Faberge Jewelry: Past and Present

Peter Charles Faberge was born in Russia, in St.-Petersburg on May, 30th, 1846.
Four years prior to its birth its father, Gustav Faberge, has based jeweller firm under own name in St.-Petersburg on the Bolshaya Morskaya street, in the house number 11.
Nowadays, the memorial desk is on this house, and jewelry store of Faberge factory is still located there, on the first floor.
In 1841 upon termination of term of training at jewellers Andreas Ferdinand Shpigelja and Ioganna Wilhelm Kejbelja Faberge-senior has received a rank of " Jeweller affairs of skill ". Gustav Faberge, the founder of firm, was born in 1814 in the city of Pjarnu in Baltic.
Its father, the carpenter Peter Faberge, has moved there from city of Schwedt-ON-Oder on a boundary of XVIII - XIX centuries. The family was Protestant; ancestors were Huguenots from Picardy. They have left France, when at 1685 the Lui XIV, having cancelled Edict of Nant, has terminated even a fragile freedom of worship.
In 1842 Gustav not only opened business, but has created the family: it married Charlotte Jungshtedt, the daughter of the Danish artist.
The senior son, Peter Charles, studied in Sacred Annas German private school and continued the training in Dresden.
After travel across the Europe it has begun studies at Frankfurt jeweler Joseph Fridman. Possibly, its talent was so uncommon, that in 1872, in the age of 26 years it after returning to Petersburg has accepted business of the father in the hands.
The jeweller, the artist-designer, the restorer and the remarkable businessman, Charles Gustavovich has transformed a small jeweler workshop into the largest enterprise in Russian empire and one of the greatest all over the world. The firm had branches in Moscow, Odessa, Kiev and London and sold through last production far outside the Europe. In 1885 Charles Faberge becomes the Supplier of the Imperial court yard, and in 1890 receives other high rank - the Appraiser of Its Majesty Imperial Cabinet.
The international glory of firm grows also. It receives the first awards at the international exhibitions, and buyers of production with "K.Faberge" brand become members of almost all monarchic dynasties of the Europe and beyond.
For these years Charles Faberges family has grown. In marriage with Augusta-Julia Jakobs - the daughter of the master of Court furniture workshops - it had four sons: Eugeniy (1874 - 1960), Agaton (1876 - 1951), Alexander (1877 - 1952) and Nikolas (1884 - 1939). All sons of Faberge continued business which was started by their grandfather and expanded it.
Dramatical events of October revolution (1917) have led to change of a mode and all philosophy of the government in Russia, as a result, He was forced to close Faberge firm in 1918. Peter Charles Faberge has died in Switzerland, September, 24, 1920.
Nowadays - street, plaza and largest Petersburg jewelry factory named in honor of Faberge. Masters of the factory (Faberge plaza, 3) saved the technology and still produce jewelry in the same traditions.
50 unique easter eggs was made from 1885 to 1917 by Charles Faberge and its masters.
They was created under the order of the imperial house of Romanovs.
After 1917 the part of the collection has been lost, another part - sold out by Bolsheviks, and - under the below cost prices. 10 copies are stored at the Armory Museum, 5 copies are in foreign private collections, 18 - at various museums of the world. The destiny of 8 more eggs is unknown, they are considered lost.
Eventually the repayment and repatriation of an expensive collection were incured by Viktor Vekselberg, who created special fund for the purpose.
As a result, at 2004 auction lot, estimated approximately to be $ 120,000,000, was removed from auction because of the collection was redeemed even before the declared auction - for higher price.
Collection belonged to Forbes family.
Among articles redeemed from "Sothebys" - the first easter egg of Faberge, the "Hen", presented by emperor Alexander III in 1885 to empress Maria Fedorovne. In the same collection - eggs "Crowning" (1897), " the Valley of lilies " (1898) and " Fifteenth anniversary * (1911), presented by emperor Nikolas II to empress Alexandra.
Forbes family collection will be transported back to Russia and exposed for a general public.
It is supposed to show collection not only at Moscow and St.-Petersburg, but also in other cities, in particular - at Ekaterinburg, where the life of last Russian emperor and its family was taragically broken.