Blue Serpent Clock (Fabergé egg): Difference between revisions

Blue Serpent Clock Fabergé egg
Blue Serpent Clock Fabergé egg
Year delivered	1895
Customer	Nicholas II
Recipient	Maria Feodorovna
Current owner
Individual or institution	Albert II, Prince of Monaco
Year of acquisition	2005, inherited from Rainier III
Design and materials
Workmaster	Michael Perkhin
Materials used	Gold, vitreous enamel, diamonds
Height	183 millimetres (7.2 in)
Surprise	None (clock egg)

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The Blue Serpent Clock egg is an Imperial Fabergé egg, one of a series of fifty-two jeweled eggs made under the supervision of Peter Carl Fabergé for the Russian Imperial Family. This egg features a clock and is a design that Fabergé repeated for the Duchess of Marlborough egg in 1902. Both pieces are based on the cercles tournants (revolving dial) urn clocks in the Louis XVI style with a snake to indicate the time. It is currently owned by Prince Albert II and is held in Monaco.

Design

The crafting of this Imperial egg is credited to Michael Perkhin of Fabergé's shop. The egg stands on a base of gold, blue and opalescent white guilloché enamel. The three panels of the base feature motifs of raised gold in four colors, representing the arts and sciences.^[2]

A serpent, set with diamonds coils around the stand connecting the base to the egg and up toward its center. The serpent's head and tongue point to the hour indicated in Roman numerals on a white band that runs around the egg near the top.^[2] This band rotates within the egg to indicate the time, rather than the serpent rotating around the egg. This is the first of the Tsar Imperial Fabergé eggs to feature a working clock.^[2]

The majority of the egg is enameled in translucent blue, and diamond-studded gold bands and designs ring the top and bottom of the egg. On each side of the egg, a sculpted gold handle arches up in a "C" shape, attached to the egg on the top near the apex and on the lower half of the egg, near the center.

Surprise

The working clock is considered the egg's "surprise".

History

It is not known when or how the Tsar ordered the Easter egg from Fabergé, but the Blue Serpent Clock Egg was presented to Maria Feodorovna by Tsar Nicholas II on Easter day, 1895.^[3] The egg was housed in the Anichkov Palace until the 1917 revolution, along with some other Fabergé eggs owned by Maria Feodorovna. The Serpent Clock Egg was transferred to the Armory Palace of the Kremlin in mid-September 1917. In 1922, the egg was likely transferred to the Sovnarkom, where it was held until it was sold abroad to Michel Norman of the Australian Pearl Company.

Between 1922 and 1950, the egg was bought by Emanuel Snowman of Wartski, sold, and bought back by Wartski. The egg was sold again by Wartski on Christmas Eve 1972 to Stavros Niarchos for £64,103.^[4] It was then given in 1974 to Prince Rainier III of Monaco to honor his Silver Jubilee.^[5] The Prince was unaware of its imperial provenance until it was lent to an exhibition.^[4] Following the death of Rainier III in 2005, it was inherited by his son, Prince Albert II.

Most Fabergé scholarship published prior to 2008 assigned the egg's creation to 1887, although with some notable reservations due to inconsistencies between the Blue Serpent Clock egg and contemporary descriptions of the 1887 egg. The Blue Serpent Clock Egg contains no sapphires. At the same time, descriptions for the 1887 egg from the Russian State Historical Archives, the 1917 inventory of confiscated imperial treasure and the 1922 transfer documents for the egg to be moved from the Anichkov Palace to the Sovnarkom, all describe an egg containing sapphires^[2] (the Third Imperial Egg recovered in 2012 contains sapphires and consistently fits the descriptions associated with the 1887 egg).

In 2008, Annemiek Wintraecken, a Fabergé egg researcher/popularizer on her website, postulated the theory that the Blue Serpent Clock egg was Maria Feodorovna's Imperial Easter egg for 1895.^[3] The 2012 rediscovery of the 1887 Third Imperial Egg, announced to the world in March 2014, validated Wintraecken's theory.

