Tazza in purpurin in a classical style gilded bronze setting Faberge set Werfel factory lapidary work height 16.2 cm.
The most famous works of the Faberge firm are, of course, imperial Easter eggs, stone-cut figurines, jewelry flower arrangements. However, this is far from a complete list. It is hard to imagine what kind of jewelry made of gold or silver, precious or ornamental stones could not be found in Faberge stores. The most responsible orders were carried out by the central St. Petersburg branch, silverware was mainly produced by the Moscow branch of the company. Experimenting with various materials, the Fabergé masters created real masterpieces of jewelry art using materials unusual for jewelry: wood, glass, and even papier-mâché.
One such material is purpurine, a rare form of opaque glass that is bright red in color. Purpurine can have different shades, depending on impurities, but the most beautiful, which I would call lingonberry, the French call sang-de-boeuf (bull’s blood). Purpurin is often confused by name with purpurite, but these are completely different things, purpurite is a mineral.
Gold bracelet with purpurine and diamonds master Mikhail Perkhin Faberge firm circa 1890.
Physical properties of purpurin: intense color, density, matte surface; make it look like a mineral. Purpurine was invented more than once, at different times and in different countries. Masters kept their inventions secret, the composition of purpurine and its properties were different. In Russia, purpurine was first produced at the Imperial Glassworks by craftsman Leopoldo Bonafede (1833-1878), a chemist, mosaicist and student of Michelangelo Barberi, who was hired in 1851, along with his elder brother Giustiniano (1825-1866), to create a new range of glass colors and smalt at the Imperial glass factory. He developed a formula for purpurin, which brought great success to the Russian manufactory at the international exhibition in Paris in 1867.
Chemical analysis of the Faberge purpurine dating back to 1880 shows that it is soda glass, which differs significantly from the lead-potassium purpurine produced at the Imperial Glassworks in the 1860s. It has been suggested that Fabergé’s purpurine was created by Sergei Petukhov, a chemist at the Imperial Manufactory, who retired from the Imperial Glassworks in 1878.
This large boat shaped purpurine ladle in a gilded silver frame stands on a stand with gilded silver supports in the form of oncoming waves by Julus Rappoport before 1896.Pendant with a Maltese cross made of purpurine in a setting of gold and enamel craftsman Eric Collin Faberge firm St. Petersburg see circa 1890.Purpurine swan pendant set in gold and diamonds craftsman Eric Collin Faberge firm St. Petersburg height 2 cm, circa 1890.Gold pin decorated with a purpurin egg entwined with a gold snake with a diamond length 19 cm Faberge firm Moscow 1899-1908.Egg pendant made of purpurine in a gold setting with diamonds Faberge firm St. Petersburg late 19th century.Egg pendant in a gold setting with diamonds by Eric Collin Faberge firm St. Petersburg circa 1900.Purpurine egg pendant in a gold setting with diamonds by Eric Collin Faberge firm St. Petersburg, circa 1895.Purpurine pendant in a gold setting with diamonds craftsman August Holming Faberge firm St. Petersburg height 1.5 cm, circa 1900.Casket made of purpurine in a frame of two tone gold craftsman Henrik Wigstrom Faberge firm St. Petersburg length 13.4 cm, circa 1913.Umbrella handle in purpurin framed in gilded silver embellished with translucent bands of apple green enamel by Hjalmar Armfelt Faberge firm St. Petersburg, circa 1910.Two purpurine pendants in a gold setting craftsman Andrey Adler Faberge firm St. Petersburg length 6 cm, circa 1900.Purpurine jewelry box in gold frame with white enamel clasp with rose cut diamond craftsman Henrik Wigstrom Faberge firm St. Petersburg length 6 cm, 1903-1904.Seal with the state coat of arms in purpurine in a bicolor gold frame height 7.2 cm by Mikhail Perkhin Faberge firm St. Petersburg circa 1890A stack in the form of a headdress of an officer of the Life Guards Cossack Regiment made of silver and purpurine craftsman Eric Collin Faberge firm St. Petersburg late 19th century.Purpurine tray in a silver frame Faberge firm Moscow 1899 1908.Toothpick case made of purpurin in a gold frame set with diamonds craftsman Henrik Wigstrom Faberge firm St. Petersburg 1908 1917.Umbrella handle made of purpurin framed in two tone gold decorated with white guilloche enamel and diamonds workmaster Mikhail Perkhin Faberge firm St. Petersburg circa 1895Paper knife in the shape of a scimitar in a gold frame decorated with purpurine by Eric Collin Faberge firm St. Petersburg circa 1895Umbrella handle made of purpurin framed in two tone gold decorated with white guilloche enamel and orange garnets craftsman Fyodor Afanasiev Faberge firm St. Petersburg 1907 1908.Purpurine casket in a gold frame with white enamel craftsman Henrik Wigstrom Faberge firm St. Petersburg 4.9×4.9×2.1 cm 1908 1917 from the Royal Collection of Great Britain.
