A RARE IMPERIAL JEWELED AND ENAMELED SILVER-MOUNTED DINOSAUR GASTROLITH SNUFF...
The curved dinosaur gastrolith with a polished interior and natural exterior, the hinged flat cover enameled in translucent salmon pink over a sunburst guilloché ground, mounted with silver-gilt scrolls and floral garlands, with diamond-set thumbpiece, marked on rim with 'Fabergé' in Cyrillic and workmaster's initials
23⁄4 in. (7 cm.) long
Provenance
Collection of Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna (1864-1918).
Anonymous sale; Sotheby's, Geneva, 15 November 1990, lot 440.
Literature
Von Dervis Mansion, St. Petersburg, Fabergé Artifacts, Antique Miniatures and Snuffboxes Belonging to the Members of the Imperial Family and Private Persons, 8-15 March 1902.
Lot Essay
This rare snuff box is the only known object by Fabergé incorporating a gastrolith. Gastroliths are stones that were once swallowed by dinosaurs and retained in their gizzards to grind food and aid digestion. Over time, the jagged surface of the agate geode was worn smooth and rounded through contact with other stones within the dinosaur’s gizzard. Fabergé has preserved the exterior of the gastrolith in its natural, found state, highlighting its function. The interior has been carefully hollowed and polished to reveal the agate banding.
The snuff box is clearly visible in a photograph of the 1902 Von Dervis Exhibition in St. Petersburg, where it is shown alongside other works belonging to Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna (1864-1918), the elder sister of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna.
The exhibition was held for just one week, from 8 to 15 March 1902, and was organized under the patronage of Alexandra Feodorovna to benefit the Imperial Women’s Patriotic Society Schools. The Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, the Grand Duchesses, and members of the aristocracy, many of whom were prominent patrons of Fabergé, displayed treasures from their private collections.
Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna was born Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine. In 1884, she married Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, the brother of Emperor Alexander III. Following her husband’s assassination in 1905, she withdrew from royal society and dedicated herself to religious and charitable work. She became a nun, founded the Marfo-Mariinsky Convent in Moscow, and devoted herself to helping the poor. In 1918, she was executed by the Bolsheviks and was later canonized as a martyr by the Russian Orthodox Church.
Sale price
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
The curved dinosaur gastrolith with a polished interior and natural exterior, the hinged flat cover enameled in translucent salmon pink over a sunburst guilloché ground, mounted with silver-gilt scrolls and floral garlands, with diamond-set thumbpiece, marked on rim with 'Fabergé' in Cyrillic and workmaster's initials
23⁄4 in. (7 cm.) long
Provenance
Collection of Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna (1864-1918).
Anonymous sale; Sotheby's, Geneva, 15 November 1990, lot 440.
Literature
Von Dervis Mansion, St. Petersburg, Fabergé Artifacts, Antique Miniatures and Snuffboxes Belonging to the Members of the Imperial Family and Private Persons, 8-15 March 1902.
Lot Essay
This rare snuff box is the only known object by Fabergé incorporating a gastrolith. Gastroliths are stones that were once swallowed by dinosaurs and retained in their gizzards to grind food and aid digestion. Over time, the jagged surface of the agate geode was worn smooth and rounded through contact with other stones within the dinosaur’s gizzard. Fabergé has preserved the exterior of the gastrolith in its natural, found state, highlighting its function. The interior has been carefully hollowed and polished to reveal the agate banding.
The snuff box is clearly visible in a photograph of the 1902 Von Dervis Exhibition in St. Petersburg, where it is shown alongside other works belonging to Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna (1864-1918), the elder sister of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna.
The exhibition was held for just one week, from 8 to 15 March 1902, and was organized under the patronage of Alexandra Feodorovna to benefit the Imperial Women’s Patriotic Society Schools. The Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, the Grand Duchesses, and members of the aristocracy, many of whom were prominent patrons of Fabergé, displayed treasures from their private collections.
Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna was born Princess Elisabeth of Hesse and by Rhine. In 1884, she married Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, the brother of Emperor Alexander III. Following her husband’s assassination in 1905, she withdrew from royal society and dedicated herself to religious and charitable work. She became a nun, founded the Marfo-Mariinsky Convent in Moscow, and devoted herself to helping the poor. In 1918, she was executed by the Bolsheviks and was later canonized as a martyr by the Russian Orthodox Church.
Sale price
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