Notes

^ "Mieks Fabergé Eggs". Wintraecken.nl. 2019-01-08. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Lowes, Will; McCanless, Christel Ludewig (2001). Fabergé Eggs A Retrospective Encyclopedia. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. p. 23. ISBN 0-8108-3946-6.
^ ^a ^b Wintraecken, Annemiek "The Fabergé Imperial Easter Eggs: New Discoveries Revise Timeline", Fabergé Research Newsletter, November 2008: [1]
^ ^a ^b Munn, Geoffrey "The Rediscovery of the Serpent Egg Clock", Fabergé Research Newsletter, November 2008: [2]
^ McCanless, Christel Ludewig "The Big Surprise"; Fabergé Research Newsletter, Fall 2008; [3]

Sources

Faber, Toby (2008). Faberge's Eggs: The Extraordinary Story of the Masterpieces That Outlived an Empire. Random House. ISBN 978-1-4000-6550-9.
Forbes, Christopher; Prinz von Hohenzollern, Johann Georg (1990). FABERGE; The Imperial Eggs. Prestel. ASIN B000YA9GOM.
Lowes, Will (2001). Fabergé Eggs: A Retrospective Encyclopedia. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-3946-6.
Snowman, A Kenneth (1988). Carl Faberge: Goldsmith to the Imperial Court of Russia. Gramercy. ISBN 0-517-40502-4.

External links

Mieks Fabergé Eggs

[1] "Mieks Fabergé Eggs". Wintraecken.nl. 2019-01-08. Retrieved 2019-11-25.

[lowes-2] Lowes, Will; McCanless, Christel Ludewig (2001). Fabergé Eggs A Retrospective Encyclopedia. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. p. 23. ISBN 0-8108-3946-6.

[fabergeresearch.com-3] Wintraecken, Annemiek "The Fabergé Imperial Easter Eggs: New Discoveries Revise Timeline", Fabergé Research Newsletter, November 2008: [1]

[ReferenceA-4] Munn, Geoffrey "The Rediscovery of the Serpent Egg Clock", Fabergé Research Newsletter, November 2008: [2]

