Faberge & His Family
Peter Karl Faberge was born on May, 30,
1846 in St.Petersburg, Russia. Four years before Karl's birth
his father Gustave Faberge founded his own jewelry firm in
St.Petersburg, 12, Morskaya Street, 12. In 1841, after finishing
his studies under the guidance of the famous jewelers Andreas
Ferdinandas Shpigel and Yorgan William Kibel, Gustave Faberge
got the title of "The Master of Jewelry". Gustave
Faberge, the founder of the firm, was born in the town of
Pyarnu on the Baltic Sea in 1814. His father Peter Faberge
moved there at the beginning of the 19th century. The Faberges
were Protestants and their parents were Puritans from Picardi.
In 1685 Lydovik the 14th abolished the religious freedom in
the country and the Faberges had to leave France.
In 1842 Gustave founded his
own jewelry firm and in the same year he married Charlotta
Youngshtadt, the daughter of the Danish painter. His oldest
son Peter Karl Faberge studied at the German St.Anna private
school and continued his education at the private school in
Dresden. After his studies, he traveled in Europe and soon
began to learn the art of jewelry under the guidance of Joseph
Fridman, the Frankfurt jeweler. In 1870 at the age of 24 Peter
Karl Faberge returned to St.Petersburg. As he was very talented
and had great skill and knowledge, he inherited the families
firm.
In two years Peter Karl Faberge married Augusta
Julia Yakobs, the daughter of the manager of the Emperor's
furniture workshop. After ten years, Fabeger's firm became
independent. The Emperor took it under his protection and
Faberge got the title "The Jeweler of his Emperor's Majesty
and the Jeweler of the Emperor's Hermitage". In these
ten years Faberge created his first Easter Egg, a present
to Emperor Nicholas II.
Faberge had four sons: Evgeny (1874-1960),
Agaton (1876-1951), Alexandre (1877-1952) and Nikolai (1884-1939).
All his sons continued his work. The dramatic events of 1917
changed the political structure of Russia and Karl Faberge
closed his firm in 1918. Peter Karl Faberge died in Switzerland
on September 24, 1920. Descendants of Karl Faberge continues
producing the amazing jewelry.
In Engineer’s Castle of St. Peter and Paul
Fortress Philip Birkenstein, the chairman of Teo Faberge Fund
“St Petersburg Collection”, has presented to St Petersburg
the egg “Neva”, made by the great Karl Faberge’s great grand-daughter
Sarah. Last week a Faberge Fund delegation from Great Britain
invited by St Petersburg International Cooperation Association
visited the city. During these yearly visits, the city receives
presents. This time Faberge Fund presented the gift to St
Petersburg State Museum of History.
Creating Easter eggs with a surprise of precious
metals had brought world fame to Karl Faberge’s jewellery
firm. Already in 1906 Karl’s youngest son Nikolai opened the
firm’s subsidiary in London. Although later, in 1917, the
shop was closed, Nikolai stayed in London. In this city Nikolai’s
son Teo was born, who continued than his father’s business.
Teo Faberge is the only Karl Faberge’s grand-son living today.
He works not only with precious metals, though he occupies
himself with wood and ivory engraving and china paintings.
In 1985 Teo Faberge started the work at St Petersburg Easter
eggs collection.
Teo Faberge presented to St Petersburg State
Museum of History two eggs from his collection: “St Petersburg”
(1993) and “Kiev” (1996). Similar gifts were received by the
State Ermitage (the egg “Moscow”, 1995), Reserve Museum Peterhof
(the egg “Peterhof”, 1998) and State Reserve Museum Tsarskoye
Selo (the egg “Alexander Palace”, 1999). The only daughter
of Teo Faberge Sarah by family tradition had become a jewellery
designer.
The egg “Neva”, the work of Karl Faberge’s
great grand-daughter, is the third present of Faberge Fund
to St Petersburg State Museum of History and Sarah’s first
work, which has left Great Britain. Sarah herself could not
attend at the ceremony of presentation, though her letter
telling about the egg’s creation was read aloud by Philip
Birkenstein.
“It was in winter, many years ago, - remembers
Sarah her visit in Leningrad. – Ice, covering Neva, was sparkling
in winter sunlight”. The egg “Neva” is the picture of the
winter city on frozen river banks. It is made from crystal
enamelled blue, with a picture: “hoar-frost” of the finest
crystal pieces and silver “icicles”.
Sarah was especially impressed by the angel
on St. Peter and Paul Cathedral’s spire, that is why the egg’s
secret is a golden guardian angel. This motive is called up
by St Petersburg’s symbol, though Sarah’s angel is not its
precise copy. According to the author, a diamond torch in
the angel’s hand lights up the way and guards the citizens,
which is at the same time the symbol of St Petersburg citizens’
firmness.
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