In 1885, the Czar of
Russia, Alexander III wanted to mark the twentieth anniversary of his marriage
to Czarina Maria Fedorovna, as well as Easter, with a very special gift. He
commissioned a young jeweler, Peter Carl Fabergé, to create a special egg for his
Czarina.
To her delight, Fabergé’s first egg was a simple enameled one. However,
once opened, a golden yolk is revealed. Inside the yolk is a golden hen and
within the hen is a diamond miniature of the royal crown and a tiny ruby egg.
Thus began a tradition that would last until 1917, when Czar, Nicholas II and
his family were arrested. The only member of the Czar’s immediate family to
escape execution, Dowager Empress Maria, took the Order of St. George egg, the
last Fabergé egg she received from her son Nicholas II, when she left
Russia.
Fabergé made a total of 66 eggs, with the majority for the Russian Imperial
family. While private collectors and museums now hold most of the eggs, eggs
that were once thought to be lost periodically turn up. In March 2014, a scrap dealer rescued one from a junkyard.
Learn more about Fabergé
• Treasurers of the World (1999): The Fabergé Eggs. Note this 56-minute PBS
special also includes a piece on the Hope Diamond.
Try Making a Fabergé Egg
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