A beautiful white glazed porcelain plate with the mark of the Kuznetsov porcelain factory.

[NICHOLAS II]: (1868-1918) Emperor of Russia from 1894 to 1917. A beautiful white glazed porcelain plate with the mark of the Kuznetsov porcelain factory (circa 1908), from a set used by Tsar Nicholas II and the Romanov imperial family aboard the Imperial Russian yacht Standart. The plate (diameter 9 inches) is decorated with two gold bands along the edges and a double-headed eagle featuring the coat of arms of the Russian Empire of the Tsar, hand-painted in black, gold, blue, and red. There are slight signs of aging on the outer gold rim and minor paint loss in the center of the eagle's coat of arms, overall condition VG. Matvey Kuznetsov owned virtually all porcelain factories in Russia, including Verbilki, the Gzhel region, Dulevo, the village of Pesochnoye, and the Yaroslavl region. This porcelain was produced for the imperial family around the time of the coronation in 1896, with replacement pieces made until 1914. Although a large quantity of items was produced over the years, only about 1,000 surviving pieces were found after World War I. The Standart was launched in 1895 and was the largest imperial yacht of its time. It was furnished with luxurious items, including mahogany panels, crystal chandeliers, and other amenities that made the vessel a suitable floating palace for the Russian Romanov imperial family. Tsar Nicholas II and his family were vacationing on the Standart in the summer of 1914 when they received news of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo. The reign of Tsar Nicholas II marked the fall of the Russian Empire from one of the leading great powers of the world to economic and military collapse. Two revolutions occurred in Russia in 1917, the first known as the February Revolution, which directly resulted in the Tsar's abdication and the end of the Romanov dynasty. The Russian Romanov imperial family and all those who chose to go with them into exile were executed by a firing squad in Yekaterinburg on July 17, 1918.