|
Artoria Limoges has reproduced under exclusive license by the Forbes
Collection this extraordinary egg, one of several magnificent Faberge
eggs in the permanent collection of the Forbes Magazine Galleries in
New York City.
In 1885, Alexander
III, the Czar of Russia, commissioned the Imperial jeweler, Peter Carl
Faberge, to create an Easter egg as a gift for his wife, the Czarina.
This began the tradition of the Faberge egg. Every year thereafter,
until the Bolshevik Revolution and the fall of the Imperial family in
1917, the Czar would offer a Faberge egg to his wife for Easter. A
total of 57 such eggs were created, 12 of which are in the Forbes
Magazine Collection. Each egg took nearly one year to produce and was
painstakingly prepared by designers, gold and silversmiths, jewelers,
stone carvers, enamellers and sculptors from the Faberge firm. Each
egg contained a “surprise” inside which remained a closely guarded
secret, even from the Czar himself, until the day of presentation.
The famous Lilies
of the Valley Egg was offered by Czar Nicholas II to his wife, Czarina
Alexandra Feodorovna, in 1898. One of only two Faberge eggs created in
the Art Nouveau style, this egg was made of enameled gold, diamonds,
pearls, rubies and crystal. The surprise consisted of three oval
miniatures of the Czar, in military uniform, and his first two
children, the grand Duchesses Olga and Tatiana.
This fabulous box
is marked Artoria Peint Main, Limoges France and is signed and
numbered by the artist. It measures 7¼"h x 3¾"w. |
