BY FABERGÉ, MOSCOW, CIRCA 1908

Details

A SILVER-GILT FRAME WITH PORTRAIT MINIATURE
BY FABERGÉ, MOSCOW, CIRCA 1908
In the form of a daisy flower, centring a miniature portrait of Prince Nicholas Yusupov by Vasilii Zuev, signed and dated 'V. Zuev. 1908', the reverse of the frame naturalistically chased and engraved, the extended stem of the flower forming the strut, marked on reverse and strut with 'K. Fabergé’ in Cyrillic
4 3⁄8 in. (11 cm.) diameter

Provenance

Anonymous sale; Sotheby's, Geneva, 16 November 1993, lot 601.

Literature

Exhibition catalogue, Fabergé - A Private Collection, Helsinki, 1997, no. 1 (illustrated on front cover).
G. von Habsburg, Fabergé: Imperial Craftsman and His World, London, 2000, p. 137, no. 245 (illustrated).
Exhibition catalogue, Carl Fabergé. A Private Collection, London, 2012, p. 50, no. 39 (illustrated).

Exhibited

Lahti, Lahti Art Museum, Fabergé - A Private Collection, 14 March - 4 May 1997, no. 1.
Wilmington, Riverfront Arts Centre, Fabergé, Imperial Craftsman and his World, 14 August 2000 - 28 February 2001, no. 245.
London, Wartski, Carl Fabergé. A Private Collection, 15 - 25 May 2012, no. 39.

Special Notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory and tortoiseshell. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

Conditions of sale

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Lot Essay

Prince Nicholas Yusupov (1883-1908) was the elder brother of Felix Yusupov. He was the main heir to the Yusupov family's fortune, but was killed in a duel at the age of 26.

Vasilii Zuev was a court miniature painter, and a supplier of portraits to Fabergé. Having replaced Johannes Zehngraf as the chief miniature painter for the Imperial court, Zuev produced a large number of portraits of the Imperial family members in enamel and on ivory. His precise technique distinguished his portraits as uniquely lifelike. He was soon recruited to work for Fabergé and painted miniatures for a number of Imperial presentation snuff-boxes and Imperial eggs, such as the Fifteenth Anniversary Egg of 1911, and the Romanov Tercentenary Egg of 1913.

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