A RARE ENAMEL AND GOLD BANGLE IN THE SCYTHIAN STYLE

BY FABERGÉ, WORKMASTER ERIK KOLLIN, ST. PETERSBURG, CIRCA 1880, SCRATCHED INVENTORY NUMBER 53897

Details

Bangle hinged at center, with swirling flutes and applied filigree gold wire, the terminals chased and engraved as lion's heads with tongues out, the tapering collars decorated with blue and green enamel within beaded and wirework borders, marked on edges of collars with workmaster's initials
3 in. (7.6 cm.) wide
Literature

Exhibition catalogue, Fabergé: Exhibition for the Benefit of the Scholarship Fund of the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, New York, 1983, p. 104, no. 347 (illustrated).
Exhibited

New York, A La Vieille Russie, Fabergé: Exhibition for the Benefit of the Scholarship Fund of the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Design, 22 April - 21 May 1983, no. 347.


Lot Essay

The present bangle can clearly be seen on the reproduction of Fabergé’s showcase from the All-Russia industrial and art exhibition in Moscow in 1882. It was part of Fabergé’s first important series of jewellery based on ancient Scythian and Greek treasures excavated near Kerch in the Crimea. The series was awarded a gold medal and brought international acclaim to the House of Fabergé.
Erik Kollin, a chief workmaster for Fabergé at the time, designed the series working closely with the Scythian gold kept at the Hermitage Museum. Through careful study of the original works, Kollin and his apprentices became highly skilled in the art of the ancient goldsmiths.
The present bangle is of particular interest as it is the only known example decorated with blue and green enamel. For another similar bangle without enamel, see A.K. Snowman, The Art of Carl Fabergé, London, 1962, pl. 217.