The Scandinavian form of this tankard shows that there was a market in Russia for work by Swedish and Danish goldsmiths. It has three feet in the shape of pomegranates and a tapering handle. The ornament, however, is Russian in spirit, particularly the nielloed background. Here a Turkish-inspired carpet of tiny flowers and leaf tendrils provides the backdrop for engraved birds, leaves and four Old Testament scenes from the Bible: Judith and Holofernes (at the front), Samson and Delilah, the Temptation of Joseph and the Judgement of Solomon (on the lid).

The technique of niello was highly favoured by Russian goldsmiths. Niello was a black compound of silver, copper or lead sulphides that was pressed and melted into engraved lines on a silver surface. This produced a dramatic contrast between the black decoration and shiny silver. In Moscow the technique was influenced by Greek jewellers who arrived in the 1660s and introduced the Turkish method of creating intricate plant and flower patterns on metal.