The State Hermitage Museum: Exhibitions

The works of the master smiths of Tula

In Russia the art of the weapon-makers of Tula has long been synonymous with unsurpassed craftsmanship: a brilliant combination of originality of design, high technical quality in the treatment of the metal and beauty in the artistic finish. The Tula master smiths' virtuoso working of steel and their dogged pursuit of perfection in the decoration of arms and items of secular use were the preconditions for the emergence of a highly distinctive and interesting tendency in Russian decorative art of the 18th and 19th centuries. The craftsmen of Tula first attained prominence, though, back in the sixteenth century when smiths living in the settlement outside the fortress fulfilled state commissions for the production of arquebuses and matchlocks. In 1712 a factory was established here and in time the city became the centre of the Russian arms industry. In the early 18th century, besides weapons, the craftsmen were actively engaged in the production of domestic items and this gave rise to the development of a distinctive handicraft in Tula. As the years went by, distinctive features arose that made the artistic products of the city unique and demand for them rose both within Russia and abroad. It is known that on more than one occasion Catherine II presented Tula products to foreigners who appreciated the combination of blued steel and gilding as well as the skill with which the decoration was executed. Undoubtedly the interests of the state called above all for the development of the arms industry, but the items of domestic use astonished Europeans with their unusualness, exquisite and precise workmanship, and that served to raise Russia's international prestige. The archives contain records of the finest products of the Tula factory being included in diplomatic gifts. A whole variety of light fixtures, boxes, ink-stands, umbrellas, furniture, toilet sets with mirrors, buckles and seals - all made of steel, not, it would seem, a "jeweller's metal" - were luxury items and amazed those who saw them with the opulence and virtuosity of the decorative devices employed.
The best articles made of steel were objects of national pride. As early as the late 18th century the most valuable items were kept in the Hermitage's Cabinet of Rarities, while in the 19th century they could be found in the Gallery of Jewellery. In other words, they were regarded as being on a par in terms of significance and artistic value with the unique works of Western European jewellers present in that collection.
Sadly, many of the works of the master smiths of Tula have not survived. Still their exceptionally beautiful and distinctively decorated creations can now be found in museum collections in Germany, Britain and France. The most significant collection is that in the Hermitage which numbers some 300 steel items from the 18th and 19th centuries and is outstanding for the wealth and variety of works produced by several generations of remarkable Tula craftsmen.

Box for a chess set
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