[5] McCanless, Christel Ludewig "The Big Surprise"; Fabergé Research Newsletter, Fall 2008; [3]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{short description|1895 Imperial Fabergé egg}}
 {{Infobox Fabergé egg
 | name                  = Blue Serpent Clock
-| image                 =
+| image                 = Blue Serpent Clock (Fabergé egg).jpg
+| image_size            =250px
 | caption               =
+| year_delivered        = 1895<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wintraecken.nl/mieks/faberge/eggs/1895_Blue_Serpent_Clock_Egg.htm |title=Mieks Fabergé Eggs |publisher=Wintraecken.nl |date=2019-01-08 |accessdate=2019-11-25}}</ref>
-| year_delivered        = 1895{{citation needed|date=March 2014}}
 | made_for              = [[Nicholas II of Russia|Nicholas II]]
 |recipient=[[Maria Feodorovna (Dagmar of Denmark)|Maria Feodorovna]]
 | owner                 = [[Albert II, Prince of Monaco]]
-| acquisition_year      = 2005
+| acquisition_year      = 2005, inherited from [[Rainier III]]
 | workmaster            = [[Michael Perkhin]]
 | materials             = [[Gold]], [[vitreous enamel]], [[Diamond (gemstone)|diamonds]]
-| height                = 183&nbsp;mm (7&nbsp;1/4&nbsp;in)
+| height                = {{convert|183|mm|in}}
 | width                 =
-| surprise_in_egg       = none
+| surprise_in_egg       = None (clock egg)
 }}
-The '''Blue Serpent Clock''' egg is a Tsar Imperial [[Fabergé egg]], one of a series of fifty-two [[Jewellery|jeweled]] [[Egg (biology)|eggs]] made under the supervision of [[Peter Carl Fabergé]] for the [[Russian Imperial Family]]. This egg features a clock and is a design that Fabergé copied for his [[Duchess of Marlborough Egg]] in 1902. Most Fabergé scholarship published prior to 2008 assigned the egg's creation to 1887, although with some notable reservations due to inconsistencies between the Blue Serpent Clock Egg and contemporary descriptions of the 1887 egg. The 2012 rediscovery of the 1887 [[Third Imperial Egg]], announced to the world in March 2014, validates the theory that the Blue Serpent Clock was crafted and delivered in 1895 to the then [[Tsar]] of Russia, [[Nicholas II of Russia|Nicholas II]]. It is currently owned by [[Albert II, Prince of Monaco|Prince Albert II]] and is held in [[Monaco]].
+The '''Blue Serpent Clock''' egg is an Imperial [[Fabergé egg]], one of a series of fifty-two [[Jewellery|jeweled]] [[Egg (biology)|eggs]] made under the supervision of [[Peter Carl Fabergé]] for the [[Russian Imperial Family]]. This egg features a clock and is a design that Fabergé repeated for the [[Duchess of Marlborough (Fabergé egg)|Duchess of Marlborough egg]] in 1902. Both pieces are based on the ''cercles tournants'' (revolving dial) urn clocks in the [[Louis XVI style]] with a snake to indicate the time. It is currently owned by [[Albert II, Prince of Monaco|Prince Albert II]] and is held in [[Monaco]].
 ==Design==
-The crafting of this imperial egg is credited to [[Michael Perkhin]] of Fabergé's shop. The egg stands on a base of gold that is painted in opalescent white [[vitreous enamel|enamel]]. The three panels of the base feature motifs of raised [[gold]] in four colors, representing the arts and sciences.<ref name=lowes>{{cite book |title=Fabergé Eggs A Retrospective Encyclopedia |last=Lowes |first=Will |author2=McCanless, Christel Ludewig |year=2001 |publisher=Scarecrow Press Inc. |location=Lanham, Maryland |isbn=0-8108-3946-6 |page=23 |ref=refLowes2001}}</ref> A serpent, set with diamonds coils around the stand connecting the base to the egg and up toward its center. The serpent's head and tongue point to the hour which is indicated in Roman numerals on a white band that runs around the egg near the top.<ref name=lowes/> This band rotates within the egg to indicate the time, rather than the serpent rotating around the egg. This is the first of the Tsar Imperial Fabergé eggs to feature a working clock.<ref name=lowes/> The majority of the egg is enameled in translucent blue and has diamond-studded gold bands and designs ringing the top and bottom of the egg. On each side of the egg a sculpted gold handle arches up in a "C" shape, attached to the egg on the top near the apex and on the lower half of the egg, near the center. The Blue Serpent Clock Egg contains no [[sapphire]]s, while descriptions for the 1887 egg from the Russian State Historical Archives, the 1917 inventory of confiscated imperial treasure and the 1922 transfer documents for the egg to be moved from the [[Anichkov Palace]] to the Sovnarkom all describe an egg containing sapphires<ref name=lowes/> (the [[Third Imperial Egg]] recovered in 2012 contains sapphires and consistently fits the descriptions associated with the 1887 egg).
+The crafting of this Imperial egg is credited to [[Michael Perkhin]] of Fabergé's shop. The egg stands on a base of gold, blue and opalescent white [[guilloché]] [[vitreous enamel|enamel]]. The three panels of the base feature motifs of raised [[gold]] in four colors, representing the arts and sciences.<ref name=lowes>{{cite book |title=Fabergé Eggs A Retrospective Encyclopedia |last1=Lowes |first1=Will |last2=McCanless|first2= Christel Ludewig |year=2001 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |location=Lanham, Maryland |isbn=0-8108-3946-6 |page=23 |ref=refLowes2001|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uvh3MQNvT00C}}</ref>
+A serpent, set with diamonds coils around the stand connecting the base to the egg and up toward its center. The serpent's head and tongue point to the hour indicated in Roman numerals on a white band that runs around the egg near the top.<ref name=lowes/> This band rotates within the egg to indicate the time, rather than the serpent rotating around the egg. This is the first of the Tsar Imperial Fabergé eggs to feature a working clock.<ref name=lowes/>
