Alexander Danilovich Menshikov

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Finely detailed armor sets off the smoothly burnished face of the military commander in this wooden portrait. A fluttering jabot and an extravagantly combed wig emphasize his direct gaze, which is further emphasized by the scooped truncation of his cuirass. The head turns slightly, imparting a sense of movement against the flow of the lace cravat. Beneath the soft elements of lace and hair, sharply engraved images appear on the breastplate. Enwreathed ovals have been identified as scenes of Alexander the Great and his close friend Hephaestion at the tent of King Darius to the viewer's left and the Justice of Trajan to the right. Medallions on the pauldrons repeat the principal military figures seen in the ovals, with Livia Drusilla, wife of Augustus Caesar, and Plotina, Trajan's wife, occupying the pauldrons on the back of the cuirass. The identity of this exceptional portrait's subject puzzled scholars until research by Wolfram Koeppe and Marina Nudel resolved some of its mysteries. The medium, initially thought to be boxwood, is actually red pine stained to resemble boxwood. Sections of the bust were assembled with metal clips, a technique used by craftsmen working with dense materials like boxwood or ivory that are only available in small pieces. While red pine is native to northern Europe, this method of construction is most often associated with woodworking in southern Germany and Austria. An explanation for this discrepancy lies in the biography of the man Koeppe and Nudel identified as the subject: Alexander Danilovich Menshikov, a Russian known for employing German and Austrian artists. Menshikov rose quickly through the ranks to become Commanding General Field Marshal of the Russian armies and was eventually appointed governor of Saint Petersburg. His military prowess distinguished him, and his close friendship with Czar Peter the Great brought him wealth and power. The wooden portrait bears a striking similarity to painted images of Menshikov, featuring an exaggerated wig fashionable in the early eighteenth century and other distinctive facial features. Positive identification is difficult, but other evidence points to Menshikov as the subject. He would have appreciated association with Alexander the Great and the Roman emperor Trajan, whose many victories brought about a pivotal moment in the Roman Empire's history. Both oval scenes on the cuirass show a ruler's magnanimity, flattering compliments to any leader. Menshikov also appreciated dexterity in wood carving: his private study featured marquetry, and he installed a turnery for working wood and other materials in his Saint Petersburg palace. A sculptor named Franz Ludwig Ziegler, residing in Russia, made a trip to western Europe at Menshikov's expense in 1703, accompanied by three sculptors. It has been proposed that the bust dates from this time since after 1703 it probably would have incorporated the insignia of the Order of Saint Andrew, Russia's highest military honor. His ennoblement in 1702 may have been the occasion for commissioning the bust. Although our evidence is circumstantial, a strong case is made for identifying this striking image with one of Russia's great heroes.