A Russian porcelain soup plate from the Purple, or Tsarskoselskii, Service made by the Imperial Porcelain Factory, Saint Petersburg, 1905. The border of the shaped circular soup decorated with puce landscapes with gilt reserves ornamented with foliage & cartouches in ciselé. Diameter: 9 7/8 in. (25.1 cm).

The Purple, or Tsarskoe Selo, Service was the last major service commissioned from the Imperial Porcelain Manufactory & Empress Alexandra Feodorovna personally approved the design that was finally selected. Ordered in 1903, the service was intended for use in the palaces at Tsarskoe Selo & the commission stated that the design should be both simple & sumptuous while harmonizing with the palaces’ Baroque & Rococo splendor. See T. Kudriavtseva, Russian Imperial Porcelain, St. Petersburg, 2003, p. 211.