When this small figure was listed, the description should have read something like “An unrecorded figure of Tsar Paul I made by the Russian Imperial Porcelain Factory. Period of Nicholas I. 1825 to 1845. Marked under foot with blue underglaze cypher NI”. It didn’t and here we are.
I bid as much as I dared but a mere fraction of its worth. I saw my bids more as kindling to get the fire started. That fire smouldered some but never became the out of control beast of my imagination. This may go down as the rarest figure from the Imperial Porcelain Factory ever offered for sale on eBay. The stuff of legends. I felt a mixture of elation and disbelief at winning.
The level of detail seen here is astounding. Details like the dagger handle protruding from the pocket behind his left hand, the way the flesh tones are conveyed by crosshatching finely painted lines of enamel, the brilliance of the applied gold leaf over the yellow enamelled surface or the way fine lines and patterns have been burnished into the surface of the gold to convey the essence of the textiles it is used to represent. This sculpture of Paul I might be small but no expense or effort was spared in its creation.
There is an official portrait of Paul I posing with the same hat and cane but a green jacket and sash instead of the black overcoat seen here. Perhaps the Tsar wore the bulkier black coat over the green jacket outdoors. There may be an image of this coat waiting to be found in some obscure painting, a period etching, an online museum or book dedicated to the history of Russian military uniforms. That’s the fun of collecting. It takes you places you hadn’t thought of going.
There are no porcelain figures of Paul I in any of the books and catalogues at my disposal. Nor are there any online. The figure may well be the sole surviving example of the model. It is a great honour to be able to record it here and now.
8.3 cm in height.
