Tyragetia (Oct 2018)
Neo-Byzantine liturgical set of the Russian Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, Duchess of Edinburgh
Abstract
The article describes a set of Orthodox liturgical utensils in Neo-Byzantine style created for a chapel set up at the British royal residence – the Clarence House in London for the Russian Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna Romanova, in marriage – the Duchess of Edinburgh (1853-1920). The objects for the set were designed by the Russian architect David Grimm (1823-1898) – one of the founders of the Neo-Byzantine style in Russian architecture, the formation and development of which took place in Russia during the reign of Alexander II. The winner of the competitive bid process to manufacture the church utensils was famous Saint-Petersburg’s luxury goods purveyor and manufacturer – Nichols & Plinke, known as Magazin Anglais. After the World War II, the set was in the collection of the American collector Pavel Fekula (1905-1982) who had it exhibited at the Interchurch center in New York, and after his death – in a number of private collections in the United States. The article provides evidence of the unequivocal attribution of the church utensils to the dowry of the Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna and provides exact time of their manufacture (1876-1877). Based on previously unpublished archival documents, the article uncovers widely considered to be lost set of fine liturgical objects from the 2nd half of the 19th century that have a number of unique features. In addition, it is the only surviving example of decorative and applied art in the Neo-Byzantine style, designed by the renown architect David Grimm.
