few perhaps unpleasant surprises,
namely that most of the flowers
sold by Armand Hammer to
Mrs. Pratt were forgeries. I was
nevertheless given carte blanche.
The exquisite nature of the
genuine articles shown alongside
the later forgeries turned out to
be the hoped-for revelation.
Q6. The Habsburg were a
noble family in Austria,
and you are linked to the
Romanovs by working for
Fabergé. In your opinion,
would Peter Carl Fabergé
be proud of what you are
doing and that you are
one of many who are
keeping the standards and
name ‘Fabergé’ alive?
GVH: One of the main sources
of inspiration for young Fabergé
was the art of Johann Melchior
Dinglinger, a highly gifted
goldsmith active at the court of
Elector Augustus the Strong of
Saxony (another of my ancestors)
in around 1700. Fabergé was
fascinated by Dinglinger’s art
and by the art objects housed in
the Green Vaults, the Saxon royal
family’s museum, some of which
he copied, or used as sources
of inspiration. I think that Fabergé
would have been proud to see
a descendant of Augustus the
Strong so deeply involved with his
own art, promoting the same high
standards of craftsmanship and
beauty this present day.
Q7. You have written many
books and catalogues on
the history of Russian art
collections and Fabergé.
What advice would you give
to future collectors of Russian
Art and Fabergé? And why is it
important to have such history
in 2020?
GVH: The present art market for
pre-Revolutionary Fabergé is a
minefield for future collectors.
Forgeries abound in the
thousands. Only a handful of
specialists, some in the leading
auction houses, but most of
them experienced dealers, are
qualified to “pontificate” as to
authenticity. To start a collection
today without the advice of such
an expert is madness. Some
credulous collectors have spent
millions, if not tens of millions,
in order to acquire “Fabergé
Collections” with prestigious
provenances – all purely fictitious.
To buy jewels and objects of
art created by the present
Fabergé company is to buy
into the history of the legendary
Peter Carl Fabergé. A remaining
descendant of Fabergé in
Europe, his great-granddaughter,
Sarah, forms part of the board
supervising the firm’s production.
Thousands of drawings from the
original Fabergé workshops still
exist and can serve as guidelines
for the present design studio.
The House of Fabergé, founded
in 1845, is the only firm which
July 2020
Polo De’Marco