St. Petersburg Gatchina Palace Plate #3

This is a porcelain plate from the Gatchina Palace Service made by the famous St. Petersburg factory during the reign of Nicholas II in 1896. This service with a version of the double headed eagle coat of arms was ordered in 1820 & described in archival inventories as the “Service with the Coat-of-Arms & a Gold Band”. It was eventually transferred to Gatchina Palace for use there in about 1855 and since has been known as the Gatchina Service. The palace served as the primary residence for the Imperial family during the reign of Emperor Alexander III (r. 1881-1894) & for his widow, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, thereafter. The service received frequent use & additions were ordered once again during the reign of Nicholas II (1894-1917) of which this is one plate. It is fairly simple compared to some of the other services I have seen but still very nice. Decorated with a variant of their coat of arms frequently used in the period of Alexander I (1801-1825), with the Imperial double-headed eagle with down turned wings & the shield of St. George on its chest & with a laurel wreath & torch held in its talons. Two gold rings around the rim to give it a bit more flair. The plate is in perfect condition with a bit of wear to the gilding along the edge. It is marked with the under glaze green N II mark under the crown with the year mark of 1896 underneath as shown and a green dot along the edge common to the authentic pieces and still a mystery as to why they are there. The plate is 1.125 inches tall and 8.625 inches in diameter. I have three others from this set I also addes to the site. Please email me for more information or other pictures.