by Sophie Reyssat
Pavel Ovchinnikov (1830-1888), Moscow, 1883, square tea box with canted corners, decorated with champlevé polychrome enamel on vermeil depicting Chinese dignitaries, birds, swastikas, palmettes, swans and stylized phoenixes; “88 zolotniks” (916.6 millesimal fineness) and “Pavel Ovtchinnikov” marks, 14 x 9 x 9 cm/5.5 x 3.5 x 3.5 in, gross weight 569 g/20.07 oz. Result: €25,760
After a battle between in-person and seven telephone bidders, a Russian collector acquired this rare tea box by Pavel Ovchinnikov for €25,760, well above its high estimate of €3,000. One of Tsarist Russia’s most prestigious goldsmiths, in 1853 Ovchinnikov founded his Moscow workshop, which was as famous as Fabergé's. After exhibiting at the 1867 Universal Exhibition in Paris, his fame rapidly spread beyond Russia’s borders. Read more