Estate / Collection: Property from a Midwest Private Collection

Maker's mark indistinct, attributed to Feodor Rückert, Moscow, 1908-1917

Rectangular, the base with convex sides, on four bracket feet, the hinged cover centering a reserve painted en plein with Rivals [Соперники], after the original by Sergei Solomko, enameled throughout with stylized shaded vegetal ornament and geometric motifs on blue and brown grounds. Height 1 5/8 inches, width 3 3/4 inches, depth 2 1/2 inches.

Feodor Rückert (1840-1917) was arguably the most talented of all enamellers working in pre-revolutionary Russia. An exceptional example of the work from his later period, the present lot is decorated with delicately shaded enamel in the Neo-Russian style, inspired by Russian vernacular ornament but expressed in a thoroughly modern style and color palette. Like much of Rückert’s work, it incorporates a faithful reproduction in miniature of the work of a popular Russian painter, in this case Sergei Solomko (1867-1928). Miniatures were incorporated into a range of objects made by Rückert, from boxes to kovshi, which were retailed by Fabergé, Ovchinnikov and other select firms.

Sergei Solomko participated in regular exhibitions in St. Petersburg before gaining international recognition by winning a prize at the Chicago Columbian Exposition in 1893. He soon found himself in demand as a magazine illustrator for publications such as Niva, an illustrator for stories by Pushkin, Chekhov and Gogol, and a designer of theater posters and a series of postcards depicting old Russia published by Maison Lapine of Paris. After 1900, Solomko created models for the Imperial Porcelain Factory, worked with the House of Fabergé and provided sketches for the historical costumes worn at the famous 1903 ball at the Winter Palace.

Another enamel box by Feodor Rückert incorporating a miniature was sold in these rooms January 30, 2019, lot 169 (https://doyle.com/auction/lot/168-russian-silver-gilt-cloisonn-and-en-plein/?lot=1239531&sd=1). Further examples of works by Rückert with miniatures after Solomko include a box, sold Bonham’s, London, November 26, 2014, lot 103; a kovsh, sold Christie’s, July 21, 2020, lot 216; and a cigarette case, sold Christie’s, November 25, 2019, lot 261. A box by Rückert of similar form and with comparable decoration is held in the collection of The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore (accession number 44.925. https://art.thewalters.org/detail/82308/casket-with-a-miniature-of-kuzma-minin-at-nizni-novgorod/).