Vase in a Form of an Amphora

1810s

To a design of Carlo Rossi

The Imperial Glass Manufactury

St Petersburg,Russia

The Imperial Glass Manufactury produced this splendid vase in colourless crystal in the 1810s. The design was the work of the architect and decorator Carlo Rossi, who between 1814 and 1819 was on the staff of The Imperial Glass Manufactury where he designed articles made of ordinary and crystal glass. The one-piece blown body of the vase is superbly cut and decorated with lyres, laurel wreaths, palmettes and effective scroll handles made of gilded bronze. The clear lines and combination of transparent crystal and gilded bronze make the vase a characteristic product of the prevailing style of Alexander I's reign. In the early 19th century The Imperial Glass Manufactury produced an enormous quantity of crystal vases and other items specially for the decoration of the state and private apartments of the Winter Palace, including a pair of vases in the form of amphorae.