menagerie. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore; Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus; Portland Art Museum, Portland. |
| 1984 | Objects of Vertu: Precious Works of the Eighteenth Century. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| Examination | Cleaned | |
| Treatment | Cleaned. | |
| Examination | Cleaned in preparation for exhibition. | |
| Treatment | Cleaned in preparation for exhibition. |
Geographies
Russia, St. Petersburg (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 1 1/8 × W: 2 × D: 1 1/4 in. (2.9 × 5.1 × 3.1 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1900
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
42.355