Four Kuznetsov Porcelain Dinner Plates and Eight Luncheon Plates from the General Admiral Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaievich or Naval Ministry Service Kuznetsov Porcelain Manufactury, Verbilki, circa 1890 9-7/8 inches (25.1 cm) (dinner plates) 8-3/8 inches (21.3 cm) (luncheon plates) PROVENANCE: Acquired Sotheby's, New York, 1990s; Prince and Princess Alexander Romanoff; Princess Maria Romanoff . The Naval Ministry or General-Admiral Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich Service was ordered from the Kuznetsov Porcelain factory by Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich (1835-1892) who was the fifth child and second son of Emperor Nicholas I of Russia. The young grand duke became a sailor, and like many men of the Romanov family, achieved a high naval rank. In 1853, he took over the Naval Ministry, and in 1855 he became General Admiral. It was in the 1860s that the service was ordered, and the service was refreshed with replacements until the end of the Empire. The plates bear the Naval emblem: the double-headed imperial eagle holding maps of the four seas of the Russian Empire: the Baltic, Black, Caspian, and White. Estate of Princess Maria Romanoff HID03101062020 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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