Precious eggs from the Empire of the Tsars

The pomp and circumstance of Russian court culture around 1900 is symbolized by one specific object: the egg. Not just any egg, but a jewel, crafted in the most precious materials with unique decorations and made by the finest jewellers. A number of top items in this field, among them some Fabergé eggs, can be seen in the Drents Museum from November 25, 2014. ​

The beautiful and very valuable Russian eggs, among them unique designs by Carl Fabergé, are presented in the Spiegelenberg rooms of the Drents Museum. This collection is on loan from the Landesmuseum in Liechtenstein and is presented for the first time on this scale outside the national museum. The absolute highlight is the so-called Apple Blossom egg by Fabergé (1901), commissioned by rich industrialist Alexander Kelch as a present for his wife Barbara. The egg was made by Mikhail Perkhin, chief jeweller at Fabergé, and as concerns quality can be compared to the eggs made for the Imperial Family by Fabergé and Perkhin. In addition, the collection consists of hundreds of unique eggs made by using various techniques. The Drents Museum will present an ample selection of the special highlights. This collection of precious eggs tells the story of the bewitching court culture in pre-war Russia and the artistic refinery and blossoming of the applied arts at that time.