1898 The Pelican Egg
Maria Feodorovna
Purchase price: 3,600 rubles.
The year 1897 saw the centenary of charitable institutions, patronized by Russian Empresses, beginning with the consort of Paul I, Empress Maria Fedorovna. The occasion served as a fitting subject for that year’s “Pelican” Easter Egg.
The Egg is covered in chased red gold in the Empire style and surmounted by a pelican in opalscent grey, blue and pink enamel. The pelican, its wings set with diamonds, is feeding its young in a gold nest, an act symbolic of maternal love and care. The Egg is engraved with the memorable dates 1797 and 1897, alongside the inscription running along the two sides: “Visit this vineyard… And you shall live.” The Egg rests on a circular gold stand comprising two decorated rings and four legs surmounted with crowned Imperial eagle heads, and terminating below in animalistic feet. The Egg unfolds into a screen, comprising 8 miniature views of the following charitable institutions: XeninskyInstitute, Nikolaevsky Orphanage, Patriotic Institute, Smolny Institute, Ekaterinensky Institute, PavlovskyInstitute, Tsesarevich Nikolai Orphanage, and Elizavetinsky Institute. The name of each institution is engraved on the reverse side of the miniature. The miniatures were painted by the court painter Johannes Zehngraf on ivory.
In the collection of the Virginia Museum of Fine Art (Richmond, VA).