House of Fabergé facts for kids
The House of Fabergé was a famous jewelry company. It was started in 1842 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Gustav Fabergé founded it, using his family name. His sons, Peter Carl and Agathon, and later his grandsons, continued the business.
Fabergé became known for making beautiful, jewel-covered Fabergé eggs for the Russian emperors. They also created many other detailed and high-quality jewelry pieces.
After the October Revolution in 1917, the original company closed. In 1924, Peter Carl's sons, Alexander and Eugène Fabergé, opened a new firm in Paris, France. They made similar jewelry and called their company FABERGÉ, PARIS.
Over the years, the Fabergé brand name was sold many times. Companies using the name launched perfumes, clothing, and even made movies. Today, the brand is owned by Fabergé Limited. It is now used only for jewelry and gemstones.
Contents
Early Beginnings of Fabergé
The Fabergé family came from France in the 1600s. They were called Favri. They had to leave France around 1685 because of religious problems. Many other French Protestants, called Huguenots, also became refugees.
As the family moved across Europe, their name changed. It went from Favri to Faberge. In the 1830s, Gustav Faberge moved to Saint Petersburg, Russia. He trained to become a goldsmith. He learned from famous jewelers. In 1841, Gustav Fabergé became a Master Goldsmith. This meant he was a skilled expert.
Gustav married Charlotte Jungstedt. In 1846, their son, Peter Carl Fabergé, was born. He was often called Carl Fabergé.
Carl Fabergé's Journey
Carl Fabergé went to a good school. This showed his father's business was doing well. In 1860, Gustav Fabergé retired. He left the business to managers. Carl continued his education in Germany and traveled around Europe. He learned from skilled goldsmiths in different countries. He also visited museums to study beautiful art.
Carl returned to Saint Petersburg in 1864. He joined his father's company. In 1872, Carl took over the business. He became the head of the firm in 1882. That same year, his younger brother, Agathon Fabergé, joined the company. Agathon was a very talented designer. He brought new ideas to the business.
Fabergé Becomes Famous
Fabergé's work was shown at a big exhibition in Moscow in 1882. Carl and Agathon Fabergé became very popular. They showed a copy of an old gold bracelet from the Hermitage Museum. Tsar Alexander III was amazed. He could not tell the difference between Fabergé's copy and the original.
The Tsar ordered Fabergé's work to be shown in the Hermitage Museum. This was to show excellent Russian craftsmanship. In 1885, the House of Fabergé received a special title. They became "Goldsmith by special appointment to the Imperial Crown." This started their link with the Russian Tsars.
The Imperial Easter Eggs
In 1885, Tsar Alexander III asked Fabergé to make an Easter egg. It was a gift for his wife, Empress Maria Feodorovna. The first egg looked like a normal hen's egg. It opened up to show a gold yolk inside. The yolk also opened to reveal a gold chicken. Inside the chicken was a tiny replica of the Imperial Crown. A small ruby egg hung from the crown.
The Tsar loved the egg so much that he continued this tradition. Every year, Carl Fabergé made a surprise Easter egg for the Empress. From 1887, Carl had complete freedom to design the eggs. They became more and more detailed. The Tsar himself did not know what the egg would look like. The only rule was that each egg must have a surprise inside.
The House of Fabergé made 50 Imperial eggs in total. Tsar Alexander III gave them to his wife. His son, Nicholas II, gave them to his mother and his wife, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna. Today, 43 of these famous eggs are still known to exist.
Stone Sculptures
Fabergé also made small sculptures from hard stones. These were carvings of people, animals, and flowers. They were decorated with precious metals and jewels. Elephants and pigs were common animal carvings. They also made custom miniatures of pets for the British Royal family.
The flower sculptures were like tiny scenes. They had small vases with carved flowers inside. The vase and "water" were made of clear rock crystal. The flowers were made from different stones and enamel. These figures were usually small, about 25–75 mm long. Some larger ones were 140–200 mm tall. People all over the world collected them. The British Royal family owns over 250 of these items.
Other Fabergé Creations
The House of Fabergé also sold many other beautiful items. These included jewelry, enameled gold and silver frames, and wooden photograph frames. They also made gold and silver boxes, desk sets, and timepieces. Carl Fabergé himself approved every item. If there was even a tiny flaw, the item was rejected. This ensured very high quality.
Growing the Business
The House of Fabergé won awards around the world. It became Russia's largest jewelry company. It employed about 500 skilled workers. In the early 1900s, Fabergé moved its main office to a new, larger building. They also opened branches in Moscow, Odessa, Kiev, and London.
European kings and queens wanted Fabergé's work. Queen Alexandra was a big fan. She was the wife of King Edward VII and sister to Empress Maria Feodorovna. Queen Alexandra often exchanged Fabergé gifts with her family. Other royal collectors included King Edward VII, King George V, and Queen Mary.
After the Russian Revolution
In 1918, the Fabergé company was taken over by the Bolsheviks. Carl Fabergé left Russia on a diplomatic train. He went to Germany and then to Switzerland. He died in Lausanne on September 24, 1920.
