A Russian Porcelain Plate from Her Majesty Elizabeth Petrovna's Own Service Imperial Porcelain Factory, St. Petersburg, Period of Empress Elizabeth I (1741-1762), circa 1750 9-7/8 inches (25.1 cm) PROVENANCE: Christie's New York, April 19, 2002, part of lot 216; John Atzbach Antiques, Bellevue, Washington; The Kathleen Durdin Collection of Russian Decorative Arts, Tampa, Florida. Empress Elizabeth I Petrovna (reigned 1741-1761) was a daughter of Peter I "the Great" and is today known for her extraordinary influence on Russian culture in the mid-18th century. In addition to founding the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg and the University of Moscow, Elizabeth may be best remembered for founding the Russian Imperial Porcelain Factory in 1744. Under the direction of Dmitrii Vinogradov (1720-1756) the factory's early efforts were of small scale, but after the construction of the manufactory's first large kiln, Vinogradov was able to begin large scale works such as the production of full table services. The Empress' Own (sobstvenny) service was the first large service to be ordered, and the exquisite design of the service in puce and gilt is renowned for its simple originality. This first large service effort by the manufactury was initially produced for only twenty-five. More information on this service in I. Popova and N. Sipovskaya's essays on the factory's earliest services in Shedevry russkogo farfora XVIII veka iz sobraniia galerei "Popov i Ko.," Moscow, 2009, pp. 52-53; 56-62. Property from the Kathleen Durdin Collection HID12401132022 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved