I-OMMET Pitcher & cups

Q: I bought a set made up of an angular pitcher, two flared cups, and a tray at a thrift store. It’s silver and the cups are gold inside. One piece is stamped “4Kommet” on the bottom and the other has “Kommet.” The pot is about six inches high, the cups are two and a half by two inches, and the tray is seven inches in diameter. Do you know when and where it was made and what it was used for?

A: The mark on your pitcher and cups is Russian and actually reads I-OMMET, written in English as Hommet or Jummet. The I-O indicates “jeweler,” the first M stands for Mstera, a city about 185 miles east of Moscow that has been a center for Russian icon painting and other arts and crafts. The MET indicates that it is a non-precious metal or alloy, probably of copper and nickel and/or iron. The number in front indicates a year in the sixties; if it was between the two Ms, it would signify a year in the seventies. Mstera is also famous for lacquer papier-mâché miniatures. Jewelry and metal tableware items are also made there, especially tourist items, like glass holders, salt cellars and jiggers, sold as souvenirs from the U.S.S.R. after World War II. Your set, made in the 1960s, is typical of these souvenirs. It was probably used for tea. It’s worth less than $100.