Snapshots in Time - A Fabergé Winter Egg and Cartier's Tiara

With chilly booster queues replacing Christmas parties, masked carol concerts and many holiday plans in disarray, perhaps we could all do with some bejewelled escapism. On the theme of a cold midwinter, it surely doesn’t get much better than this Fabergé Winter egg? Gifted to Tsarina Maria Feodorovna from Tsar Nicholas II in Easter 1913 (no pressure, guys, on the gift front…), it was designed by the brilliant Alma Pihl, one of two female Fabergé designers at a time when this was almost unheard of.

Above the icy egg sits Cartier's diamond and pearl tiara, made in Paris in the same year and said to have been inspired by the Bolin pearl and diamond tiara owned by the Cartiers' most important Russian patron, Grand Duchess Vladimir.

A snapshot in time, these two creations not only epitomize the glamour of the early twentieth century, but also encapsulate the creative battle between two firms - one Russian, the other French - for the greatest luxury clients on the planet.

It was in 1900, while visiting the Universal Exhibition in their hometown of Paris, that the Cartier brothers first encountered the extent of Carl Fabergé's exquisite creations. Back then, ‘Cartier et Fils’ was still too small to participate in the Universal Exhibition, while Fabergé’s stand with its Imperial Easter Eggs, colourful objets d’art and sparkling jewels was the talk of the town. Awed by the quality of Fabergé’s display, the ambitious Cartiers were inspired to visit Russia themselves and the seeds for a long-standing rivalry were planted. In time, both firms decided to open a showroom abroad. They chose not only the same city – London - but then the same street – New Bond Street – and were only one store away from each other (as you can see from the image: Cartier on the left, Fabergé the right). And so the scene was set for an epic battle…

To find out more about how each firm pushed the other to ever greater creative heights before world war and revolution changed everything, do join for a special “Rivals on Bond Street” lecture (online and in-person) when I’ll be in conversation with Kieran McCarthy @wartski1865, curator of the fabulous Fabergé exhibition @vamuseum. Link in bio