Since the times of Peter the Great, emperors wished to organize porcelain production in Russia. All initial attempts to do that by inviting foreign craftsmen failed.
In 1744, Empress Elizabeth ordered to establish the Nevskaya Porcelain Manufactory in the vicinity of St. Petersburg under the supervision of another foreigner. The mining engineer and chemist Dmitry Vinogradov (1720–1758) was sent to assist him. By that time, he had completed his studies at a German university.
It is Vinogradov and not the foreign craftsman who is credited with developing Russian hard-paste porcelain. The chemist set up a laboratory that used Russian minerals to develop porcelain paste, paints, glazes, and gilding techniques. A special kiln was built at the workshop. By 1747, Vinogradov had produced the first high-quality samples of porcelain. In 1765, during the reign of Catherine the Great, the manufactory was renamed the Imperial Porcelain Factory.
The gilded Empire teacup with a portrait of Count Arakcheyev is a splendid example of the products which were manufactured at the Imperial Porcelain Factory in the first quarter of the 19th century. Aleksey Arakcheyev accompanied Emperor Alexander I during his visits to Kaluga in 1816 and 1817. The count is believed to have stayed in the house where the exhibition is located nowadays, the house of the merchant Bilibin.
Arakcheyev’s portrait in an octagonal medallion was created using the technique of grisaille (from the French word “gris” meaning “gray”), a painting executed entirely in shades of gray. The artist depicted the count as a young man wearing a uniform with epaulets, a star medal on his chest, and a ribbon over his shoulder.
The cup has a cylindrical shape and a curved lip. It is also equipped with three paw-shaped legs and a handle in the shape of a swan. Such details are typical of the Empire style that prevailed in Western Europe and the Russian Empire in the first third of the 19th century.
In 1744, Empress Elizabeth ordered to establish the Nevskaya Porcelain Manufactory in the vicinity of St. Petersburg under the supervision of another foreigner. The mining engineer and chemist Dmitry Vinogradov (1720–1758) was sent to assist him. By that time, he had completed his studies at a German university.
It is Vinogradov and not the foreign craftsman who is credited with developing Russian hard-paste porcelain. The chemist set up a laboratory that used Russian minerals to develop porcelain paste, paints, glazes, and gilding techniques. A special kiln was built at the workshop. By 1747, Vinogradov had produced the first high-quality samples of porcelain. In 1765, during the reign of Catherine the Great, the manufactory was renamed the Imperial Porcelain Factory.
The gilded Empire teacup with a portrait of Count Arakcheyev is a splendid example of the products which were manufactured at the Imperial Porcelain Factory in the first quarter of the 19th century. Aleksey Arakcheyev accompanied Emperor Alexander I during his visits to Kaluga in 1816 and 1817. The count is believed to have stayed in the house where the exhibition is located nowadays, the house of the merchant Bilibin.
Arakcheyev’s portrait in an octagonal medallion was created using the technique of grisaille (from the French word “gris” meaning “gray”), a painting executed entirely in shades of gray. The artist depicted the count as a young man wearing a uniform with epaulets, a star medal on his chest, and a ribbon over his shoulder.
The cup has a cylindrical shape and a curved lip. It is also equipped with three paw-shaped legs and a handle in the shape of a swan. Such details are typical of the Empire style that prevailed in Western Europe and the Russian Empire in the first third of the 19th century.
