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Recent Discoveries

Two Lost Fabergé Imperial Eggs Discovered in an Archival Photograph (11/07)

Anna and Vincent Palmade share their research journey in their own words:

The two eggs were discovered in a photograph of the vitrine of Fabergé objects belonging to Maria Fedorovna at the 1902 St. Petersburg von Dervis Exhibition.

The 1888 Cherub with Chariot egg is behind the Caucasus egg on the far right of the bottom shelf. It is almost completely hidden by the Caucasus egg, which is why it has remained undetected for more than 100 years. The egg gradually reveals itself following long and patient scrutiny with a magnifying glass. One wheel of the Chariot appears just left of the Caucasus stand, the tip of the egg is just left of the tip of the Caucasus egg and the outline of the Cherub pulling the Chariot with his two hands can be seen just above and on the left of the wheel. There are also two reflections of the egg in the vitrine glasses – the outline of the chariot can be seen on the reflection in the vitrine to the right of the egg. There can be little doubt that this is indeed the Cherub with Chariot egg because its appearance is quite unique and matches perfectly the description in the account books of N. Petrov, assistant manager to the Cabinet of His Imperial Majesty - Cherub pulling a chariot containing an egg. (Fabergé, Proler and Skurlov, 100; Lowes and McCanless, 24-5)

The 1889 Nécessaire egg is on the far left of the second shelf from the top. Although the egg is much easier to see than the Cherub with Chariot egg, its identification is much less straightforward; we had to go through a process of elimination using the information in Fabergé, Proler and Skurlov, 101; Lowes and McCanless, 25-7.

1. The appearance of this egg does not correspond to any of the known Fabergé Imperial eggs; thus it has to be one of the five Fabergé Imperial eggs belonging to Maria Fedorovna, dating from before 1902 and for which there are no known photographic or design records (excluding of course the Cherub with Chariot egg discussed above).
   
   
2. It could not be the 1902 Empire Nephrite egg because the 1902 von Dervis Exhibition happened between the 8 and 15th of March 1902 (Old Russian calendar), i.e., one month before Easter celebrations during which the 1902 egg would have been offered.
   
   
3. It could not be the 1897 Mauve Enamel egg because it is too small to contain the known surprise. In effect, a comparison with other known objects in the vitrine shows that this egg is less than 7 cm long while the surprise of the 1897 Mauve Enamel egg is 8.2 cm long.
   
   
4. The shape does not correspond to the known descriptions of the 1886 Hen with Sapphire Pendant egg - Hen picking a sapphire egg out of a basket. (Fabergé, Proler and Skurlov, 95-7; Lowes and McCanless, 21-2)
   
   
5. The style of the egg does not match the description of the 1896 Alexander III egg of blue enamel while the top two thirds of this egg is clearly made of golden stripes, which were quite common in Fabergé objects of the late 1880s.  Gold is also the material mentioned for this egg in the 1917 Russian government list (Inventory of Confiscated Imperial Treasure) and 1922 Soviet government list (Transfer Documents of Confiscated Valuables from the Anichkov Palace to the Sovnarkom).
   
   
6. The egg could also have been offered to Empress Maria Fedorovna by someone other than Tsar Alexander III or Tsar Nikolai II, but this is unlikely given that all the other eggs in the vitrine are gifts from them, and similarly, all the eggs in the adjacent vitrine belonging to Empress Alexandra Fedorovna are gifts from her husband Tsar Nikolai II. 

Thus, this egg is most likely the 1889 Nécessaire egg. Other known descriptions of this egg mention the fact that it contains 13 toiletry items – a pretty surprising feat given its small size, but one also achieved by equally small and similar French nécessaire eggs - Sotheby’s Geneva, Objets de Vitrine from the Collection of Mrs. George Keppel, May 11, 1989, lot 68; Habsburg, Géza von, Fabergé: Imperial Craftsman and His World. Booth-Clibborn, 2000, 40/4.

Drawings © Palmade

Lowes and McCanless in compiling their Index to Fabergé at Auction from 1934 to the Present found this description in the Parke Bernet Galleries, New York, auction catalog, September 26-27, 1941 - French & English Furniture, the Ethel G. Douglas Collection of Wedgwood Ware, Imperial Russian Art Objects, …Property of Mrs. Ethel Gunton Douglas, Removed from 834 Fifth Avenue, New York, …

Lot 258
Offered by Mrs. Ethel Gunton Douglas, two Fabergé Imperial silver Easter bibelots, the first a tiny amour pushing a wheelbarrow laden with an egg, 2 in. long, and a hare drawing a hinged egg on wheels, parcel-gilded.  The catalogue says both items were understood to have belonged to the children of Tsar Nicholas II.  Final bid $22.50.

1. Who was the anonymous lender of the Nécessaire egg at the 1949 Wartski exhibition?
   
   
2. Who was the buyer of lot 258 at the 1941 Parke-Bernet auction? That same lot may well have also included the 1886 Hen with Sapphire Pendant egg!
   
   
3. Are they pictures of these missing eggs in the family archives of Mrs. Ethel Gunton Douglas, the seller of lot 258?
   
   
4. What is the object in between the wild boar and the clock in the 1902 von Dervis photograph of the vitrine containing known Maria Fedorovna’s eggs?
   

The authors of this essay can be contacted via the newsletter editor, christel@hiwaay.net.

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Resources used to make this research possible include two landmark publications on Fabergé eggs:

Fabergé, Tatiana, Proler, Lynette, and Valentin Skurlov, The Fabergé Imperial Easter Eggs. Christie’s, 1997.

Lowes, Will and Christel Ludewig McCanless, Fabergé Eggs: A Retrospective Encyclopedia. Scarecrow Press, 2001.

We also would like to thank Kristen Regina, Librarian, Hillwood Estate, Museums and Garden, and Jeffrey Eger of Jeffrey Eger Auction Catalogues for giving us access to their amazing auction catalog resources.