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This spirit lamp is in the form of a samovar, an ornate urn traditionally used for making tea in Russia. A cotton wick extends beyond the inner tube that would have served as the heating element in a samovar. Impressed in the lid is an Imperial eagle and an inscription in Cyrillic that translates: "K. Fabergé, Jeweler of the Court/St. Petersburg." A similar spirit lamp with the St. Petersburg assay mark for 1908-17 was produced in gold under the direction of Henrik Wigström.Vladimir Soloviev assumed control of an independent workshop that had been founded in St. Petersburg by Phillip Theodor Ringe (1824-82) and had subsequently been operated by Anders Mickelson (1839-1918). All of Soloviev's work dates from the last decade of the Fabergé firm's existence.