ARTKABINETT art collector social network knows of no better way to celebrate Easter than to offer a glimpse of the marvelous eggs of Peter Carl Fabergé. The story began when Tsar Alexander III decided to give his wife the Empress Maria Fedorovna an Easter Egg in 1885 (shown here), possibly to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their betrothal.
It is believed that the Tsar’s inspiration for the piece was an egg owned by the Empress’s aunt, Princess Wilhelmine Marie of Denmark, which had captivated Maria’s imagination in her childhood.
Known as the Hen Egg, it is crafted from gold. Its opaque white enameled ‘shell’ opens to reveal its first surprise, a matte yellow gold yolk.
This in turn opens to reveal a multi-coloured gold hen that also opens. It contains a minute diamond replica of the Imperial Crown from which a small ruby pendant was suspended. Unfortunately, these last two surprises have been lost.
Empress Maria was so delighted by this gift that Alexander appointed Fabergé a ‘goldsmith by special appointment to the Imperial Crown’. He commissioned another egg the following year.
However, after that, Peter Carl Fabergé (1846–1920, shown here in his workshop), who headed the House, was apparently given complete freedom for future Imperial Easter Eggs, as from this date their designs become more elaborate.
According to the Fabergé family tradition, not even the Czar knew what form they would take: the only stipulation was that each one should contain a surprise.
Following the death of Alexander III on November 1, 1894, his son presented a Fabergé egg to both his wife, the Empress Alexandra Fedorovna, and to his mother, the Dowager Empress Maria Fedorovna.
No eggs were made for 1904 and 1905 because of the Russo-Japanese War. Once an initial design had been approved by Peter Carl Fabergé, the work was carried out by an entire team of craftsmen, among them Michael Perkhin, Henrik Wigström and Erik August Kollin.
The Imperial eggs enjoyed great fame, and Fabergé made some other large eggs for just a few select private clients, such as the Duchess of Marlborough, the Nobels, the Rothschilds and the Yusupovs. Among them is a series of seven eggs made for the industrialist Alexander Kelch.
A List of the Fabergé Easter:
* 1885 Hen
* 1886 Hen with Sapphire Pendant†
* 1887 Blue Serpent Clock
* 1888 Cherub with Chariot†
* 1889 Nécessaire†
* 1890 Danish Palaces
* 1891 Memory of Azov (right)
* 1892 Diamond Trellis
* 1893 Caucasus
* 1894 Renaissance
* 1895 Rosebud
* 1895 Twelve Monograms
* 1896 Revolving Miniatures
* 1896 Alexander III Portraits†
* 1897 Coronation
* 1897 Mauve†
* 1898 Lilies-of-the-Valley
* 1898 Pelican
* 1899 Bouquet of Lilies Clock (right)
* 1899 Pansy
* 1900 Trans-Siberian Railway
* 1900 Cockerel
* 1901 Basket of Wild Flowers
* 1901 Gatchina Palace
* 1902 Clover Leaf
* 1902 Empire Nephrite†
* 1903 Peter the Great
* 1903 Royal Danish†
* 1904 No eggs made
* 1905 No eggs made
* 1906 Moscow Kremlin
* 1906 Swan
* 1907 Rose Trellis
* 1907 Cradle with Garlands
* 1908 Alexander Palace
* 1908 Peacock
* 1909 Standart Yacht
* 1909 Alexander III Commemorative†
* 1910 Colonnade
* 1910 Alexander III Equestrian
* 1911 Fifteenth Anniversary
* 1911 Bay Tree
* 1912 Czarevich
* 1912 Napoleonic
* 1913 Romanov Tercentenary
* 1913 Winter (photo right)
* 1914 Mosaic
* 1914 Grisaille
* 1915 Red Cross with Triptych
* 1915 Red Cross with Imperial Portraits
* 1916 Steel Military
* 1916 Order of St. George
* 1917 Karelian Birch
* 1917 Constellation (unfinished)
