Trish Bishop

A Fabergé egg (Russian: Яйца Фаберже; Yaĭtsa Faberzhe) is any one of the thousands of jewelled eggs made by the House of Fabergé between 1885 and 1917. The majority of these were miniatures that were popular gifts exchanged at Eastertide. The most famous eggs produced by the House were the larger eggs were made for or commissioned by Alexander III and Nicholas II of Russia. Of the 50 made, 42 of these Russian eggs have survived.

The last Czar, Nicholas II and King George V (the current Queen of Britain's grandfather) were first cousins. Their mothers, Queen Alexandra of Britain and Empress Maria Feodorovna of Russia were sisters. During this period a special gift of five varied sized “Empire Eggs” were created for the Royal family of Great Britain to acknowledge the British Empire’s colonisation of much of the globe. After remaining for nine years in the British Royal Private Collection, they were first displayed publically in the British Empire Exhibition in 1924, Wembley, London. It is now widely accepted that the delay in public display of these beautiful objects was due to the difficult political situation following the Russian revolution of 1917 and in particular British support for the white Russians against the new Bolshevik government which lasted until 1922.

The Empire Eggs are masterpieces created by a goldsmith and four master craftsmen. These are unique and unlike any other Russian eggs and have since their first display in 1924, held an exceptional interest for collectors. These eggs are composed of precious metals and were decorated externally using precious and semi precious stones along with embedded human hair. The result is a marvel of hand craft in its own sense. The term "Fabergé egg" has become a synonym of luxury and the Empire eggs are regarded as particular and extraordinary masterpieces of the jeweller's genre.