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Imperial Framed Miniatures
Michael Perkhin, Johannes Zehngraf1896
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States
The giving of miniatures had long been a common practice among wealthy and aristocratic families by the time Fabergé began combining portraits with his richly decorated frames. The Russian imperial family delighted in having these personal mementos and commissioned many different miniatures to place around their private apartments, providing a warm family atmosphere in an otherwise highly formal existence.
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Details
- Title: Imperial Framed Miniatures
- Creator: Johannes Zehngraf (Russian, 1857–1908), Mikhail Evlampievich Perkhin (Russian, 1860–1903), House of Fabergé (Russian, 1842–1918)
- Date Created: 1896
- Physical Dimensions: Overall: 15.3 x 5 x 5 cm (6 x 1 15/16 x 1 15/16 in.)
- Provenance: Tsar Nicholas II [1868-1918] and Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna [1872-1918], purchased from the maker, November 22, 1896 (by tsarina) and December 18, 1896 (by tsar), Alexander Palace, Tsarskoye Selo, Russia, Provisional Russian Government, Kremlin, Moscow, (The Schaffer Collection of Russian Imperial Art Treasures [A La Vieille Russie, Inc.], New York, NY), sold to India Early Minshall, 1948., India Early Minshall [1885-1965], Cleveland, OH, bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Type: Portrait Miniature
- Rights: CC0
- External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/1966.458
- Medium: jade, gold, rubies, gouache, ivory, glass
- Inscriptions: both miniatures signed: Zehngraf., 1966.458.1(Tsar Nicholas II): Marks underneath base: 56, crossed anchors [assay mark for St. Petersburg, 1882-96]; hallmark for workmaster Mikhail Perkhin (in Cyrillic); FABERGE (in Cyrillic); scratched 312 H, BMM 1+., 1966.458.2 (Grand Duchess Olga Nicolaievna): Marks underneath base: 56, crossed anchors [assay mark for St. Petersburg, 1882-96]; hallmark for workmaster Mikhail Perkhin (in Cyrillic); FABERGE (in Cyrillic); scratched 54471.
- Fun Fact: The tsar gave the miniature of himself to the tsarina, and in turn, she gave the miniature of their firstborn child, Grand Duchess Olga Nicoaievna to the tsar a year after their daughter's birth. .
- Department: Decorative Art and Design
- Culture: Russia, St. Petersburg
- Credit Line: The India Early Minshall Collection
- Collection: Decorative Arts
- Accession Number: 1966.458
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