Fabergé has unveiled the Diamond Jubilee Egg (a celebration of Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee) as the major prize in the Fabergé Big Egg Hunt in London.
Crafted from 500 grams of rose gold and featuring 60 diamonds, emeralds, rubies and sapphires set in the pleats of its quilted surface, the Egg’s design is based on Fabergé’s Matelassé jewellery collection and is valued at £100,000.
The Egg is the major prize in the Fabergé Big Egg Hunt, which seeks to raise £1 million for two charities – Action for Children and The Elephant Family.
Held in central London for 40 days until Easter, the Big Egg Hunt invites the public to search for over 200 eggs, each around 75cm tall and decorated by renowned designers and artists.
Each egg holds a unique code which, when texted to the number provided via SMS, provides one entry to win the Diamond Jubilee Egg − charges apply to each text message, with the proceeds going to the two charities.
Sarah Fabergé, great granddaughter of Peter Carl Fabergé and special projects director at Fabergé, said the company was thrilled to be involved in “a fun-filled, public event celebrating creativity across so many artistic disciplines, and raising funds for two exceptionally deserving charities”.
The top 30 designer eggs in the Hunt and Fabergé’s ‘Le Collier Plume d’Or’ (a one-of-a- kind emerald and gold pendant brandishing a 127.76 carat emerald cabochon) will then be auctioned by Sotheby’s to further raise funds for the two charities.
According to Sarah Fabergé, Le Collier Plume d’Or has been created to “re-imagine and pay homage to” the artistry and ingenuity of the iconic jewelled Imperial Easter Eggs.
The design was inspired by the rich, textured golden feathers of the hen hidden inside the Hen Egg, the very first of the Imperial Easter Eggs made by Peter Carl Fabergé in 1885 for Tsar Alexander III to give as an Easter present to his wife, Tsarina Maria Fedorovna.
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