The entire Romanov family was executed by firing squad
This Fabergé egg, found by a junk dealer, was sold to an undisclosed buyer for $30 million
On Easter Sunday a hundred and thirty years ago, Russian Tsar Alexander III presented his wife, Empress Maria Fedorovna, with a jeweled egg to mark both the holiday and the 20th anniversary of their engagement. A white enamel shell encasing a golden yolk which contained a hen, which in turn concealed a miniature diamond crown and ruby pendant. Alexander appointed the man who made it, “Goldsmith to the Imperial Crown”. Peter Carl Fabergé would design 50 bejeweled Easter eggs for Alexander and his son, Nicholas II over the next three decades. But they became the extravagant symbols of corruption and greed that led to the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 and the assassination of the Russian royal family a year later.
In the present day, they are practically irresistible to collectors and the idea of owning one of the lost ones has ignited a $300 million Easter Egg hunt. Forty-three are held in museums and private collections around the world (Queen Elizabeth II owns 3) but the seven are still missing. It was eight, but last year a scrap-metal dealer bought what he thought was a gold ornament, he was planning to melt down, but he later discovered it was the Third Imperial Easter Egg and worth over $30 million! The egg was sold to a mystery buyer, but the other missing baubles could worth up to $45 million each.
Toby Faber, author of Fabergé ’s Eggs: The Extraordinary Story of the Masterpieces that Outlived an Empire, also believes more will resurface. He says:
“When the Kremlin archives were opened up in the 1990s people were able to research the eggs properly. These seven were all owned by Maria Fedorovna, who survived the revolution and came to England before returning to her native Denmark.”
Each had to contain a surprise and the shells became more and more elaborate. The Tercentenary Egg, made in 1913 to mark 300 years of Romanov rule, was made of gold, silver, diamonds, turquoise and ivory. It cost 21,300 roubles at a time when the average Russian wage was 500 a year. After Nicholas II was forced to abdicate in 1917, he was exiled to Siberia. As the Bolsheviks ransacked the royal palaces many of the eggs were packed off to the Kremlin Armoury, but some disappeared. On July 17, 1918, the Tsar and his family were executed by firing squad.
Lenin had the Romanov treasures stashed away, but in the 30s, his successor, Joseph Stalin, began selling artwork to the West, including at least 14 Fabergé eggs. Some were bought by his friend, oil magnate Armand Hammer (great-grandfather to actor Armie Hammer, btw) Experts believe the Nécessaire egg and Cherub with Chariot could turn up at any time. Kieran McCarthy of London jewellers Wartski, who sold last year’s find said:
“We can trace both until relatively recently. The Cherub was in America in 1934 and 1941. And Wartski sold the Nécessaire in London in 1952. A man walked in off the street and paid [around $2000 in cash]. He was listed simply as ‘A Stranger’. I’m sure the egg is still in Britain. It’s an amazing treasure hunt.
Imperial Fabergé eggs are the ultimate prize again. They are the target for buyers wanting to reflect their riches. That’s the ultimate irony. They have come full circle and are symbols of wealth and power once more.”
In 2004, Russian oil and gas tycoon Viktor Vekselberg paid “just” $100 million for a US tycoon’s nine imperial eggs. Two would cost the same today. In 2007 Russian billionaire Alexander Ivanov paid $13 million for one, and gave it to President Vladimir Putin, who donated it to St Petersburg’s Hermitage Museum. Kieran adds:
“We’d given up hope of finding any more Fabergé eggs until last year and that was like a lottery win. But a couple have won the lottery for a second time this week, so….? I’m sure someone has a fortune, possibly nestling under their bed. All they have to do is look for it.”
Well, I looked under my bed early this Easter morning and the only Easter-related item I could find was dust bunnies.
THE 7 MISSING FABERGÉ EGGS
1. Hen With Sapphire Pendant (1886): Golden hen studded with rose diamonds plucking sapphire egg from nest. Last seen in the Kremlin’s Armory Palace in 1922.
2. Cherub With Chariot (1888): Angel pulling chariot containing an egg. Studded with sapphire and diamonds. Angel-shaped clock “surprise”. Probably bought by Armand Hammer. Possibly sold again in 1941.
3. Nécessaire (1889): Gold egg with rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and diamonds. Inside were 13 diamond beauty accessories. It got to England and was in first Fabergé exhibition in 1949. Bought for £1,250 in 1952.
4. Mauve (1897): Mauve enamel with rose-cut diamonds and pearls and a “surprise” of heart-shaped frames with portraits of Nicholas, Alexandra and their first child, Olga. Frames are in a collection.
5. Empire Nephrite (1902): Made of mineral nephrite. Diamond-studded golden base hides a tiny portrait of Alexander III. Possibly exhibited in London in 1935. One author claimed in 2004 that the egg had been found. Most experts disagree.
6. Royal Danish (1903): Enamel and gold, with precious stones, heraldic lions and royal arms with jubilee portraits of king and queen of Denmark, Maria’s parents.
7. Alexander III Commemorative (1909): Platinum, gold and white enamel with lozenge-shaped diamond clusters containing a gold bust of Alexander. Known only from a single black-and- white photo and not seen since before the Russian Revolution.
(via Mirror UK)
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