Fabergé Works of Art - The Nephrite Collection

Ruzhnikov Fine art & antiques

Fabergé Works of Art Fabergé Works of Art

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The Nephrite Collection

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Important Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite Presentation Folio

by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, circa 1890 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, assay mark of St Petersburg (crossed anchors and sceptre), gold mark of 56 zolotniks

A carved nephrite cover, hinged, framed with two-colour gold border chased with laurel leaves, further decorated with enamelled Russian and French tricolour flags and set with four large diamonds at the corners; the upper-left corner applied with gold and enamel coat-ofarms of St Petersburg encrusted with rose-cut diamonds, surrounded by coatsof-arms of Schlüsselbourg, TsarskoeSelo, Peterhof, Yambourg, Novaya Ladoga, Gdov, and St Petersburg. The folio contains a presentation letter to the French President, in French, signed in 1897 by the nobility representatives from St Petersburg and the seven local districts, finely decorated with medallions and arabesques, also with a note in Russian.

length: 23 cm; width: 15.5 cm Provenance: Sale: Sotheby’s London, 1 December 2004, lot 348

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The French President at the time was Francois-FĂŠlix Faure (1841-1899).

He contributed greatly to Franco-Russian relations and helped solidify the alliance with Russia by receiving Nicholas II and the Tsarina in Paris in October 1896. The President’s reciprocal voyage to Russia took place in August 1897. The nephrite folio and the document were presented to the French President on his arrival in St Petersburg. The letter expresses gratitude to the President for his warm welcome to the Russian Navy in 1893 and the dazzling reception prepared for the visit of Tsar Nicholas II and the Tsarina to France in 1896.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Paper Knife by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, circa 1890 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, assay mark of St Petersburg (crossed anchors and sceptre), gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 54279 length: 54 cm Provenance: The gift from Tsar Nicholas II to Lord Edward Pelham Clinton GCVP KCB, Master of Her Majesty Queen Victoria’s Household, October 1896. Engraved: ‘October 1896 - Lord Pelham Clinton from the Emperor of Russia / Presented by the recently crowned Nicholas II on the occasion of his visit in the autumn of 1896 to Balmoral to meet Queen Victoria’ The smaller paper knife see pages 10-11.

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A large Imperial presentational paper knife with a nephrite blade and reeded two-colour gold handle, the blade set with a finely chased and engraved Imperial double-headed eagle; contained in a contemporary unmarked fitted case.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Paper Knife

by FabergÊ workmaster Fyodor Afanassiev, St Petersburg, circa 1890 struck with workmaster’s initials, gold mark of 56 zolotniks length: 27 cm Provenance: Tsar Nicholas II and Alexandra Fyodorovna of Russia

A large nephrite paper knife mounted with red and green gold trails of forgetme-not flowers.

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Pair of Silver-Gilt-Mounted Nephrite Candlesticks

by Fabergé workmaster Julius Rappoport, St Petersburg, circa 1890 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, assay mark of St Petersburg (crossed anchors and sceptre), silver mark of 88 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 791

A pair of silver-gilt-mounted nephrite table candlesticks; the square nephrite bases on four silver-gilt bun feet, applied with silver-gilt ribbon-tied foliate swags, the nephrite column stems on bead and foliate silver-gilt bases, with detachable beaded nozzles.

height: 16.2 cm Provenance: King George I of the Hellenes

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Desk Set by Fabergé workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1908-1917 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, assay mark of St Petersburg (crossed anchors and sceptre), gold mark of 72 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 791

Provenance: Purchased from Fabergé’s London branch by His Royal Highness Prince Chakrabongse Bhuvanath, Prince of Bisnulok, favourite son and representative of King Rama V of Thailand, during his visit to England for the coronation of King George V and Queen Mary in 1911

leather-bound letterpress: 22 x 18 cm dip pen length: 16.5 cm pencil height: 13.2 cm letter opener length: 12.2 cm blotter length: 11.6 cm pen rest length: 11 cm notepad holder length: 10.8 cm photograph frame height: 8.5 cm stamp box length: 6.8 cm candle holder with drip tray height: 5.7 cm glue pot height: 5.5 cm seal height: 5 cm inkwell length: 4.8 cm

Literature: P.L. Schaffer and U. Tillander-Godenhielm, Golden Years of Fabergé: Drawings and Objects from the Wigström Workshop, New York, 2000, pp. 142 & 145 (original design illustrated)

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A nephrite desk set, comprising fourteen pieces: photograph frame, electric lamp, candle holder with drip tray, stamp box, glue pot, seal, inkwell, notepad holder, blotter, leather-bound letterpress, pencil, pen rest, dip pen, letter opener; each piece in nephrite with red and green gold mounts chased with ribbon-tied laurel swags and festoons in red and green gold.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite Cigarette Case

by Fabergé St Petersburg, 1899-1908 Fabergé hallmark (KF in Cyrillic), assay master’s initials (Ya.L. in Cyrillic for Yakov Lyapunov), gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched Fabergé inventory no. 23937 length: 8.7 cm

A nephrite cigarette case of rectangular form with rounded corners; the rim of the hinged cover with a ruby-set gold and white enamel border and a diamond-set push-piece.