His sons, Agathon and Alexander, were imprisoned. Agathon was later released to help value the treasures taken from the imperial family. But he was imprisoned again. Madame Fabergé and her oldest son, Eugène, escaped to Finland. Agathon also managed to escape to Finland in 1927.
Fabergé & Cie in Paris
In 1924, Alexander and Eugène opened a new company in Paris. They called it Fabergé & Cie. They made similar jewelry items. To show these were different from the old Russian pieces, they used the name FABERGÉ, PARIS. The original Russian company had just used FABERGÉ. They also repaired old Fabergé items.
Fabergé & Cie continued to operate in Paris until 2001.
Fabergé's Lasting Fame
Fabergé's reputation for high quality continued. There were big exhibitions of their work. After the Soviet Union ended, many Russian collectors wanted to buy Fabergé pieces. Prices for Fabergé items reached very high records at auctions. For example, in 2007, the Rothschild Fabergé Egg sold for a record price of £8.98 million. This was the highest price ever paid for a Russian object and a timepiece.
Many famous people and wealthy collectors own Fabergé pieces. The British Royal Collection has the largest Fabergé collection in the world. It includes hundreds of items, from Imperial Easter Eggs to animal sculptures.
The Fabergé Brand Name Changes Hands
In the 1920s, an American oil businessman named Armand Hammer bought many original Fabergé items. In 1937, Hammer's friend, Samuel Rubin, started a new company. He wanted to make perfumes. Rubin registered his new company as Fabergé Inc..
In 1945, the Fabergé family found out their name was being used for perfumes. They had not given permission. In 1951, an agreement was reached. Rubin paid the Fabergé family to use the name only for perfume.
In 1964, Rubin sold Fabergé Inc. to a cosmetics company. This company changed its name to Rayette-Fabergé Inc. Later, it became Fabergé Inc. From 1964 to 1984, Fabergé Inc. launched many successful products. These included the popular cologne Brut. They also made hair products and perfumes like Babe. Brut became the best-selling cologne in the world.
The company also started a film-making division. They produced movies, including the Academy Award-winning film A Touch of Class. Famous actors like Cary Grant and Roger Moore were involved with the company.
In 1984, a financier bought Fabergé Inc. The company then launched clothing lines. In 1986, Fabergé bought the Elizabeth Arden company. This made Fabergé a very large firm.
Unilever Buys Fabergé
In 1989, a company called Unilever bought Fabergé Inc. for a large sum of money. Unilever then registered the Fabergé name for many different products worldwide. They allowed other companies to make items like jewelry and glasses using the Fabergé name. Unilever also continued to sell Fabergé perfumes.
The name Fabergé became known for ultimate luxury. This happened when the Forbes family's Fabergé collection became widely known in the 1980s.
From 1989 to 2009, a German jewelry company, Victor Mayer, made Fabergé Eggs and jewelry. These were made with gold, platinum, and gemstones. New designs were sold worldwide.
In 2001, Unilever merged two of its companies. This created Lever Fabergé in the UK. This new company owned many household and cosmetic brands. This meant the Fabergé name appeared on many different products.
A Russian collector of Fabergé eggs, Viktor Vekselberg, tried to buy the Fabergé brand name. He already owned a large collection of Fabergé eggs.
Fabergé Limited Today
On January 3, 2007, a company called Pallinghurst Resources bought the Fabergé brand name from Unilever. They paid $38 million for all the trademarks and rights. A new company, Fabergé Limited, was created.
In October 2007, Fabergé Limited announced its plan. They wanted to bring Fabergé back to its original purpose. This was to be a top maker of beautiful personal items. They also brought the Fabergé family back into the company. Tatiana Fabergé and Sarah Fabergé, who are great-granddaughters of Peter Carl Fabergé, joined the Fabergé Heritage Council.
In September 2009, Fabergé Limited launched its first new jewelry collection. They also opened a boutique in Geneva. In July 2011, they launched two collections of egg pendants. These were the first pieces made by a Fabergé company since 1917. Fabergé opened boutiques in London and New York.
In January 2013, Fabergé Limited was sold to a gem mining company called Gemfields. Fabergé continues to create new jewelry and timepieces. In November 2015, Fabergé won an award for its new watch collection.
In 2017, Fabergé chose Mariana Voinova as an ambassador for their women's collection. Filip Wolfe became the face of the men's collection. In 2020, Fabergé worked with The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. They created a collection of jewelry and other items. This included a new 'Fabergé Egg'.
Fabergé Museum
In 2009, a Fabergé museum opened in Baden-Baden, Germany. It was founded by Alexander Ivanov. The museum has about 1,500 items. This includes the Karelian Birch egg. This egg was made in 1917 for Tsar Nicholas II of Russia. The museum also has one of the Constellation eggs.
Gustav Fabergé Monument
A monument to Gustav Fabergé is in Pärnu, Estonia. It was put there on January 3, 2015. This was 200 years after he was born.
See also
In Spanish: Casa Fabergé para niños
- Fabergé egg
- Fabergé workmaster
- Fauxbergé
