Description
the body enamelled with polychrome shaded flowers and foliage on moss green ground, the interior with a depiction of Ilya Muromets slaying the three-headed dragon, the prow with another portrait of the hero, with a gilt ropetwist border and an Imperial eagle finial, struck on the base with the workmaster's initials, P.Ovchinnikov in Cyrillic with the Imperial warrant, 88 standard and 'Made in Russia'
length 23cm, 9⅛in.

Catalogue Note
The incorporation of Ilya Muromets into the decorative scheme of the present kovsh relates it to a number of works by Rückert that took inspiration from Victor Vasnetsov's famous composition, The Bogatyrs, held in the collection of the State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow.

 

Condition Report
With small areas of re-enameling near the finial. Otherwise in very good condition, with only minor surface wear, consistent with age.