Russian Spoons 1890 Moscow - Maker?

[MGArgent]

Hi Forum,

I am looking for assistance in identifying the maker of these Russian spoons.

This is what I have decoded so far:

AP over 1890: Assayed by A. Romanov in 1890
St. George slaying dragon: Moscow
84: (0.875 silver millesimal fineness)
KK?: Unidentified maker

Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[Qrt.S]

The maker KK could be Konstantin Yegorovich Kiyazev in Moscow 1885-1889. However, there is a minor inconsistency with the assaying year 1890. Maybe he made it 31.12.1889 but assayed it in 1890 ;-)))) Sorry but I have no better alternative.

[AG2012]

Hi,
Qrt.S must be right about the maker because kk initials are very distinctive for Константин КНЯЗЕВ (Konstantin Knyazev).
(The name is КНЯЗЕВ from княз = prince).Difficult to pronounce consonants in a row!

Valentin Skurlov mentions two more silversmiths in Moscow whose initials were kk but no marks in PL or elsewhere.
(Kozma Kuznetsov and Karol.Ks.Kuzmenkova)
КУЗНЕЦОВ Козьма
КУЗЬМЕНКОВА Карол. Кс.

Regards

[MGArgent]

Thanks Qrt.S and AG2012!

I didn't find any results when searching Konstantin Knyazev, but searching Константин КНЯЗЕВ I found a niello spoon bearing a similar mark that is attributed to him (see below). I think it is likely difficult to find many examples as he early had a relatively short career. Were there any recordings of him working in other cities pre 1885 or post 1889?

[MGArgent]

Re-uploading photos:

[MGArgent]

Regarding the inconsistency with the assaying year, were Russian assaying laws/customs so strict that an object needed to be immediately assayed, or could there have been delays of a month or longer? Considering current events (COVID-19), it is interesting to note that the Russian flu pandemic began in May of 1889 and resulted in over 1M deaths worldwide.

Reference: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1889%E2%80%931890_flu_pandemic

[Qrt.S]

Please note what I wrote in my previous input:

Maybe he made it 31.12.1889 but assayed it in 1890 ;-))))

Russian legislation did not force any registered master to assay at all, but if he aimed to sell the object, it could not be sold without having it assayed, approved and legally marked. That was the law. There are, however, a few exceptions among those private orders and orders from the court....
When an object was assayed, was up to the producer when he took it to the assaying office. Because it is impossible to know exactly when an object was made, the assaying year is commonly considered to be the "date/year" of manufacturing. Minor inconsistencies may occur like most likely in this case.

[MGArgent]

Thanks for the clarification. When I read 31.12.1889, I took it a bit too literally and thought you meant the only legitimate explanation would be if the spoons were completed on new year's eve of 1889 :)

Following my earlier comment, it is easy to imagine that the ongoing pandemic of 1889 would have caused a delay between the manufacturing date and assay date, and seems like a plausible explanation for the difference in dates.

If you let your imagination run wild, one can speculate that Konstantin Knyazev may have even met his demise at the hands of the Russian flu in late 1889 or early 1890, explaining why there is no record of him post 1889.

[MGArgent]

These spoons just arrived this week and after inspecting them closer, it seems plausible that the maker's marks could be RK instead of KK (the marks appear to be poorly struck so it's difficult to say for certain).

For the sake of thoroughness, were there any known silversmiths registered "RK" in Moscow in 1890?

[MGArgent]

I also think even "RR" could be a possibility although less likely.

[AG2012]

Hi,
It is KK.
RR in Latin for Moscow is not possible.
Regards

[MGArgent]

Thanks again!