UNIQUE CHARACTER OF
Russian Jewelry
Since the interest in jewelry was so great during this period and the demand for the precious objects produced was still growing, many talented artists were able to enter the market at that time. More and more often the name Faberge appeared in the salons. Thus, for her diamond jubilee, Queen Victoria received an exceptionally beautiful brooch as a gift from Emperor Nicholas that came from the Faberge workshop, and her account books also recorded purchases of brooches and other jewelry from the store. In 1885, Faberge earned the title of supplier to the imperial court and the right to display the imperial coat of arms on his store and on stamps for jewelry packaging.
The late eighteenth to mid-nineteenth century in Russia was the culmination of great jewelry fashion. Travelers visiting Russia at the time reported that jewels and precious stones were prominent in all elements of nobleman's attire. Thus, in the capital of Russia, then Saint Petersburg, there was enough space for 300 jewelry stores and on the main street Bolshaya Morskaya there were five of the most famous. Among others the store of the Bolin family (with a branch also in Moscow) was located there , which supplied jewelry already to Catherine the Great and seven subsequent rulers. There, in 1900, the young Carl Faberge who took over the company from his father, also set up his store. Faberge's works from this period turned out to be particularly interesting, and his craftsmanship and extraordinary skills were recognized in wide circles, so even Emperor Alexander III and his wife Maria Fedorovna decided to see them and make their first purchase in his store, which were cufflinks in the shape of cicadas.
The story of the famous Faberge eggs is particularly intriguing. Tsar Alexander III, asked Faberge to make an interesting gift for his wife Maria Fyodorovna, which would remind her of her Danish homeland and make her happy at Easter. It was then that the first "Imperial Easter Egg" was created. At first glance it looked ordinary, but inside it contained an elaborate surprise: a golden yolk with a ruby-eyed hen. Since then, in the workshops of Faberge every Easter was created a new egg - a gift. They were produced for the last Tsar Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra. For years, the history of this family has aroused great interest, as the Tsar and his wife were a beautiful couple, had five lovely children and seemed to be a very loving and united family.
