Exhibitions
Fabergé, Museo Del Corso, Rome, 30 October 2003 – 18 January 2004
Bibliography
G. von Habsburg, Fabergé, Rome, 2003, p. 74
A large tapering cylindrical tankard with a loop handle and spreading circular base; the body is chased with acanthus foliage and strapwork, inset with coins representing busts of Russian emperors Peter the Great, Peter II, Anna Ioannovna, Elisabeth and Catherine II; cover with gadrooned rim and pomegranate finial. Inscribed in French: ‘Offert à l’ Amiral Germinet/par S.M. Nicolas II Empereur de Russie/ Mai 1902‘. The tankard was presented to Admiral Germinet on the occasion of his promotion. The gift demonstrated the Russian Emperor’s gratitude towards the French officer for having been instrumental in building the Franco-Russian alliance.
Admiral Paul Louis Germinet (1846-1914) – French naval officer, the commander of the French Mediterranean squadron, veteran of the Mexican (December 1861 – June 1867) and Franco-Prussian (July 1870 – May 1871) wars, Grand Officier of the Légion d’Honneur.
Germinet commanded the cruiser Pothuau when, during the visit of French president Felix Faure to Kronstadt and St.Petersburg, the Franco-Russian alliance was proclaimed aboard this vessel. The alliance, along with the Anglo-Russian Entente and the Entente Cordiale formed the so-called Triple Entente between the United Kingdom, France, and Russia, forming a crucial step towards World War I.
