The Queen’s art collection has become involved in the cultural boycott of Russia by withdrawing permission for three swords to be displayed at the Kremlin Museums in Moscow.
The Royal Collection had agreed to loan the 17th-century weapons as part of an exhibition about duelling, sponsored by the Russian oligarch and former fencer Alisher Usmanov, who had sanctions imposed upon him by the UK, EU and US earlier this month over his ties to Vladimir Putin.
The Guardian can reveal that the Royal Collection withdrew permission in mid-February as more than 100,000 Russian troops amassed on Ukraine’s borders before the invasion on 24 February.
The Queen’s collection was among a number of European institutions to pull out of the Moscow exhibition, forcing its postponement.
The Duel: from Trial by Combat to a Noble Crime had been due to start on 4 March but the
Kremlin Museums announced an indefinite delay. It said: “The core of the project consists of exhibits from European museums, which were forced to withdraw them before the time due to the geopolitical situation.”
A spokesperson for the Queen’s Collection said: “A decision to postpone a loan of three swords from the Royal Collection to the Kremlin
Museums in Moscow was made in mid-February.” She did not elaborate.