A Fabergé Study of Cornflower and Oats in a Rock Crystal Vase, Workmaster Henrik Wigström, St. Petersburg, circa 1910

the flower enameled cornflower blue, the stem with three leaves enameled translucent green, the other gold stem with five branches of oats, in a carved rock crystal baluster-shaped vase

some restoration to the green enamel leaves, some restoration and reshaping the branches of the oats
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Conceived as elegant antidotes to the bleak harshness of winter, precious objects in the form of floral sprays have a long history in Russia, dating back to the mid 18^th century. Inspired by earlier examples as well as Japanese prints, Carl Fabergé sought a fresh, delicate simplicity in his firm's flower studies, an illusion at odds with the meticulous exactitude with which they were designed and crafted. One of only approximately eighty flower studies thought to have been produced by Fabergé's workshops, the present lot is rarer still in having enameled leaves; the resulting effect is one of greater naturalism in comparison with the more usual flower studies, their leaves of carved nephrite.

The cornflower, or Centaureacyanus, like nearly all the species chosen by Fabergé to serve as models, holds romantic meaning.  Also known as "the Bachelor's button", cornflowers were traditionally worn by young men in love. This connotation may have been on the mind of the late Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, who purchased a Fabergé cornflower during the Second World War. Placing it in the room at Buckingham Palace in which she was taking shelter from the air raids, Queen Elizabeth described it as "a charming thing, and so beautifully unwarlike" (see Caroline de Guitaut, Fabergé in the Royal Collection, London, 2003, pp. 132). The flower remains in the British Royal Collection (RCIN 100010), along with a combination cornflower and buttercup study (RCIN 100011). Two cornflowers were recorded in the collection of Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna, one with diamonds, the other in a Tiffany vase (Antikvarnoe obozrenie No.3/2001, pp. 21, 38).  Another, once owned by Prince Yussupof, is in the State Hermitage Museum (illustrated, Marilyn Pfeifer Swezey, Fabergé Flowers, New York, 2004, p. 20). Other examples are in the Matilda Geddings Gray Collection at Cheekwood and the Lillian Thomas Pratt Collection in Richmond (VMFA 47-20-222). The offered lot is from a distinguished American private collection that once included several Fabergé eggs, including the Pine Cone Egg made for Barbara Kelch, and many other important works acquired from Armand Hammer, A la Vieille Russie and Wartski.