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Jewelled Two-Colour Gold-Mounted Nephrite Cigarette Case by Fabergé

workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1903-1908 workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, assay master’s initials (A.R. in Cyrillic), gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched Fabergé inventory no. 13800 length: 9.7 cm

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A nephrite cigarette case, rectangular with rounded corners, applied with a ribbon-tied laurel swag, the hinged lid decorated with a gold laurel-chased border enamelled in pink.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite Cigarette Case

by Fabergé workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1908-1917 workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, gold mark of 56 zolotniks length: 8.5 cm

A gold-mounted cigarette case carved from nephrite, mounted with a cabochon ruby push-piece and a gold and white enamel ruby-set bezel chased with laurel leaves.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Box by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, 1899-1903 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 5804 length: 10.5 cm

A rectangular nephrite box, the edges are mounted with two-colour gold borders chased with laurel leaf tips and set with flowerheads at the corners.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Letter Holder by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, 1899-1903 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 3239 height: 7.6 cm

A rectangular nephrite letter holder mounted with a continuous two-colour gold rim chased with laurel leaf tips and set with flowerheads at the corners, resting on four bun feet.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite and Enamel Parasol Handle

by Fabergé workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1908-1917 struck with workmaster’s initials, gold mark of 56 zolotniks length: 7.6 cm

A ball-shaped nephrite parasol handle set with a row of rose-cut diamonds and two larger collet diamonds, supported on a cylindrical stem enamelled in translucent red over a moiré guilloché ground, the gold bezels chased with acanthus leaves.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite and Enamel Parasol Handle

by Fabergé workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1908-1917 struck with workmaster’s initials, gold mark of 56 zolotniks length: 10.3 cm

A parasol handle carved from a single piece of nephrite into a tapering circular cylindrical form, finely inlaid with diamond-set ribbon bows centred by cabochon rubies, the gold mount enamelled in translucent oyster over a guilloché ground and applied within bands of rose-cut diamonds.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Miniature Nephrite Bassinet by Fabergé workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1908-1917 struck with workmaster’s initials, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 20295 length: 11 cm

A miniature bassinet carved from a single piece of nephrite, contained in two-colour gold frame and enamelled in white over a scaled arched support, decorated with chased green gold ribbon-tied acanthus swags set with cabochon moonstones.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite Tray by Fabergé workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1903-1908 struck with workmaster’s initials, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 16460? width: 13.3 cm Provenance: Sale: Sotheby’s London, 28 November 2006, lot 325, sold for £148,00.00

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A heart-shaped nephrite tray mounted with a gold rim chased with laurel leaf tips and set with rubies; contained in its original velvet and silk-lined holly wood fitted case, the lid silk stamped ‘Fabergé, St Petersburg, Moscow, London’ beneath Imperial warrant. An aventurine bowl of identical shape by Perchin was exhibited in “Fabergé and His Contemporaries”, Helsinki, 1980. See Catalogue, no. 96, p. 98. Another Perchin aventurine bowl with jewelled rim mount, heart-shaped but symmetrical and without the curled point, was exhibited in “Fabergé: Hofjuwelier der Zaren,” Berlin, 1986-7. See Catalogue, no. 206, p. 162.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite Casket

by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, 1899-1903 struck with workmaster’s initials, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 7340 width: 7.5 cm Provenance: The Kazan Collection

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A miniature nephrite casket mounted with a gold clasp and hinges decorated with translucent red enamel over a guillochĂŠ ground and set with rose-cut diamonds; further fitted with suspension gold ring handles set with rose-cut diamonds.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite Charka by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, 1899-1903 struck with workmaster’s initials, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 5361 width of nephrite bowl: 10.7 cm width over handle: 12.7 cm Provenance: This piece was presented by Tsar Nicholas II to H.M. Sultan Abdul Hamid II

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An ovoid shape nephrite bowl in Neo-Renaissance taste with a red gold openwork handle finely decorated with scrolls enamelled in white opaque, translucent red and green, further applied with three turquoise flower heads and surmounted with a large table-cut sapphire and four diamonds, each in a raised black enamel collet, the underside of the handle finely engraved with foliate strapwork and finished with two scroll supports.

