Imperial Faberge Winter Egg Sells for Record £22.9 Mln in London

A diamond-studded Faberge Winter Egg that once belonged to Russia’s imperial family has sold for a record £22.9 mln ($30.2 mln) at Christie’s in London, BBC reports.

The egg, commissioned by Tsar Nicholas II in 1913 as a gift for his mother, is set with 4,500 diamonds and carved from rock crystal. It features platinum snowflake motifs and opens to reveal a miniature basket of white quartz flowers.

Created by Carl Faberge from a design by Alma Theresia Pihl, one of only two female workmasters at the St Petersburg workshop, the 8.2cm-high egg is considered one of the jeweller’s most exquisite creations.

Christie’s said the sale surpasses the previous Faberge egg record of £8.9 mln set in 2007.

«This result sets a new world auction record for a work by Faberge, reaffirming the enduring significance of this masterpiece,» Christie’s expert Margo Oganesian said.

Only 50 Faberge eggs were ever made for the Romanov family, with the Winter Egg being one of just seven remaining in private hands. The remainder are held by museums or are missing.

The eggs were produced from 1885 until Tsar Nicholas II’s abdication in 1917, marking a golden era of imperial craftsmanship in Russia.