Ivan Khlebnikov Easter egg with a miniature of the Miracle of St. George and the Dragon, Moscow, 1908-1917

Silver, enamel, gilding

3 7/8 x 2 5/8 in. (9.9 x 6.8 cm)

Inv. no. ab_0701

Exhibited: 

Moscow, Gosudarstvennyi istoriko-kulʹturnyi muzei-zapovednik "Moskovskii Kremlʹ", “Karl Faberzhe i Fedor Riukert. Shedevry russkoi emali,” 9 October 2020 – 14 February 2021, no. 387.

Publications:

Muntyan, T.N. Karl Faberzhe i Fedor Riukert. Shedevry russkoi emali. Moscow: Gosudarstvennyi istoriko-kulʹturnyi muzei-zapovednik "Moskovskii Kremlʹ", 2020. Cat. no. 387.

The enameling of this egg is unusual because of the minimal use of wires and its resemblance to a watercolor or oil painting. Shapes and volumes such as the figure of the saint, his horse, and the dragon are all painted with transparent enamels in the manner of a slightly abstract watercolor painting. This is particularly apparent in the saint’s face and the “scales” of the dragon’s body.

St. George is the patron saint of Moscow. The iconic image of him slaying a dragon symbolizing evil has appeared on the city seal for hundreds of years (with the exception of the Soviet era). The ogee-, or pointed arch-, shaped frame above his head recalls the decoration of many of the medieval churches dotting the city.