Rare early Meissen figurine group as an allegory of the Volga The front of the curved base with a meander and ribbon border in relief. Seated on a rock covered with shells and coins as well as ferns and reeds, a full-bearded and crowned, aged river god with a loincloth as an allegory of the Volga, his right arm resting on a baluster vase from which water flows with shells and fish. On the wall of the vase is the crowned, rocaille-framed Russian double-headed eagle with the tsar's coat of arms, sceptre and imperial plaque. With his left hand, he presents a cornucopia with sculptural flowers, gold coins and jewellery. Polychrome painting (later) with gold decoration. Designed by Johann Joachim Kaendler, 1772. partially damaged; rest of the body unmarked; hairline crack. Rudder missing. Partial crossed swords mark. H. 33 cm. 33.5 cm x 20 cm. Rare, early moulding of a group of figures designed by Johann Joachim Kaendler from the so-called "Great Russian Order" for Tsarina Catherine II of Russia, known as Catherine the Great. The commission, consisting of numerous allegorical and mythological figures and groups of figures, is the most extensive of all the donations and commissions for the Tsar's court and was used to decorate the pavilion in the park of Oranienbaum Palace in what is now Lomonosov. Johann Joachim Kaendler produced the designs for all the models and was partly assisted in the execution by Michel Victor Acier, who had also been employed as a modeller at the Meissen manufactory since 1764. Kaendler designed and modelled this group at the beginning of the order. As a counterpart, he also modelled the personification of the Dnieper in the form of a river god in a mirror-image composition. These main rivers of the Russian Empire, which represented important trade routes, promised the country prosperity and wealth. See Pietsch, Cat. Meissen for the Tsars, p. 103, fig. 23. Provenance: From a long-standing Swedish private collection. An early allegorical porcelain figure group of the Volga from the "Great Russian order" for Tsarina Catherine II. of Russia, called Catherine the Great. Modelled by J.J. Kaendler. Partly damaged. Insignificantly restored. Hairline crack. Rudder missing. Partly crossed swords mark. Meissen. Circa 1772.