Malcolm Forbes
Who was the owner of Imperial Coronation (Fabergé egg) from 1979 to 2004?
Imperial Coronation ( Fabergé egg ) The Imperial Coronation egg is a jewelled Fabergé egg made under the supervision of the Russian jeweller Peter Carl Fabergé in 1897 by Fabergé ateliers , Mikhail Perkhin and Henrik Wigstrom . The egg was made to commemorate Tsarina , Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna . It was frequently on exhibition at The Hermitage Museum ( specifically the Winter Palace ) in St . Petersburg , Russia , and also materialized in various museums worldwide , placed in temporary exhibits there . It is currently owned by one of the Russian oligarchs , Viktor Vekselberg . Design . The egg is made from gold with translucent lime yellow enamel on a guilloché field of starbursts and is in reference to the cloth-of-gold robe worn by the Tsarina at her Coronation . It is trellised with bands of greenish gold laurel leaves mounted at each intersection by a gold Imperial double-headed eagle enamelled opaque black , and set with a rose diamond on its chest . This pattern was also drawn from the Coronation robe worn by the Empress . A large portrait diamond is set in the top of the egg within a cluster of ten brilliant diamonds ; through the table of this stone , the monogram of the Empress can be seen . At the other , more narrow end , a smaller portrait diamond is set within a cluster of rose diamonds surrounded by a flower motif made of 20 narrow gold petals . At this end of the egg the portrait diamond covers the date 1897 inscribed on a plaque similar to that of the monogram . The egg was presented together with a glass-enclosed jadeite stand for the display of the carriage at a cost of 5650 rubles . Surprise . Fitted inside a velvet-lined compartment is a precise replica , less than four inches long , of the 18th-century Imperial coach that carried the Tsarina Alexandra to her coronation at Moscows Uspensky Cathedral . The red colour of the original coach was recreated using strawberry coloured translucent enamel and the blue upholstery of the interior was also reproduced in enamels . The coach is surmounted by the Imperial Crown in rose diamonds and six double-headed eagles on the roof ; it is fitted with engraved rock crystal windows and platinum tyres decorated with a diamond-set trellis in gold and an Imperial eagle in diamonds at either door . The miniature is complete with moving wheels , opening doors , actual C-spring shock absorbers and a tiny folding step-stair . Missing surprises include an emerald or diamond pendant that hung inside the replica coach , a glass-enclosed jadeite stand for the display of the carriage as well as a stand made of silver-gilt wire . History . The coronation of Tsar Nicholas II and his spouse , Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna was the catalyst for the Imperial Coronation Eggs creation , to celebrate the historical event . The coronation on May 14 , 1896 , was a day of jubilance and pride in the Romanovs , celebrated by throngs of spectators . The Russian nobility and guests gathered on the Eastern Orthodox day of Dormition , the death of Mary , inside Uspensky Cathedral for the actual coronation . The throne of the Czar , the former throne of Michael I of Russia was inset with 870 diamonds , rubies , and pearls . The throne of the Tsarina , the famous ivory throne of Ivan the Great , also was inset with a vast collection of jewels and rare gemstones . The gold miniature coach , which is removable from the interior of the Coronation Egg , is a replica of Catherine the Greats Gold Coach of 1793 used to transport the last Romanov rulers from ceremony to ceremony on the coronation week . Another artifact used in the coronation from the reign of Catherine was the Imperial Crown of Russia diamond crown made by Jérémie Pauzié in 1762 . Past and present ownerships . Royal origin . The Egg was first given to Tsarina Alexandra of Imperial Russia on Easter of 1897 . The egg was displayed in the Empress apartment at the Winter Palace in St . Petersburg , resting in a jewelled carriage . Upon the fall of the Romanov Dynasty , the egg was confiscated by the Provisional Government in 1917 and was listed among the treasures removed from the Anichkov Palace . It was then dispatched to the Kremlin and finally transferred to the Sovnarkom in 1922 for sale . Further transactions . The egg was purchased in 1927 by Emanuel Snowman for Wartski a family-owned firm of art and antique dealers in London . The egg was then sold to the collector Charles Parsons in 1934 , but then reacquired by Wartski in 1945 and remained with the company until early 1979 . Late twentieth century . In March 1979 , the egg was sold to Malcolm Forbes for $2.16 million USD along with the Lilies of the Valley Fabergé Egg . In 2004 , nine Fabergé eggs , including the Imperial Coronation Egg , were to be sold by Sothebys Auction House , however on February 4 , 2004 , Sothebys announced that more than 180 Fabergé art pieces , including the 9 rare Fabergé eggs , had been withdrawn from auction and privately sold to Viktor Vekselberg . The official selling price of the Coronation Egg to Vekselberg was never publicly disclosed by Sothebys , fueling much speculation . However , CNN reported the day after the sale that ...it was a very serious offer that the Forbes family accepted . In a 2013 BBC Four documentary , Vekselberg revealed he had spent just over $100 Million purchasing the 9 Fabergé eggs . Representation in film . The James Bond film , Octopussy ( 1983 ) , encompasses the mysterious appearance of a fabricated Coronation Egg at a party in the British Embassy of West Berlin . The plot for the film is adapted from Ian Flemings 1963 short story The Property of a Lady . An accurate model of the Imperial Coronation Egg was depicted in the 2004 crime film Oceans Twelve . The replica was produced by design studio Vivian Alexander , popular for recreating famous items of jewelry for public and private purposes . The replica is worth approximately USD4,000 . In the film , the egg was stolen in a grand heist from a museum in Rome . A replica of the Imperial Coronation Egg , along with the surprise coach , appear in the first episode of the Amazon.com series The Romanoffs ( 2018 ) .