1889 The Nécessaire Egg

Maria Feodorovna

Purchase price: 1,900 rubles.

This Imperial Egg made for Maria Fedorovna is considered lost, and little is known about it. According to Faberge researchers, the Egg was styled as a decorative case, containing articles of a lady’s toilette. In all likelihood the individual items were made of gold. The Egg was done in the Louis XV style, with rocaille relief decoration. By 1917 the Egg had made its way to the Anichkov Palace, and was subsequently sold abroad. Possibly, this same egg was acquired by Wartski of London in November of 1949 and sold in 1952 for £1,250 (about $200,000 in today’s money). At this point all traces of the Easter Egg vanish. In late 2017, the researcher Kelly Bond discovered a more distinct photograph of this item, which has improved the chances of recovery of one of the six missing Imperial Easter Eggs.

Whereabouts currently unknown.