A metal cup decorated with enameling in honor of the coronation of the Russian Tsar, Nicholas ii, 1896, known as the Khodinka Cup of Sorrow or the Cup of Blood, boasts blue, red and white enamel decoration, all wrapped in two lovely gilded bands at the base and rim. The antique vessel features a round base, a cylindrical body and a rolled rim, decorated on one side with the initials of Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna and above the crown and below the year "1896". From the other side the Romanov Eagle, both wrapped. In a symmetrical geometric pattern. Height: 10.5 cm, top diameter: 9.5 cm.
This glass was one of many gifts given out at the coronation of Tsar Nicholas ii, along with bread, sausage, pretzels, gingerbread and commemorative scarves. On Coronation Day, May 18, 1896, over half a million people gathered in Moscow's Khodinka Field, which was more than the field could hold, to receive these gifts from their new Tsar. After a rumor spread that the cups contained a gold coin, a mad stampede of revelers caused a catastrophic crowd crush in which 1,389 people were killed and another 1,300 were injured. Despite his efforts to compensate the families of the victims for their loss, the tsar was nicknamed "Bloody Nicholas" and the tsarina called the cup "the Cup of Sorrow".
An identical Tsar Cup was sold by Christie's New York for $438.00: Lot 47 in Auction 2837: Russian Works of Art on April 8, 2014, another one was sold by Sotheby's London for 1,063 GBP ($1,472.66): 585 in "The Duchess Property" and valuables from the estate of Mary, Duchess of Roxburgh" (sale number L15317) at auction on May 28, 2015.