+The majority of the egg is enameled in translucent blue, and diamond-studded gold bands and designs ring the top and bottom of the egg. On each side of the egg, a sculpted gold handle arches up in a "C" shape, attached to the egg on the top near the apex and on the lower half of the egg, near the center.
 ==Surprise==
 The working clock is considered the egg's "surprise".
-==History of the egg==
+==History==
-It is not known when or how the Tsar ordered the [[Easter egg]] from Fabergé, but the Blue Serpent Clock Egg was presented to [[Maria Feodorovna (Dagmar of Denmark)|Maria Feodorovna]] by Tsar Nicholas II on [[Easter]] day, 1895.<ref name="fabergeresearch.com">Wintraecken, Annemiek "The Fabergé Imperial Easter Eggs: New Discoveries Revise Timeline", Fabergé Research Newsletter, November 2008: [http://fabergeresearch.com/eggs-recent-discoveries/]</ref> The egg was housed in the Anichkov Palace until the [[Russian Revolution (1917)|1917 revolution]]. Along with the other Fabergé eggs in the palace, the Serpent Clock Egg was transferred to the Armory Palace of the [[Moscow Kremlin|Kremlin]] in mid-September 1917. In 1922, the egg was likely transferred to the Sovnarkom, where it was held until it was sold abroad to Michel Norman of the Australian Pearl Company.
+It is not known when or how the Tsar ordered the [[Easter egg]] from Fabergé, but the Blue Serpent Clock Egg was presented to [[Maria Feodorovna (Dagmar of Denmark)|Maria Feodorovna]] by Tsar Nicholas II on [[Easter]] day, 1895.<ref name="fabergeresearch.com">Wintraecken, Annemiek "The Fabergé Imperial Easter Eggs: New Discoveries Revise Timeline", Fabergé Research Newsletter, November 2008: [http://fabergeresearch.com/eggs-recent-discoveries/]</ref> The egg was housed in the Anichkov Palace until the [[Russian Revolution (1917)|1917 revolution]], along with some other Fabergé eggs owned by Maria Feodorovna. The Serpent Clock Egg was transferred to the Armory Palace of the [[Moscow Kremlin|Kremlin]] in mid-September 1917. In 1922, the egg was likely transferred to the Sovnarkom, where it was held until it was sold abroad to Michel Norman of the Australian Pearl Company.
 Between 1922 and 1950, the egg was bought by [[Emanuel Snowman]] of [[Wartski]], sold, and bought back by Wartski. The egg was sold again by Wartski on Christmas Eve 1972 to [[Stavros Niarchos]] for £64,103.<ref name="ReferenceA">Munn, Geoffrey "The Rediscovery of the Serpent Egg Clock", Fabergé Research Newsletter, November 2008: [http://fabergeresearch.com/eggs-recent-discoveries/]</ref> It was then given in 1974 to [[Rainier III, Prince of Monaco|Prince Rainier III]] of [[Monaco]] to honor his Silver Jubilee.<ref>McCanless, Christel Ludewig "The Big Surprise";  Fabergé Research Newsletter, Fall 2008; [http://fabergeresearch.com/eggs-recent-discoveries/]</ref> The Prince was unaware of its imperial provenance until it was lent to an exhibition.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Following the death of Rainier III in 2005, it was inherited by his son, [[Albert II, Prince of Monaco|Prince Albert II]].
+Most Fabergé scholarship published prior to 2008 assigned the egg's creation to 1887, although with some notable reservations due to inconsistencies between the Blue Serpent Clock egg and contemporary descriptions of the 1887 egg. The Blue Serpent Clock Egg contains no [[sapphire]]s. At the same time, descriptions for the 1887 egg from the Russian State Historical Archives, the 1917 inventory of confiscated imperial treasure and the 1922 transfer documents for the egg to be moved from the [[Anichkov Palace]] to the Sovnarkom, all describe an egg containing sapphires<ref name=lowes/> (the [[Third Imperial Egg]] recovered in 2012 contains sapphires and consistently fits the descriptions associated with the 1887 egg).
-This Blue Serpent Clock Egg was long thought to be the 1887 Easter egg. However, recent research (2008-2014) has conclusively proved the egg to be that of 1895.<ref name="fabergeresearch.com"/> Fabergé created a very similar egg in 1902, the [[Duchess of Marlborough Egg]] for [[Consuelo Vanderbilt]]. That clock egg is larger than the Blue Serpent Clock Egg and is enameled in a pink colour, rather than in blue.
+In 2008, Annemiek Wintraecken, a Fabergé egg researcher/popularizer on her website, postulated the theory that the Blue Serpent Clock egg was Maria Feodorovna's Imperial Easter egg for 1895.<ref name="fabergeresearch.com"/> The 2012 rediscovery of the 1887 [[Third Imperial Egg]], announced to the world in March 2014, validated Wintraecken's theory.
-==See also==
+==See also==
+*[[Objet d'art]]
 *[[Egg decorating]]
 ==Notes==
 {{reflist}}
+==Sources==
+*{{cite book|last=Faber|first=Toby|title=Faberge's Eggs: The Extraordinary Story of the Masterpieces That Outlived an Empire|publisher=Random House|year=2008|isbn=978-1-4000-6550-9|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/fabergeseggsextr00fabe}}
+*{{cite book|authorlink=Christopher Forbes|last1=Forbes|first1=Christopher|first2=Johann Georg |last2=Prinz von Hohenzollern|title=FABERGE; The Imperial Eggs|publisher=Prestel|year=1990|asin=B000YA9GOM}}
+*{{cite book|last=Lowes|first=Will|title=Fabergé Eggs: A Retrospective Encyclopedia|publisher=Scarecrow Press|year=2001|isbn=0-8108-3946-6}}
+*{{Cite book|authorlink=Kenneth Snowman|last=Snowman|first=A Kenneth|title=Carl Faberge: Goldsmith to the Imperial Court of Russia|publisher=Gramercy|year=1988|isbn=0-517-40502-4}}
 ==External links==
+{{Commons Category}}
 * [http://www.wintraecken.nl/mieks/faberge/eggs/1895_Blue_Serpent_Clock_Egg.htm Mieks Fabergé Eggs]
@@ Line 44: / Line 58: @@
 [[Category:Imperial Fabergé eggs]]
 [[Category:1895 works]]
+[[Category:Fabergé clock eggs]]

