The cost of eggs has become a popular item on the US Consumer Price Index, now sitting at 497.05 — a 60.44% change since April last year.
Headlines across news sites and social cite how families skipping egg painting this year and adapting traditions to be more budget friendly.
Of course, egg prices aside, turbulent economic conditions and inflation are also contributing to the need for more affordable Easter festivities. For example, some families are opting to paint marshmallows instead.
This reflects a fascinating historical pattern of how holiday rituals and traditions have been created, refined and entrenched based on not just spiritual or religious beliefs but also our financial and physical environments.
For example, carving turnips was a pagan Irish activity that transformed into pumpkin carvings during the Halloween season in the US.
Possibly the most luxurious Easter tradition of all time belonged to the Russian Imperial Family and their love of Fabrege Easter Eggs.
Easter royalty
A Fabergé Egg is a decadent, ornate piece of jewelled art in the shape of an egg, naturally. They’re made of fine materials like gold and embellished with stunning sparkling stones intricately arranged. Each had a unique surprise element inside, giving them extra meaning and exquisiteness.
Each original Fabergé egg is valued in the millions with the most prized egg sitting at $33 million.
At Easter, Fabergé eggs were delivered to members of of the Russian Royal family as gifts.
The tradition started with Emperor Alexander III, who commissioned Peter Carl Fabergé to create a special gift for his wife, Empress Maria Feodorovna.
Alexander III instructed the jeweller to place a ruby pendant of immense value inside the egg as a surprise.
In House of Fabergé’s own words, the eggs are “inextricably linked to the glory and tragic fate of the last Romanov family” and were the “ultimate achievement of the renowned Russian jewellery house”.
Designing tradition
During the reign of Emperor Alexander III, 10 eggs were produced from 1885 to 1893. Another 40 were created under Alexander’s son, Nicholas II, who expanded the tradition to include the creation of two eggs per year—one his mother and for his second wife.
After the first commission, Fabergé was named ‘goldsmith by special appointment to the Imperial Crown’, and their partnership flourished over the next 31 years.
During this time, the company was given full creative agency over the design of the eggs on the condition is each would contain a beautiful reveal inside.
The Fabergé legacy
After the Romanov dynasty collapsed in 1917, the House of Fabergé was nationalized by the Bolsheviks. The Fabergé family fled to Switzerland amidst the fresh set of chaos.
Presently, Fabergé has branches in Moscow, Odessa, Kiev, and London. The Fabergé Museum in Saint Petersburg showcases a wide collection of Fabergé Imperial Easter eggs, including nine of the famous eggs commissioned by the last two Russian Tsars.
Other Fabergé creations including jewelry, silverware, and decorative objects are also on display.
Luxury investments
Fabergé, of course, still designs and sells their signature decorative eggs. They are luxury assets widely deemed as worthy investment pieces.
There was a strong buzz about the potential of the company’s first ever Christmas egg as a peak investment opportunity.
The eggs belonging to the Imperial collection are clearly worth the most in hardware and artistic value. The majority belong to Museums, European royalty, the Russian government and handful are in the possesion of private collectors.
A chance golden ticket
In 2015, a man from America’s Midwest literally struck gold in a baffling and captivating stroke of luck.
The man, who remains anonymous, came across a small golden egg shaped creation at a junk market. He bought it, thinking he could sell it for scrap metal for $500 if that.
After much rejection, he grew frustrated and decided to google “egg” and the name engraved into the object: Vacheron Constantin.
He was dumbfounded to discover that his junk metal find could be Russian treasure missing for almost 100 years. The antique was officially assesed and confirmed to be the Third Imperial Egg — an Easter gift for Empress Maria Feodorovna from Alexander III in 1887.
The egg famously has the highest value at USD$33 million. An anonymous private collector purchased it shortly after it’s remarkable discovery.
Reflections
The Fabrege Easter Eggs will always be a profound part of Russian history. Each egg is a symbol of historical figures, a striking descripancy of wealth and lost legacies as well as high art, beauty and nostaglia.
For more about Fabrege eggs, their worth and back stories, click here.
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