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Replica of Russia's Great Imperial Crown on display in Vitebsk

VITEBSK, 12 July (BelTA) – The exhibition projects “Rostov Finift” and “The One-Day Exhibition. The Replica of the Great Imperial Crown” are on display in the Vitebsk Art Museum, BelTA has learned.

“These projects have been implemented with the assistance of the Union State Standing Committee. The goal is to show the diversity of Russian culture. Last year we brought the Vologda lace exhibition to Vitebsk. Rostov finift is an ancient and unique art of East Slavic peoples. The replica of the Great Imperial Crown is a modern masterpiece. Its value as a work of art is impressive,” State Secretary of the Belarus-Russia Union State Grigoty Rapota said at the ceremony to open the exhibitions.

The replica of the Great Imperial Crown has been exhibited in the world’s major museums around the world. It will stay on display in Vitebsk for one day. The original was designed by Catherine the Great for her Coronation in 1762. Goldsmiths managed to make the crown in just two months. Today this treasure is the main exhibit of the Diamond Fund of the Moscow Kremlin Museums and never leaves its walls. The replica has been manufactured by the Kristall Production Corporation to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the Romanovs Imperial House and the 250th anniversary of the coronation of Catherine the Great. Altogether, the piece features 11,352 polished diamonds with the total weight of 1,180.00 carats, mostly round brilliants, fancy-cut pear-shape diamonds. In the center of the “hoop” one can see a large oval-cut diamond weighing 10.11 carats.  The sparkle of the diamond lace is emphasized by two rows of large natural white sea pearls, 74 in total. The crown is crested by a rare a pear-shaped, 384.71-carat, purple tourmaline. The cost of the replica is estimated at $15 million

Finift, miniature on enamel, has a long history. Since the 18th century this craft has been associated with Rostov Veliky, the world-renowned center of the original art. “Finift is the elite type of art because the process is very complex and labor-intensive,” the head of the Vitebsk Art Museum Olga Akunevich said.

In Vitebsk Rostov finift is presented for the first time. The exhibition features more than 200 exhibits: exquisite jewelry, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, cases for icons, miniature paintings, mirrors and perfume bottles, boxes and panels with miniature painting, and so on.

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