An important Fabergé silver gilt & guilloché enamel presentation kovsh, workmaster Anna Ringe, St. Petersburg, circa 1899-1903, with original Fabergé scratched inventory number 1959 or 6561. Boat shaped, the exterior is covered with cobalt blue translucent guilloché enamel, a band of white champlevé enamel finishing the rim, the front is mounted with an opaque white enameled 20 kopek coin dated 1774 with the profile of Catherine the Great. The handle is shaped as a pair of cast & chased snakes mounted with two cabochon garnets, the bottom is engraved with a presentation inscription in Russian: To Aleksandr Nikolaevich Demidov from his comrades of the second cadre. Struck with workmaster’s initials, K. Fabergé in Cyrillic with Imperial Warrant, 88 silver standard (equivalent to 916.6), & with scratched inventory number 1959 or 6561. Length 4 1/8 in. (10.5 cm).

The recipient of this kovsh was almost certainly Alexander Nikolaevich Demidov (1870/72-1937), an officer in Her Majesty’s Life Guards Hussars who was made the Most Serene Prince (Svetleishiy knyaz) Demidov-Lopukhin in 1910. Records show that he was promoted to Staff Captain (Shtab-rotmistr)in 1899 & this kovsh would have been a congratulatory gift from his comrades.