INSIGNIA AND BADGES of Fabergé firm

 

The group of "insignia and badges of the Russian Empire" is one of the most dynamic sectors of the antique market. The prices for some insignia are amounted not in tens but in hundred thousands of rubles. "Badges of the Russian Empire" (1995-2003), a three-volume of Patrikeeva S.B. and Boynovich A.D., is the most authoritative monograph helping collectors to navigate in the wonderful world of the Russian faleristics. However, many questions still have to be solved. For example, how many kinds of insignia have been produced by great Fabergé firm? Only 18 years ago after the publication of the memoirs of Franz Bierbaum (Chief Craftsmen of the firm), researchers have found out about Tileman's workshop. Analyzing the group of the firm's "gold jewelry" after the workshops of Perkhin and Petrov, Birbaum notes:

"The third Tileman's workshop produced anniversary insignia and other insignia, badges, and orders exclusively. Performance of this work was of necessity in some way. Many firm's customers were not satisfied with the orders and insignia of official type (The Chapter of Orders – V.S.) of extremely slovenly workmanship and turned to the firm for the same of an art work. The workshop was mostly engaged in fulfilling these special orders and mass production of badges sometimes. After the death of the owner, the workshop was taken over by the firm itself, and it was run by the craftsmen Nikolaev V.G."

       Mr. Ivanov A.N., General Director of the Russian National Museum, has published archival documents on the activities of Fabergé ("Unknown Faberge", Moscow: 2002). Among others, the List of orders fulfilled by Fabergé in 1914-1916 for defense purposes was released to public. This List is illustrated by us with the images of insignia from the monograph of Patrikeeva and Boinovich and catalogues.

    Besides, the documents of the Russian State Historical Archive make possible to give the low-down about the orders of insignia and badges of Fabergé firm on the part of the members of the Imperial Family and the Cabinet of His Majesty. It is clear from this list that the Emperor Nicholas II remade the screws on the insignia into the pins many times, apparently in order not to damage the uniform with the holes for the screws. It is also obvious that the tsar had several copies of the same insignia which were located on different uniforms. We present data on several episodes of such jewelry operation which cost 6.8 rubles. Note that the engagement ring of 56^th hallmark weighing 4 grams cost 6 rubles.

                    INSIGNIA
01/21/1899 "Alexander III" Silver Badge, the Empress Maria Fyodorovna, 21 rubles.
04/30/1919 Inventory of goods of C. Fabergé shop, Moscow, Kuznetsky Bridge - 10 different insignia.
              The Emperor Nicholas II:
04/14/1906 A gold pin has been attached to the Sea sign, 6 rubles.
07/09/1907 A pin has been attached to the sign of the Rifle Regiment, 6 rubles.
10/20/1907 A pin has been made for the own sign of the Jager Regiment, 4 rubles.
04/09/1910 A hook and a pin have been attached to the sign of the 100th anniversary of the Ural Cossack hundred of the Mixed-Cossack Regiment, 4 rubles.
08/05/1910 A pin has been attached to the sign of the Imperial Guard Regiment of His Imperial Majesty, Crown Prince, 6 rubles.

12/21/1910 Pins have been made for own six lapel badges, 50 rubles.
01/29/1912 A pin has been made from the sign of the Lancer Regiment of His Imperial Majesty, 8 rubles.
08/03/1912 Pins have been made for own two insignia of the Imperial Guard Jager Regiment, 8 rubles.
10/04/1912 A gold pin has been made from the sign of the Pavlovsky regiment, 9 rubles.
12/31/1912 A wide gold pin has been made from the sign, 10 rubles.
01/09/1913 A new pin and a hook has been made for the sign of the Imperial Guard Combat Engineer Regiment, 8 rubles. The Cabinet of His Majesty (data is incomplete; the invoices are missing for a number of years):

09/02/1908 The sign "for accompanying of the Imperial train», Ist degree, 75 rubles.
08/20/1908 The same, 5 pcs, 375 rubles.
09/16/1909 The same, 3 pcs, 225 rubles.
01/05/1910 The same, 3 pcs, 225 rubles.
03/01/1910 The same, 2 pcs, 150 rubles.
01/12/1911 The same, 2 pcs, 150 rubles.
11/29/1911 The same, 2 pcs, 150 rubles.
10/30/1912 The same, 3 pcs, 225 rubles.
10/29/1911 Insignia "for accompanying of the Imperial Train", 2nd class, 40 rubles, 2 pcs, amounting to 80 rubles.
10/29/1912 The same, 16 pcs, amounting to 640 rubles.

                     BADGES:
The Empress Maria Fyodorovna

11/26/1904 The badge of the Cuirassier Regiment of blue and yellow enamel, with a chain, 7 pcs at the price of 35 rubles, amounting to 245 rubles.
05/20/1904 The badge of the Life Cuirassier Guards Regiment of Her Imperial Majesty, 75 pcs at the price of 35 rubles, amounting to 2,625 rubles.

11/26/1904 The Cuirassier Regiment, 15 badges at the price of 35 rubles, amounting to 525 rubles.
03/ 31/1906 Red and white enamel with silver eagles and monogram of Her Imperial Majesty and "XXV" mark at the price of 35 rubles amounting to 2,800 rubles.
06/13/1906 The Cuirassier Regiment of blue and yellow enamel with a chain, 6 pcs at the price of 35 rubles, amounting to 210 rubles.
 08/23/1906 The silver ones, gilded with "MF" marking, royal crown and the date "1880-1905, May 23", 830 badges (at the price of 85 kopecks and 830 gold chains (at the price of 15 kopecks) – to the lower ranks of the Cuirassier Regiment of Her Majesty, amounting to 830 rubles.

