Next month will see Christie's offer a selection of Russian works of art, including one of the strongest collections of cloisonné enamel to hit the market in years.
The sale will feature a Fabergé silver cloisonné and en plein enamel box with a pre-sale estimate of $180,000-250,000. The box is set with a fine enamel plaque which depicts the Departure of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich for the Hunt after the painting by Victor Vasnetov.
Numerous other Fabergé items will appear at the auction including a guilloché and silver-gilt, jewelled, three-colour gold enamel desk clock by Henrik Wigström (1862 - 1923), one of Fabergé's most important workmasters. The clock, which was presented to Baron Marochetti (the Italian Ambassador in St Petersburg from 1886 until 1900), is expected to sell for $150,000-250,000.
A Feodor Rückert silver-gilt cloisonné and en plein enamel casket should also star, with a high estimate of $300,000. The cover panel of the casket depicts Grigory Sedov's Tsar Ivan the Terrible Admiring Vasilisa Malentieva, which currently resides in the State Russian Museum, St Petersburg.
 Feodor Rückert silver-gilt cloisonné and en plein enamel casket |
With an estimate of $70,000-90,000, a Hahn jewelled gold maid of honour badge is also set to impress. The badge was presented to Countess Olga Alexandrovna Nieroth, who was the maid of honour to Empress Alexandra Feodorovna in 1904.
The auction, which will consist of over 175 lots of porcelain, bronzes, objects of vertú, enamels and silver, will take place on April 16. Christie's have estimated that the sale could bring a total of $3-4.3m.
