1909 The Alexander III Commemorative Egg

Maria Feodorovna

Purchase price 11,200 rubles.

This 1909 Imperial Easter egg made for the Dowager Empress Maria Fedorovna is one of six missing Faberge eggs. The original invoice for the Egg survives in the Russian State Historical Archive: “Egg in matte white enamel with gold bands, decorated with 2 brilliant diamonds and 3,767 rose-cut diamonds. Inside a gold bust of the Emperor Alexander III on a pedestal of lapis lazuli, applied with rose-cut diamonds.”

The egg is known from an archival image of the egg in the possession of Tatyana Fabergé. There are several other known examples of busts of Alexander III from the house of Fabergé, which give us an idea of what the surprise may have looked like.

In July of 1917 the Egg was kept at the Gatchina Palace.

Whereabouts unknown.