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the coat is made of wool and has a blue ribbon on the collaran image of a mannequin wearing a coat with blue trimsa hat that has a flower on it on displaya mannequin in a glass case with a coat on it
MILLON

480 - A rare cavalry coat,
See original version (French)

Estimate €800 - €1,200
Sale commission
Description
A rare cavalry coat, probably based on the design drawn by Victor Mikhailovich Vasnetsov (1848–1928) for Nicholas II, and adopted by the Red Army from 1919 onwards. Grey-brown woollen overcoat, double-breasted with three diagonal blue fabric bands (‘razgavori’) fastened with simple buttons, blue collar tips (for the cavalry), with the collar and sleeves in dark grey. Stamp on the inside. Signs of wear, damage and missing sections. Soviet era. History We are all familiar with the masterpiece ‘The Bogatyrs’ by the famous painter Viktor Vasnetsov, but less so with his design for a headdress that would become a symbol of the Soviet Union (ill. 1). It was Nicholas II, a great admirer of the ‘Old Russia’ style, who asked Vasnetsov in 1913 to design new uniforms for the Imperial Guard, which one can imagine in shimmering colours. The Tsar had hoped to introduce them to mark the tercentenary of the Romanov dynasty, but this was not to be; the only uniforms to see the light of day in 1913 were those in khaki, embellished with breastplates in various colours. Meanwhile, in Tsarskoye Selo, Vasnetsov was involved in the interior and exterior decoration of the ‘Feodorovsky Sobor’ in the Neo-Russian style (the regimental church of the Tsar’s personal guard, a combined regiment of infantry and His Majesty’s private escort, the ‘Konvoi’), which would later become the sovereigns’ private church. Not only did Vasnetsov paint (alongside Nesterov), but he also designed costumes for the clergy and staff, in the same style as the church and the neighbouring ‘village’ where they resided (Feodorovsky Gorodok, fig. 2). A few years later, certainly as early as 1915, Nicholas II, the new commander-in-chief, confident of victory over the Germans, Austrians and Ottomans, is said to have asked Vasnetsov to design uniforms for the Victory Parades in Berlin, Vienna and Constantinople, which he was planning for 1917. It was here that Vasnetsov drew on his Bogatyrs to inspire the troops. The result is displayed alongside Allied soldiers in a showcase at the First World War Museum in the ‘Ratnaya Palata’ in Tsarskoye Selo (ill. 3). The uniforms were reportedly made in factories in Siberia and then stored in Petrograd, awaiting a victory that never came… And these uniforms, which were intended to forge a link between the legendary heroes of the 12th century and the Russian soldiers of the 20th century in order to instil a little bravery in them, never left their warehouses. During the Civil War, the Bolsheviks, who had no uniforms of their own, seized every tsarist uniform they could find. Hussar uniforms proved very popular, as did the shakos from the military academies, but there were not enough to clothe the new Red Army. In late 1918, Trotsky launched a competition and, in January 1919, Vasnetsov beat Kustodiev: the tsarist caftans and helmets of the 1910s were easily given a new lease of life. Diamond-shaped patterns were added to the collar, the epaulettes were removed, and the red star replaced the double-headed eagle (ill. 4). Vasnetsov’s headgear would become famous as the ‘bogatyrka’, which would undergo slight changes in shape and name; it would end its military career as the ‘boudionovka’ and ‘frounzenka’ in Finland in the 1940s.
See original version (French)
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About the sale Russian Art – Mr G’s Collection – Part 3
Auction location
Auction time 09/18/2026 at 11:00 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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