The Neo-Renaissance style is restricted in Fabergé’s oeuvre to a small number of showpieces, all by the chief workmaster Michael Perchin, such as the Renaissance Egg presented by Alexander III to his wife Maria Fyodorovna in 1894, now in the Fabergé Museum in St Petersburg, the rock crystal vase from the collection of H.M. Queen Elizabeth II and the rock crystal charger from the State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg.

A similar kovsh in nephrite is in the Treasury Room of the Topkapi Museum in Istanbul.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Charka

by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, circa 1890 struck with workmaster’s initials, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 14600 width over handle: 8.7cm

A bowl of circular form carved from a single piece of nephrite, held à cage within green and yellow gold rocaille foliate mounts, with a shaped gold handle similarly decorated with rocaille scrolls and enamelled in translucent red over a guilloché ground.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite Kovsh by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, circa 1890 struck with workmaster’s initials, assay master’s initials (Ya.L. in Cyrillic for Yakov Lyapunov), gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 7154 length: 8 cm

Provenance: Purchased by the Empress Maria Fyodorovna for Christmas in 1891 for 115 roubles from Fabergé St Petersburg branch, then by descent through the Danish Royal family to Christian, Count of Rosenberg Exhibitions: Kejserinde Dagmar Maria Fjodorovna: en udstilling om den danske prinsesse som blev kejserinde af Rusland [Maria Fyodorovna Empress of Russia: an exhibition dedicated to Danish princess who became Empress of Russia], Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen, 1997, no.197

A nephrite kovsh of shaped oval form, with a bifurcated yellow gold handle surmounted by three cabochon sapphires.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Cup

by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, circa 1890 struck with workmaster’s initials, assay mark of St Petersburg (crossed anchors and sceptre), gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 7154 width over handle: 8.5 cm

A nephrite cup mounted with two-colour gold ribbon-tied laurel swags and rosettes and a laurel-chased border, with a circular gold foot and a gold handle modelled as a winged caryatid.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Cup

by FabergĂŠ diameter: 3.5 cm height: 4.3 cm

A gold-mounted nephrite cup, the handle decorated with translucent red enamel over a guillochĂŠ ground and inset with ten rose-cut diamonds.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Bloodstone Aide-Mémoire

by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, circa 1890 struck with workmaster’s initials, assay mark of St Petersburg (crossed anchors and sceptre), gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory nos. 6669 & 5433 length: 12.5 cm Provenance: Private collection, Argentina Literature: For the only comparable example from the Wernher Collection, Luton Hoo, see G. von Habsburg, Fabergé, Geneva, 1987, no. 255

A hinged rectangular aide-mémoire in Neo-Rococo taste, carved in bloodstone and mounted à cage with chased and engraved two-colour gold rocaille scrolls set with rose-cut diamonds, complete with a gold pencil with a cabochon sapphire finial.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Ladle

by Fabergé

workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, 1899-1903 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, assay master’s initials (Ya.L. in Cyrillic for Yakov Lyapunov), gold mark of 56 zolotniks length: 16.7 cm Provenance: Formerly in the collection of Fabergé’s son Agathon Literature: A.K. Snowman, Carl Fabergé: Goldsmith to the Imperial Court of Russia, London, 1979, p. 31

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A nephrite ladle with a circular bowl and a long rectangular handle mounted with chased and granulated gold, the reverse of the handle inscribed in Old Church Slavonic ‘Ye B M 1712’; contained in its original silk and velvet lined fitted holly wood box, the lid silk stamped ‘Fabergé, St Petersburg, Moscow, Odessa’ beneath Imperial warrant.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Paper Knife by Fabergé workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1903-1908 struck with workmaster’s initials, gold mark of 56 zolotniks length: 34.5 cm Provenance: Queen Maria of Yugoslavia

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A large tapering paper knife carved from a single piece of nephrite, mounted with a gold handle enamelled in translucent salmon over a guillochĂŠ ground, the front of the mount applied with a finely chased yellow gold laurel wreath tied with red gold ribbons, edged with similarly tied yellow gold laurels against a red gold ground and topped with a red gold latticework decorated with dot and dash and flower motives.

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Gold-Mounted Nephrite Stamp Box Modelled as a Table by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, 1899-1903 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, assay master’s initials (Ya.L. in Cyrillic for Yakov Lyapunov), gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 5853 height: 6 cm length: 9 cm Literature: G. von Habsburg-Lothringen, A. von Solodkoff, Fabergé: Court Jeweller to the Tsars, London, 1979, p. 52

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A stamp box shaped as a Louis XVI style writing desk, the sides of the box enamelled in translucent red over a guillochĂŠ ground simulating wood, applied with red gold swags and rosettes, a gold foliate rim and acanthus scrolls at the corners, the box rests on four fluted urn-shaped and tapered legs; the box is covered with a cut-cornered rectangular hinged nephrite panel mounted with a chased red gold border. Items of miniature furniture from the House of Carl FabergĂŠ are very rare, most produced by the chief workmaster Michael Perchin or Henrik WigstrĂśm.

