Svertchkov, Nikolaj Egorovic 1817 St. Petersburg - 1898 Carskoe Selo Departure of the Guard Hussar Regiment for the High Troop Inspection of Alexander II. Signed bottom left in Cyrillic. Oil on canvas. Relined. 124 x 194cm. Frame (presumably from that period). Provenance: Private collection Germany, Baden-Wuerttemberg. According to the consignor the painting was a present by the USSR given to the Minister of Court of the Persian Shah Reza Pahlewi - Teimurtash about 1931, who was graduate of the cadet corps in St. Petersburg, presumably in the course of the Sovjet efforts for fishing concessions in the Caspian Sea. After Teimurtash's death the painting was sold by his widow in 1933 and purchased by the parents of the current owner in the beginning of 1939. This monumental, multi-figured painting by Sverchkov undoubtedly holds a special position in the artist'oeuvre. Dr. Sugrobova-Roth was able to trace the presumable commissioner as well as important information on the painting's provenance. "The painting's solemn impression is evoked by the large format as well as the hussars' bright red uniforms which constitute a sharp contrast to the sky's intense blue. However, Sverchkov's composition just shows the Guard Hussars' everyday routine; Alexander II (1818-1881, Tsar since 1855), inspected the Guard Hussars', whose head he was, several times per week. The mildly undulating landscape in the background reveals Krasnoje Selo near St. Petersburg. The regiment was stationed in that region. The style of the uniforms allows us to date the painting: the form of the shako was introduced under Alexander II. in 1862 and only worn until the end of that year without the coat of arms and the hackle. The figure of the major general(epaulette with two stars)in the foreground plays a special role. The painting's dating and the physiognomic likeness allow us to identify the figure in the foreground in all probability as Petr Pavlovitsch Albedinski (1826 - 1883) who was the regiment's commander between 1862 - 1865. At that time Albedinski was Knight and bearer of the Royal and Imperial Order of Saint Stanislaus 2dn Class which we see hanging around the portrayed officer's neck. Our suggestion to dating the painting back to the early 1860s is supported by the painting style which corresponds to Sverchkov's manner of painting during his early creative period. As a professor at the St. Petersburg Arts Academy since 1855 Sverchkov evolved into one of the most popular painters of horses in Russia during the early 1860s. Among his most important commissioners counted the Tsar family and the court. The execution of such compositions, intended for regiments' museums, was usually collectively ordered by regiment officers." We thank Dr. Sugrobova-Roth for her kind support. The painting was restored on behalf of Van-Ham.