Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Gifts of Grandeur: A Kangaroo and its Baby by Carl Fabergé, 1913




The Royal Collection
Crown Copyright
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II


In November of 1913, King George V purchased this carving by Carl Fabergé from Fabergé's London branch as a gift for his wife, Queen Mary. The humorous carving of a kangaroo and baby cost the King £23.

Like her mother-in-law, Queen Alexandra, before her, Queen Mary collected the extraordinary range of animals that Fabergé produced. The sculpture is made of Siberian nephrite rather than a more realistically-colored stone for a whimsical effect.  However, 
Fabergé, as always took great care in representing the anatomy of the animal as accurately as possible, even setting the eyes with rose-cut diamonds.




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