v t e Fabergé eggs
Imperial Easter eggs (1885–1917)	First Hen also known as Jeweled Hen Hen with Sapphire Pendant also known as Egg with Hen in Basket Third Imperial Cherub with Chariot also known as Angel with Egg in Chariot Nécessaire Danish Palaces Memory of Azov Diamond Trellis Caucasus Renaissance Rosebud Blue Serpent Clock Twelve Monograms also known as Alexander III Portraits Rock Crystal also known as Revolving Miniatures Imperial Coronation Mauve Lilies-of-the-Valley Pelican also known as Dowager Bouquet of Lilies Clock also known as Madonna Lily Clock Pansy also known as Spinach Jade Trans-Siberian Railway Cockerel also known as Cuckoo Clock Basket of Flowers Gatchina Palace Clover Leaf Empire Nephrite Peter the Great Royal Danish also known as Danish Jubilee Moscow Kremlin also known as Uspenski Cathedral Swan Rose Trellis Cradle with Garlands also known as Love Trophies Alexander Palace Peacock Standart Yacht Alexander III Commemorative Colonnade Alexander III Equestrian Fifteenth Anniversary Bay Tree also known as Orange Tree Tsarevich Napoleonic Romanov Tercentenary Winter Mosaic Catherine the Great also known as Grisaille or Pink Cameo Red Cross with Triptych Red Cross with Imperial Portraits Steel Military Order of St. George Karelian Birch Constellation
Kelch eggs (1898–1904)	Hen Twelve Panel Pine Cone Apple Blossom also known as Jade Chest Rocaille Bonbonnière Chanticleer
Other Fabergé eggs	Blue Striped Enamel [ru] Clock [hy] Duchess of Marlborough also known as Pink Serpent Gorbachev Peace Lapis Lazuli Nobel's Ice Egg Resurrection Rose Quartz Rothschild Scandinavian also known as Quisling Spring Flowers Twilight [ru] Youssoupov [ru]
Fabergé workmasters	August Wilhelm Holmström Michael Perkhin Alma Pihl Henrik Wigström Victor Mayer
Related	Peter Carl Fabergé House of Fabergé Fabergé Museum (Baden-Baden) Fabergé Museum (Saint Petersburg)