An Imperial Presentation Faberge gem-set silver kovsh, Moscow, 1899-1905

oval, the high sides repoussé and chased with stylised peacocks perched on scrolls issuing from the mouths of mythical lions with fish scale bodies, the prow with a double-headed eagle above engraved cypher NII, set with two cabochon sapphires and two beryls, the pointed handle with reeded support, the base inscribed in French 'To Mr Howard Thompson/ from H.I.M. Nicholas II/ 25 December/ 1905/ St Petersburg', struck K.Fabergé in Cyrillic beneath the Imperial Warrant, 84 standard, scratched inventory number 20085

Presented by Emperor Nicholas II to Howard N. Thompson, 1905

Thence by descent until sold, Christie's New York, 23 October 2000, lot 47, where purchased by the current owner

Excellent condition, with minor surface scratches consistent with age. An impressive and well-made object.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The journalist Howard N. Thompson (1865-1913) was born in Columbus, Ohio to a prominent political family.  His successful career with the Associated Press began in Washington DC, where he served as correspondent.  He was stationed in Cuba from 1898 until 1902, when he was transferred to the AP’s newly-opened St Petersburg bureau.  He was promoted to Chief of the bureau in 1904 during the Russo-Japanese War.

Thompson and the AP were vital sources of information for the Emperor of Russia during the war.  It was Thompson who first informed Nicholas II of the disastrous result of the Battle of Tsushima on 28 May 1905.  Thompson’s colleague in Tokyo, Martin Egan, had managed to get a coded dispatch past the Japanese censors.  The AP then confirmed the Japanese victory with the few Russian ships that survived and reached Vladivostok, and Thompson broke the ‘terrible news’, as the Emperor would call it in his diary entry later that night, as he was travelling aboard the Imperial train (see J. Hohenberg, Foreign Correspondence: The Great Reporters and Their Times, 2nd ed., New York, 1995, p. 60).  Thompson was among the journalists who travelled to New Hampshire to cover the peace conference organised by President Theodore Roosevelt of the United States, at which the Russian delegation was led by Sergei Witte.  Peace was officially declared and the Treaty of Portsmouth signed on 5 September 1905.

Following Thompson’s return to Russia, the Emperor, grateful to the journalist for having provided him and his ministers with information during the war and for his fair and measured coverage of the conflict, presented him with this kovsh as a Christmas gift.

Thompson later served as Chief of the AP’s Paris bureau from 1906 to 1911, during which time he was awarded the Légion d’Honneur.  He left journalism in 1911 and worked for a New York bank before his sudden death in 1913.