Lot 0169
Pair of Russian Art Nouveau Silver Champagne Flutes by Antip Kuzmichev
Estimate: 600-700€
A pair of Russian Art Nouveau silver champagne flutes.
Moscow, workshop of Antip Ivanovich Kuzmichev, 1898-1908.
Silver; engraved and polished.
Height: 13.5 cm.
Total weight: 234 g.
Marks: maker’s mark “АК” for Antip Kuzmichev; Moscow assay mark with 84 zolotnik silver standard.
A pair of elegant silver champagne flutes of tapering conical form, each raised on a circular spreading foot. The vessels are decorated with finely engraved Art Nouveau floral motifs: long curved stems, pendant bell-shaped blossoms and delicate linear foliage, arranged asymmetrically across the polished silver surface.
On the reverse of each flute is engraved the Roman numeral “XXV”, most probably indicating a twenty-fifth anniversary or jubilee gift.
Antip Ivanovich Kuzmichev occupies an important, though still insufficiently studied, place in Russian decorative art of the late nineteenth century. His factory, founded in 1856, produced a wide range of artistic works in gold, silver and bronze. By the end of the century it had grown into a substantial Moscow enterprise, known particularly for silver and enamel objects. Kuzmichev’s name is also associated with the export of Russian enamel wares to the United States, including works retailed by Tiffany & Co., which helped introduce Moscow silver and enamel to an international audience.
Although Kuzmichev was not an official supplier to the Imperial Court, his workshop was highly regarded. At the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893, his name was mentioned alongside major Russian silver firms such as Ovchinnikov and Kurlyukov.
Starting price: 500€
Estimate: 600-700€
Hammer Price: €
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