The exquisite objects created by goldsmith and jeweler Peter Carl Fabergé and his studio in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for the aristocracy and nobility of imperial Russia are considered to be some of the most refined examples of the jeweler's art of any age. Of greatest fascination are the extraordinary Easter eggs created as special commissions for the Russian imperial family and other notable patrons - works that remain unparalleled in their ingenuity of construction and sheer beauty. Accompanying a major exhibition Faberge Revealed represents a landmark for the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and for Fabergé scholarship. The essays by Géza von Habsburg and other scholars present new findings on Fabergé, his workshops, and the creation of these extraordinary objects. For the first time all items by or attributed to Fabergé in VMFA's collection are documented along with the museum's significant holdings of other Russian decorative arts. Also included is a section on forgeries that bravely confronts this vexing question. Every object has been splendidly re-photographed for this book - and the detailed photography alone should provide inestimable value for future Fabergé scholarship. Richly illustrated with some 600 photographs, the volume documents an important collection bequeathed in 1947 to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts by Lillian Thomas Pratt, of Fredericksburg, Va., the wife of General Motors executive John Lee Pratt. Her collection, assembled between 1933 and 1946, comprised several hundred creations by the Faberge workshops and by other Russian imperial jewelers. These exquisite, marvelously crafted objects, range from the majestic jeweled imperial eggs to delicate jeweled flowers in vases to diamond-encrusted icons and tiaras, to animal figures nimbly carved from precious stone. Contents: Introduction by Géza von Habsburg Chapter 1: The House of Fabergé/by Géza von Habsburg Chapter 2: Behind the Scenes at Fabergé: The St. Petersburg Workshops/ by Ulla Tillander-Godenhieim Chapter 3: Fabergé and His Russian Competitors/ by Géza von Habsburg Chapter 4: Fabergé and His Foreign Competitors Chapter 5: Mrs. Pratt's Imperial Easter Eggs / by Carol Aiken Chapter 6: The Zarnitza Sailor and His Place in History / by Christel Ludewig McCaniess Chapter 7: Fabergé and Grand Duchess Vladimir / by Alexander von Solodkoff Chapter 8: Lillian Thomas Pratt and A La Vieille Russie: A Personal Relationship/ by Mark Schaffer Chapter 9: Fauxbergé / by Géza von Habsburg Catalogue: Fabergé/Other Makers/Forgeries

Published to mark the opening of the new Silver Gallery at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, September 24, 2010.

For more than 25 years Carl Faberge and his firm served as jeweler and goldsmith to the tsars of Russia and other influential people. Here, straight from the St. Petersburg archives, jewelry expert Snowman reproduces hundreds of drawings and photographs (most in full color) from two newly discovered Faberge design books.

Numerous full-color photographs present a wide range of the master jeweler's creations, from Imperial Easter eggs to jewel encrusted boxes and picture frames, while an informative text provides business and family history

Carl Faberge's unparalleled creativity and craftsmanship won him the recognition of the Russian Imperial Court at the turn of the last century. Few objects are as universally loved as his jewel-encrusted Easter eggs crafted for the last two czars of Russia, each containing a surprise. Featured in this delightful introduction to the House of Faberge is a selection of his most celebrated works that have found their way into American collections. Easter eggs are just a portion of this master's prodigious production which comprised over 150,000 jewels, silver pieces, and objects of art. The latter are fantasies in gold, enamel, and hardstone and include elegant picture frames and cigarette cases created for the ruling families of Europe and other wealthy patrons. Intimate glimpses into the world of this ingenious designer are captured through excerpts from letters and quotes from an adoring press. The Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna exclaimed upon receiving a Faberge egg, "It is an unbelievably beautiful and superbly fine piece of work. Faberge is the greatest genius of our time...". The fifty-four choice objects, beautifully photographed, are from American public and private collections. The book also contains a chronology and a reading list.

Evaluation of the goldsmith's achievements. For other editions, see Author Catalog.