Focus 2-25-11 Czar— serf— The Iron Curtain

1. Focus 2-25-11 • Czar— • serf— • The Iron Curtain Agenda 2-25-11 * No homework! Faberge Eggs emperor very poor, farm laborer Imaginary line that separated Communist countries from the free Western countries

2. The silver egg with a hinged lid decorated with colored enamel and mounted on an onyx base. A map of Russia is engraved with the route of the Trans-Siberian Railway on the central silver section, The egg is supported by three griffins cast in gold-plated silver, each brandishing a sword and shield. The stepped base is of white onyx in the form of a triangle with concave sides and rounded corners. A gold-plated silver braid is inlaid into the base. A working model of the train was inserted into the egg section by section. It consists of a platinum locomotive with a ruby lantern and rosette headlights and of five gold coaches with windows of rock crystal. The coaches are marked "mail", "for ladies only", "smoking", and "non-smoking". The last coach is designated "chapel". The train was wound up with a golden key. Provenance: Presented by emperor Nicholas II to his wife, empress Alexandra Feodorovna, Easter 1900.

3. Gifts for the Czars!!!!!!!!!! • A Brief History • The most important feast of the Russian Orthodox church calendar is Easter. It is celebrated with the exchanging of eggs and three kisses. The Faberge eggs began in 1884 with an Easter egg made for the czar that became a gift for his wife, Czarina Maria. The egg reminded the empress of her homeland, and so from then on it was agreed that Faberge would make an Easter egg each year for Maria. Faberge designed Easter eggs for another eleven years until Alexander III died. Then Nicholas II, Alexander's son, continued the tradition. It was agreed that the Easter gift would always have an egg shape and would hold a surprise. These projects became top priority of the company and were planned and worked on far in advance--a year or longer. The surprise was always kept secret. Faberge was the jeweler for Czar Alexander III and his son Nicholas II (the last czar of Russia)

4. This egg is the most popular of all the Faberge eggs. The surface is enamelled translucent yellow applied to a golden field of starbursts. The egg is trellised with bands of laurel wrought from gold. Opaque, black-enamelled Imperial eagles appear at each trellis intersection. Each eagle carries a small diamond on its chest. The surprise in this egg is the miniature coronation coach. The accurate and highly-detailed coach took 15 months to fabricate. Red lacquer and upholstery of the original coach was recreated using red enamel and the blues of the interior were also fauthfully reproduced in enamels. The gilt coach frame was reproduced in gold, the iron wheel rims in platinum, and glass windows in etched rock crystal. The coach is surmounted by an Imperial crown with rose diamonds. Coronation Egg

5. All the elements of the Romanov story come together mostelegantly in the Fifteenth Anniversary egg (1911), a family album just over five-inches-tall. Exquisitely detailed paintings depict the most notable events of the reign of Nicholas II and each of the family members

6. Inspiration • The designs for the Imperial eggs were inspired by historical art works that Faberge imitated or copied from his travels or from the Hermitage. However, there is a poignant representation of what is now Russian history in the design of a number of these eggs. There were eggs to commemorate the coronation of Czar Nicholas II, the completion of the Trans Siberian Railway, and anniversaries. There were eggs depicting the Imperial yacht-Standart, the Uspensky Cathedral, the Gatchina Palace, and during the time of war, the Red Cross and the military.

7. This golden egg is covered by a multitude of pearls and is covered with pale pink enamel. The eggs is supported by cabriole legs of matte green-gold leaves with rose diamond dewdrops. The gold-stemmed lilies of the valley have green enamelled leaves and pearl flowers. The egg is surmounted by an Imperial crown of rose diamonds and cabachon rubies. A pearl knob, when twisted, reveals the surprise of this egg: portrait minatures of Czar Nicholas II and his two oldest daughters: Olga and Tatiana. The portraits are raised by a geared mechanism inside the egg and causes the portraits to spread fan-like once they have emerged from the egg. The portraits are framed in rose diamonds and backed with gold panels engraved with the presentation date: April 5, 1898. Lilies of the Valley Egg

8. the fate of the eggs • There were thousands of Fabergé pieces in the palaces of the Romanovs, most now scattered across far away lands in the many collections around the world now. Of the fifty Imperial eggs made, only ten remain in the Kremlin. Eight Imperial eggs are still missing.

9. But Lenin's efforts to preserve Russia's cultural heritage were undermined when Joseph Stalin came to power. Stalin began trading the Russian Imperial legacy for desperately needed Western currency to support his new regime. "The treasures were rediscovered somewhere around 1927. For the communists, there was the idea at the back of their minds that these things might actually be sold for the good of the new Bolshevik government, to finance their economic plans. So these things were taken out of safekeeping, appraised, and offered to the West." (Von Habsburg)

10. ..how much can an egg cost? • Fabergé objects were very expensive. Even the least costly items, such as the miniature pendant egg hidden inside the 1895 Hen egg, cost 60 rubles, an amount equal to two years salary for the average tradesman. But the original charge to the Czar for each of the Imperial eggs was very likely well below costs.

11. The Winter Egg • The Winter Egg brought "big money" in modern times as well. In 1949, it was sold for a mere $4,760; but in 1994, it was acquired anonymously at public auction by an American businessman for the record price of $5.5 million dollars.

12. What to do after the test…… • Decorate your own Russian egg. Use the Russian Alphabet sheet to write your first and last name.