The “Winter” Fabergé egg from the collection of Nicholas II could fetch more than $26 million at a Christie’s auction, CBS News reported.
The auction will take place in London on December 2.
The “Winter” egg was created for the Russian imperial family for Easter 1913. The design was developed by young jeweler Alma Peel, daughter of one of Fabergé’s master craftsmen, Carl Fabergé. The egg’s shell is made of rock crystal and is decorated with engravings imitating frozen crystals. Decorated with more than 4,000 diamonds, it stands on a crystal stand that looks like melting ice. Inside the egg is a basket with a bouquet of snowdrops made of quartz and jadeite. Emperor Nicholas II gifted this jewel to his mother, Empress Maria Feodorovna.
