Perhaps there is no greater symbol of the European aristocracy’s opulence than the Fabergé eggs, each one an exquisite relic of a fallen dynasty.
What is a Faberge egg?
When we think of symbols of wealth we might imagine jewelry made of precious metals, pearls, or rare gems. Seldom you do find all of these contained in a single object, let alone see this repeated year after year.
Nevertheless, this did actually once happen. For over two centuries, the ill-fated Russian Romanov family was envied and despised for their vast wealth. Over a century ago, in 1885, Czar Alexander Ill decided to mark his 20th anniversary and Easter by presenting his wife with a jeweled egg. Originally, he planned for it to contain a diamond ring, but Czar Alexander decided it should include a precious ruby pendant.
The egg was commissioned by none other than Peter Karl Fabergé, who would make a total of ten eggs between 1885 and 1893 for the Russian Czar. After Alexander’s death, his son Czar Nicholas II commissioned two more each year for the rest of his reign: one for his mother, the dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna and one for his own wife Empress Alexandra.
The fifty eggs which were created in total represent the pinnacle of achievement for the great Russian jewelry house of Fabergé and are inextricably linked to the tragic story of the Romanovs.
Many of the eggs drew their inspiration from antiquity or were based on the existing artwork. All could be opened to reveal a special “surprise”: if you’re put in mind modern-day Kinder eggs, this is no coincidence, as the idea was inspired by Fabergé.
If you don’t know your Renaissance from your Rosebuds, set your mind at rest, as here you’ll learn all about the very finest of the Fabergé eggs.
The Hen, 1885
This egg was the very first Fabergé was commissioned to make and was inspired by an 18th Century original. It has an opaque white enameled outer shell, much like a real egg. It reportedly could be twisted to open and reveal the first surprise: a matt-yellow gold yolk. The yolk, in turn, contained an enameled golden hen that held a replica of the Imperial Crown with a precious ruby pendant in the shape of an egg. The ruby itself accounted for over half the egg’s total cost. Sadly, both were lost and the only record we have of them is an old photograph.
Renaissance, 1894
This egg was presented by Emperor Alexander III to his wife Empress Maria. As the name suggests it was inspired by a Renaissance-era oval agate casket by Le Roy found in the Dresden Grünes Gewölbe (Green Vaults), the museum founded by August the Strong in 1723.
Fabergé wrought the casket design into an egg shape, using cloudy agate. The egg is covered with opaque white enamel gold trellis work and quatrefoil of diamonds with a ruby center at each intersection. A red enamel band divides the two halves of the egg. On top of the egg is the date (1894) written in rose diamonds.
Rosebud, 1895
This egg was the very first presented by Czar Nicholas II to his wife Alexandra, a few months after their marriage. It’s decorated with an image of Cupid’s arrows, formed from diamonds to symbolize his love for her. The egg itself was crafted from multi-colored gold, decorated with rose-cut diamonds, and is covered with a translucent red guilloche enamel. The rosebud surprise is made of opaque yellow and green enamel. At its apex is a miniature portrait of the young Czar directly underneath a table-cut diamond. On the top of the egg is the date (1894) written in rose diamonds.
Coronation, 1897
This, perhaps Fabergé’s most iconic work, was presented by Emperor Nicholas II to his wife, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna as a memento of her entry into Moscow on May 26th, the day of their Coronation in the Uspensky Cathedral. Its outer shell is made of multi-colored gold embellished with translucent yellow guilloche enamel and black enamel double-headed eagles set with diamonds. The design was shaped to mimic the heavy Cloth of Gold robe the Empress wore at the ceremony. The jeweled monogram of the Empress appears at the egg’s apex, under a portrait diamond, with the date at the base (1897).
Lilies of the Valley, 1898
Czar Nicholas II clearly was devoted to his wife: this pink guilloche enamel Art Nouveau presented by Czar Nicholas to the Empress is virtually smothered with pearl and diamond-set lilies of the valley sprays, her favorite flower. lt stands on four cabriolet feet entwined with diamond set foliage. The surprise inside the egg came in the form of miniatures of their eldest daughters, Olga and Fatima, surmounted by a diamond-and-ruby set Imperial Crown. Fabergé added a little mystery to this creation, as the surprise only appears when one of the pearls is twisted, not the egg itself.
The Duchess of Marlborough, 1902
This clock-egg, among the Finest of the 10-12 “Non-imperial” eggs, was acquired from Fabergé by Consuelo Vanderbilt, Duchess of Marlborough, on the occasion of her visit to Russia in 1902. Based on Fabergé’s “Blue Serpent Clock Egg” made for the Dowager Empress in 1895, it is now owned by Prince Albert of Monaco.
At its time, it was the only such item commissioned by an American. Made of multi-colored gold, rose-cut diamonds, pearls and translucent pink and white guilloche enamel, the clock has a revolving dial, with a static diamond-set serpent indicating the time.
Bay-Tree, 1911
The presentation by Emperor Nicholas II to his mother, Dowager Empress Maria is inspired by a French 18th Century singing bird automaton. According to the Fabergé invoice, the bay tree egg was made up of “325 nephrite leaves, 110 opalescent white enamel flowers, 25 diamonds, 20 rubies, 53 pearls, 219 rose-cut diamonds, and one large rose-cut diamond”. When the clockwork automation is wound up and set in motion, a feathered bird appears, flaps its wings, turns its head, opens its beak, and sings.
Nobel Ice-Egg, 1914
This platinum and translucent white enamel egg is engraved with underglaze frost crystals. The surprise is a lozenge-shaped diamond-set platinum and rock crystal watch, similarly decorated. This egg was commissioned by Emmanuel Nobel, nephew of Alfred Nobel, of Nobel Prize fame. Emmanuel was a leading figure in the oil industry at the time and one of Fabergé’s most notable clients.
Order of St. George, 1916
The Order of St. George Egg was presented by Emperor Nicholas II to his mother, the Dowager Empress. After the onset of The Great War, precious materials were rare: this one of Fabergé’s two last completed is made of silver and matte opalescent white enamel with no further embellishments. It is set with miniature Portraits of Nicholas II and his son, Alexei, concealed beneath the Badge of the Order of St. George and a silver medal of the order respectively. This much-coveted order was only awarded for great bravery on the front and was bestowed upon Czar Nicholas on October 23rd, 1916. It is the only egg that left Russia during the Revolution, accompanying the Dowager Empress into exile.
List of Fabergé Imperial Easter Eggs
Below is a chronology of the eggs made for the Imperial family. The dating of the eggs has evolved over time. An earlier chronology dated the Blue Serpent Clock Egg to 1887 and identified the egg of 1895 as the “Twelve Monograms Egg”. The discovery of the previously lost Third Imperial Easter Egg confirms the chronology below.
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