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Sofia Kovalevskaya
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| PIERCED IVORY RUSSIAN BRISE' FAN. ON A GUARD STICK THE IMPERIAL SYMBOL IN GOLD, ON THE OTHER ONE THE CZAR ALEXANDER III'S GOLD MONOGRAM, WITH TWO SMALL DIAMONDS ON THE CROWN. IVORY LOOP. THE FAN HAS A PARTICULAR VEINING: DURING THE XIX CENTURY A LOT OF FANS IN RUSSIA WERE MADE OF MAMMUTH'S IVORY, THANKS TO THE NUMEROUS RECOVERIES. SO, WE CAN SUPPOSE THIS EXEMPLAR HAS BEEN MADE OF THE SAME MATERIAL. IT COMES FROM THE FAMILY OF SOPHIA KOVALEVSKAYA (1850-1891), DAUGHTER OF ELISABETHA FEDOROVNA, AND PROBABLY IT BELONGED TO HER. IT WAS GIVEN IN ACT OF HONOUR BY ALEXANDER III (EMPEROR FROM 1881 TO 1894). IT COMES WITH A PHOTO, SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR KARAMAZOV (WITH STUDIO IN SOFIA-BULGARIA) AND WITH A HAND-WRITING ON THE BACK, DATED 1915 AND SIGNED "SOFIA": "THIS PHOTO HAS BEEN TAKEN IN MEMORY OF MY SECOND TRAVEL BEYOND RUSSIA FOR STUDY AND SPECIALIZATION". WE KNOW THAT SOPHIA KOVALEVSKAYA WAS A GREAT MATHEMATICIAN OF NOBLE ORIGIN, AND THE FIRST WOMAN TO OBTAIN A UNIVERSITY CHAIR. SHE HAD A DAUGHTER, ALSO CALLED SOPHIA (CONFIDENTIALLY NAMED "FUFA"), BORN IN 1878. SO, PROBABLY THE WOMAN DEPICTED IN THE PHOTO IS THE LAST ONE, WHO BECAME A PHYSICIAN. A BRANCH OF THE FAMILY MOVED TO BULGARIA AFTER RUSSIAN REVOLUTION OF 1917. 1885/1890. CM. 18. MAX SPREAD CM. 27. STICKS 10+2. | ||
