82036: Empress Alexandra Feodorovna: An Imperial Faberg

Empress Alexandra Feodorovna: An Imperial Fabergé Gold-Mounted Guilloché Enameled Gilt Silver Thermometer Fabergé, Workmaster Victor Aarne, St. Petersburg, 1899-1908, with scratched inventory number 3195 4-3x4 x 1-3x8 inches (12.1 x 3.5 cm) 74 grams (gross) PROVENANCE: Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, acquired June 12, 1901, for 70 rubles. EXHIBITED: Russian History Museum, Jordanville, New York, "Last Days of the Last Tsar" July 17, 2018 – May 17, 2019. According to the surviving financial records of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna in the Russian archives, this standing table thermometer was purchased on June 12, 1900, and billed on January 25, 1901 as a "Thermometer, enamel with garlands, L[ouis] XVI, 3195" and which cost 70 rubles. In the Louis XVI Revival style popular at the time, the thermometer is the type of "everyday" objet de luxe in which the House of Fabergé was the undisputed leader. Empress Alexandra preferred understated pieces designed for use rather than display, and this work is an excellent example of the type. Heritage Auctions thanks Valentin Skurlov for his assistance with the research of this lot. HID03101062020 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
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