Featured Russian Silver Box?

I got this box today. My first try looking at the marks makes me think either Russian 875 silver, or 875 silver imported into Russia. Can anyone help with what the marks mean?

Does anyone have an idea what the scene of the square is?

What kind of box is this? Did it have a specific purpose?

It measures 4" (10cm) wide x 2-5/16" (58cm) wide x 1-1/8" (25cm) deep. It weighs 106g.

Thank you

 

my 1st thought would be some type of rolled tobacco......those soldered rings held a fabric elastic tight..
https://www.wheelerantiques.co.uk/c...-cigar-case-mikhail-karpinsky-1870-9cm-x-15cm

 

That makes sense, thank you

 

Could be Place de Colonne, Paris.

Best Russian site would probably be Alexander Column in Palace Square, St Petersburg.

 

silver with niello cigarette case

 

Lovely item!

 

A truly beautiful object!

 

Correctly identified above as a cigarette case missing it’s elastic straps.

The scene: Possibly St Petersburg, as mentioned above, though the engraved image shows a flag atop the tower.

As for the marks…
Maker: Ivan Gubkin
Purity: 84 Zolotniki 84/96 or 0875/1000 (875)
Assay: A. Romanov
Assay Date: 1885
City: Moscow

very nice piece, by the way

 

So old when inscribed and presented. That's interesting.

Debora

 

Thank you very much!!!!!!

 

Great find Marie (an auction ?).
https://www.shapiroauctions.com/auc...llo-cigarette-case-ivan-gubkin-moscow-c-1870/

 

I can confirm the ID of the Russian origin and the place - the Palace square with Alexander's Column in St. Petersburg. The maker is correctly IDed and is from Moscow. It was common to decorate exquisite silver cigarette cases with views from Moscow and St. Petersburg

 

Not so surprising. It was either brought abroad by some Russian aristocrat fleeing the Bolsheviks in 1917 and sold for living, or more probably, was ceased by the Bolsheviks during the revolution and sold at an auction in the West for so much needed dollars, where the presenter of the gift found and bought it. The most common development with the Tsarist Russia treasures.

Marie, a very nice piece indeed!

 

Very cute!

19th century Russian niello silver cigarette case.

I used to have one, before I sold it.

 

Not an auction, I got it at my local scrapper. I visit him every couple of months to see what people have brought him

He had no idea what it was or what the marks meant. Had it not been for my belonging to Antiquers, I probably would have had no idea either. It has been a real education, and privilege, to have access to this global site and its wonderful members!

 

Well said !

 

Nice save! Makes your stomach turn imaging what goes to furnace.

 

I watched folks line up outside the silver dealers in 1980....and saw what they were looking to melt down into cash..............it was wild times !

 

I bet!!!! The amount of people with the families silver still stashed away somewhere gets smaller and smaller every day I’m sure. My family never had any so we couldn’t sell it. I’ll started hoarding it so that one of the next generations can sell it for pennies on the dollar and make me roll over in my grave.