08/23/1906 Silver ones with "MF" mark, royal crown and the date "1881-1906, March 2", 835 badges (75 kopecks and 9/835 chains (at the price of 10 kopecks) to the lower ranks of the Cavalry Regiment of Her Majesty, 709 rubles and 75 kopecks.
02/19/1908 The Cavalry Regiment, 113 badges at the price of 36 rubles, amounting to 4068 rubles.
03/31/1911 Silver badges with pink and white enamel and marking Empress Maria Fyodorovna for the officers of the 2nd Life Dragoon Regiment of Her Majesty, 44 pieces at the price of 15 rubles, amounting to 660 rubles.
09/09/1914 Enamel Chevalier Guards badge with a Golden Eagle and "MF" mark, 36 rubles.
12/08/1914 Enamel Chevalier Guards badge with a Golden Eagle and "MF" mark, 36 rubles.

        

BADGES:
        The Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna
07/11/1896 Coronation badges, 10 pcs at the price of 16 rubles amounting to 169 rubles.
12/22/1899 Badges of dead gold, four-cornered with "1899" numbers, 11 pcs at the price of 18 rubles amounting to 198 rubles.

09/01/1906 Flag-standard of dead gold, with one enamel eagle at the price of 23 rubles.
08/04/1907 "Maritime flags" gold badges, 3 pcs at the price of 44 rubles amounting to 132 rubles.
09/04/1907 "Standart" badge, golden flag with enamel eagle, at the price of 44 rubles. To Lieutenant Euler (at halves with the Emperor)
09/27/1907 Gold flag with enamel eagle. "X" and "1906" on the reverse side, at the price of 44 rubles. (At halves with the Emperor)
10/03/1908 Two gold flags were made, "Standart" badge, 2 pcs at the price of 44 rubles, amounting to 88 rubles.

11/07/1910 Gold badge with three flies (bees – V.S.), enamel, imperial crown, engraving, at the price of 85 rubles.
06/28/1911 Badges with engraving in French, 2 pcs at the price of 20 rubles amounting to 40 rubles.
06/30/1911 Two badges with a standard, in the name of "Nilov" and "Sablin," at the price of 44 rubles, amounting to 88 rubles.
07/19/1912 Flag-Standard of brushed gold with enamel eagle, 23 rubles.
06/08/1913 Badge-standard, gold, enamel eagle, 23 rubles to Babitsin
07/19/1913 Badge-standard, gold, enamel eagle, 23 rubles to Elenitsin

                                                      

LITERATURE.

       1. Patrikeev S.P., Boynovich A.D. Badges of the Russian Empire. In 3 volumes. Moscow-St.Petersburg: 1995-2003
        2. Ivanov A.N. Badges of the Russian Empire. M.: 2004 – It were presented 200 badges, 66 names of craftsmen were listed, there were the adverse and the reverse of the badges in photographs and sometimes the hallmarks were shown large. Apart of A.Tileman the badges were performed by the craftsmen Vigstrem A., Holming A, Holmstrem A., Shramm E., Nevalaynen A., Jaccard A., Koystinen O., Kopponen E. with Fabergé.
        3. Boynovich A.D., Dotsenko V.D. The Russian Imperial Navy in the insignia and badges. SPb: 2002.

        4. Sekretev K.S. Regimental badges fulfilled by Fabergé against the order of the Empress Maria Fyodorovna / Materials of the conference dedicated to the 300th anniversary of VIIAIV and BC. SPb: 2003.
        5. Peters A., Ilina T.N. Badges of the Russian Imperial Army. Moscow: 2004.
        6. Matlin D., Skurlov V. Regimental badges / "Antique Review" Magazine, # 4 (17), 2005.
        7. Awards of Russia. Numismatic auction catalog of "Coins and Medals" firm. Moscow: December  1, 2007

                8. Items of military history. Orders, medals, and insignia of the Russian Empire. Auction # 3 of "Kabinet" firm. Moscow: September 29, 2007.
        9. Faleristics/"ANTIQUES. Objects of art and antiques" Magazine, # 3 (45), 2007.
        10. Insignia of the Imperial Guard/"ANTIQUES. Objects of art and collecting" magazine # 9 (50), 2007.
        11. Insignia and badges of the Russian Guard/"ANTIQUES. Objects of art and collecting" magazine # 10 (51), 2007
        12. Market of faleristics: Imperial Russia /"ANTIQUES. Objects of art and collecting" magazine, # 11 (52), 2007.

       10. Dobrovolskaya L.I. (The State Hermitage). Unknown hallmark of Fabergé firm craftmaster / Collection of "Jewelry Art and Material Culture" articles, Saint Petersburg, 2001, pages 211-213. Note that there is "Е.Т." French hallmark on August Holming's box with the hallmark of Yakov Lyapunov ("Faberge court jeweler" exhibition, 1993), and "ET" hallmark belonging to Elizabeth Tileman, widow of August Tileman cannot be by no means. "ET" hallmark could appear only after 1909. Alfred Tileman died in November 1909, not in 1910. Hallmark could not belong to Eugene Maksimilianovich, widow's brother, because his surname was not Tileman, but Kessler, and he was not a jeweler. "Е.Т." and "ET" hallmarks acted, obviously, in the years 1910-1914. In autumn 1914, the members of Tileman's family were expelled from St. Petersburg as German nationals. The workshop was led by craftsman Nikolaev (who did not put his hallmark). "КФ" (Carl Fabergé") hallmark was put on badges. "Е.Т." hallmark could belong to the son of Alfred Tileman - Emil Alfredovich, and "ET" (without full points) could belong to the widow Elizabeth Maksimilianovna.

Valentin Skurlov