a fine fabergé gilded silver and translucent enamel jewel box, workmaster Feodor Afanassiev, St. Petersburg, 1899-1908

of rectangular shape, raised on four paw feet, the hinged cover and sides enameled translucent pale purple over a guilloché ground, the sides applied with foliate swags, the cover applied with a wreath, the borders chased with acanthus leaves, marked with Cyrillic initials of workmaster, Fabergé in Cyrillic and 88 standard and 91 standard.

Sold, Sotheby's, New York, March 1, 1980, lot 437

Gerard Hill, Fabergé and the Russian Master Goldsmiths, Levin, New York, 1989, pl.113, p.114

This jewel box perfectly displays the technical mastery and brilliant effect of Fabergé’s enameling technique. The successful enameling of such large surfaces was an accomplishment few contemporary goldsmiths could claim. The technique of enameling is an extremely delicate one involving firing the enamel (a compound of glass and metal oxides) at very high temperatures well over 1000 degrees Farenheit. The pleasing appearance of this box was obtained by first engraving the design on the silver body of the box using a machine known as a tour à guilloche, then enameling over this design in translucent pale purple. Using this turning device, the tour à guilloche, a variety of patterns called guilloché patterns could be engraved on silver or gold, the most popular being sunburst and moiré designs. Fabergé used this method to stunning effect, exemplified by this large jewel box.