The Imperial Eggs of Carl Faberge – Before the Revolution

Toby Faber 

The Imperial Easter Eggs of Carl Fabergé – before the Revolution

Between 1885 and 1916, Carl Fabergé    made fifty jewelled eggs – Easter presents from Russia’s last two emperors to their wives. They have become the most famous surviving symbols of the Romanov Empire: both supreme examples of the jeweller’s art and the vulgar playthings of a decadent court.   Given almost total artistic freedom, Fabergé and his designers had to conform to only three rules: that each year’s Easter present should be egg-shaped, that it should contain some surprise to amuse or delight its recipient, and that it should be different from any predecessor. The result was a series of creations demonstrating phenomenal ingenuity and creativity, whose styles and materials range from traditional Russian to Art Nouveau, and from carved hardstone to exquisite enamelled gold. Their maker’s relentless search for novelty also means that they provide a fabulously quirky illustrated history of the decline of the Romanovs.