Editor’s Note
A legendary Fabergé treasure, the Winter Egg, has sold at auction for a record £22.9 million, marking its first public sale in over 20 years and setting a new world record for the famed jeweler’s work.
The legendary Winter Egg by Fabergé, one of the famous imperial jewels from the St. Petersburg jewelry house, has gone under the hammer for the first time in over two decades. Auction house Christie’s sold the Winter Egg, considered one of the most beautiful works by jeweler Carl Fabergé, on Tuesday for a record sum of £22.9 million (€26 million). Christie’s stated this is “a new world record for a Fabergé work.”
The historic piece, crafted in 1913 for Russian Tsar Nicholas II, is considered one of the rarest artworks in the world. Of the 50 imperial Fabergé eggs, only 43 remain; of this stock, seven are in private ownership, though exclusively in “pretty untouchable” collections, as Fabergé expert Kieran McCarthy explained to CNN. However, according to McCarthy, only three of these eggs are “truly private” and could theoretically be purchased.
As co-managing director of the British antique dealer Wartski, which specializes in Fabergé, McCarthy has already personally examined the Winter Egg. He describes the masterpiece as a creation that “feels like a lump of ice in the hand” and, through a “reverse alchemy,” transforms precious materials into a natural phenomenon – frozen ice covered with sparkling frost. The egg, made of rock crystal, is set with over 4,500 diamonds and features engraved snowflakes and platinum that appears to be melting. But the true value of the artwork lies in its craft genius.
Like all imperial Fabergé eggs, the Winter Egg also holds a surprise inside. But instead of elaborate mechanical masterpieces, this egg reveals a botanical surprise: a hanging basket with quartz wood anemones and nephrite stems, whose stamens are set with green garnets. These flowers are among the first to appear after a cold Russian winter – a perfect symbol of spring.
The Winter Egg made history not only through its artistic uniqueness but also through its journey into the private art market: After the Russian Revolution, it was sold by the new Soviet government to generate state funds. Wartski acquired it in the late 1920s for just £450 (about $30,000 today) and it has changed hands several times since. It resurfaced in 1994 and was auctioned at Christie’s in Geneva for $5.6 million – an auction record for Fabergé eggs that was surpassed again eight years later. In 2002, the artwork fetched $9.6 million at Christie’s in New York.
The Winter Egg has not only set another auction record but also proven that demand for the famous Fabergé eggs remains unbroken. Prior to the sale, there was concern that political and economic circumstances could complicate the sale: Russia, one of the main markets for Fabergé, is subject to strict restrictions due to sanctions.
The question of whether the artwork could ever return to Russian hands is heavily burdened by customs and sanction regulations. For the United States, a purchase would mean additional millions in tax costs, and Russia could hardly access it legally due to international restrictions. Before the auction, it was considered that museums in the Middle East might be another option, as many strive to integrate significant artworks into their collections.