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SNUFFBOX WITH THE BATTLE OF KUNDERSDORF

Creator(s): Unknown

On view in: French Drawing Room


About this object

The Russian inscription, "Kunersdorf, Saltykov, Victory," at the top of the box, identifies the battle that this souvenir commemorates. In 1759 at the Battle of Kunersdorf, the combined Russo-Austrian army, commanded by Count Petr Saltykov, soundly defeated Frederick the Great's Prussian troops, led by the emperor himself. The many identical boxes in museum collections and on the market have alternatively been called English and Russian. After a comparison with Hillwood's English enamel boxes, it appears quite certain that the stylized folk-like painting is Russian.

The box is rectangular with rounded corners. The lid is painted with a battle scene, above which is a banderole with the inscription "Kunersdorf/Saltykov/Victory" in cyrillic. The sides and base are painted with military trophies. The interior of the lid is decorated with a portrait of Elizabeth Petrovna, also inscribed in cyrillic: "God save Elizabeth I, Empress of all Russia." The lid of the box is framed with wavy gilt metal mounts.

Object name:
SNUFFBOX WITH THE BATTLE OF KUNDERSDORF
Made from:
Enamel -- gilt metal
Made in:
Birmingham, England
Date made:
After 1757
Size:
3.8 x 8.1 x 6 cm (1 1/2 x 3 3/16 x 2 3/8 in.)

Detailed information for this item

Catalog number:
15.229
Signature marks:
Credit line:
Museum Purchase, 2004