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Jewelled Gold-Mounted Nephrite Casket

by Fabergé workmaster Michael Perchin, St Petersburg, circa 1890 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, London import mark of 1928, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 55646 length: 16 cm width: 9.2 cm height: 8 cm Exhibitions: A similar casket was exhibited at Fabergé 1846-1920: An International Loan Exhibition on the occasion of the Queen’s Silver Jubilee, V&A, London, 23 June - 25 September 1977

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A large Imperial presentation rectangular casket, the sides and hinged lid with thin nephrite panels, its two-colour gold frame chased with yellow gold leaves against a red enamel ground, the corners fixed with red gold cubes faced with chased flowerheads, the lid applied with a Russian Imperial double-headed eagle set with diamonds; the base supported on four bun feet; contained in a fitted silk-lined holly wood case.

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Nephrite, Two-Colour Gold and Enamel Frame

by Fabergé Moscow, 1899-1908 struck K. Fabergé in Cyrillic beneath Imperial warrant, assay master’s initials (I.L. in Cyrillic for Ivan Lyebedkin), gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 26843 height: 10.4 cm Exhibitions: Fabergé 1846-1920, Victorian and Albert Museum, London, 23 June - 25 September 1977, no. PI and illustrated in colour in the catalogue p. 80 & 82

A two-colour gold and enamel frame of Neo-classical design with a reeded nephrite border, the gold surface of the frame applied with oyster enamel over a wavy guilloché ground, the rectangular aperture decorated with beading and surmounted with a green gold laurel wreath and red gold ribbons; the base decorated with green enamel; raised on two gold feet; contained in the original velvet and silk-lined holly wood fitted case, the lid stamped ‘Fabergé, Moscow, St Petersburg, Odessa’ beneath Imperial warrant.

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Jewelled Nephrite Gold-Mounted Frame

by Fabergé workmaster Victor Aarne, St Petersburg, 1899-1904 struck with workmaster’s initials and Fabergé hallmark, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 7930 height: 6.3 cm Literature: G. von Habsburg & A. von Solodkoff, Fabergé: Court Jeweller to the Tsars, London 1979, pl. 97

Jewelled gold-mounted frame cut from a single piece of Siberian nephrite conceived as a classical temple with a pediment bordered by gold, the rectangular aperture within a pearl-set bezel and flanked by columns resting on gold plinths; mounted with gold flower garlands set with cabochon rubies; contained in Wartski fitted case.

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Gold, Silver-Gilt, Nephrite and Enamel Triangular Desk Clock by Fabergé workmaster Michel Perchin, St Petersburg, circa 1899-1903 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, silver mark of 88 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 56510 height: 12.7 cm Exhibitions: Fabergé: Imperial Craftsman and His World, Wilmington, Delaware, 9 Sept 2000 - 18 Feb 2001 Literature: Fabergé: Imperial Craftsman and His World, London, 2000, p. 177, no. 386 (illustrated)

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Gold, silver-gilt, nephrite and white guillochĂŠ enamel triangular clock set with diamonds, centred by an opaque white enamel dial with Arabic chapters set with a seed-pearl bezel and surrounded by silver-gilt acanthus swags.

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Gold, Silver-Gilt and Nephrite Desk Clock

by Fabergé workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1899-1903 struck with workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, silver mark of 88 zolotniks, scratched with Fabergé inventory no. 1186 height: 15.5 cm

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Gold, silver-gilt and nephrite rectangular clock with outset corners, surmounted by a ribbon crest and applied with gold laurel branches, centred by an opaque white enamel dial with black Arabic chapters and pierced gold hands, set with a seed-pearl bezel.

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Two-Colour Gold, Nephrite and Cornelian Seal

by Fabergé

workmaster Henrik Wigström, St Petersburg, 1903-1908 workmaster’s initials, FABERGÉ in Cyrillic, gold mark of 56 zolotniks, scratched Fabergé inventory no. 11430 height: 5.7 cm

A hand seal with an egg-shaped nephrite handle, a two-colour gold reeded tapering stem with a laurel leaf border and a circular cornelian matrix.

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Andre Ruzhnikov ruzhnikov.com +44-78 66-638 -973 +44-203-983-8383 +33-6-07-93-21-70 andre@ruzhnikov.com Skype: aruzhnikov

Credits ะกonsultant: Ekaterina Yakushkina Photography: Andy Johnson, London, UK Design: Maria Kiseleva, Moscow, Russia Printed: C3 Imaging, UK

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