KAISER WILHELM II PRESENTATION BOAR'S HEAD DESK SET
Massive, heavy ornamental desk set, consisting of a 15 3/4" x 10 1/2" slab of black marble with white veins, resting on four bulbous brass feet. Atop the slab are two bell-shaped bronze inkwells with hinged lids, elaborately decorated with laurel leaves and cherubic faces, each containing a glass insert, marked "957" on the base. Between these two inkwells rests a finely executed depiction of a boar's head with glass eyes, with its mouth partially open to reveal the tusks, resting on a pair of oak branches. A shallow trough is carved into the surface of the marble to retain pens and other writing implements. A brass plaque is affixed to the front edge of the marble slab, bearing the inscription: "Dem kgl. preutz. Oberforstmeister Friedrich v. Saint-Paul fur seine Verdienste um Rominten" ("To the Royal Prussian Forestry Master Friedrich von Saint Paul, for His Service at Rominten"), adding the facsimile signature of KAISER WILHELM II (1859-1941). FRIEDRICH VON SAINT-PAUL (1879-1907) was the head forester at Rominten, the Kaiser's hunting lodge on the Rominter Heath in East Prussia. During hunts, Saint-Paul acted as the Kaiser's personal guide and hunting companion. It is estimated that the Kaiser killed 327 deer during his 23 years of hunting on the heath. Saint-Paul was murdered by poachers in 1907. The Kaiser retained Rominten until his death, after which the land was seized by Hermann Goering for his own use. The boar bears a small patch of green oxidation inside the right ear, and the marble base bears a few small chips along the front edge, else very good. Also present with the desk set are three postcards depicting scenes from Rominten, including a b/w photograph of the Kaiser hunting, as well as two b/w photographs of hunting groups on the heath, one of which includes Prince Heinrich of Prussia, and a variety of information on Rominten in German.