Fabergé Collection, Rare Gold Boxes Offered in Christie’s Sales

By Annie Davidson Watson | April 08, 2025

Christie’s is ushering in spring with its Collections series of online auctions from New York, London, and Paris, with a notable group of Fabergé pieces in London’s sale and rare gold boxes in the Paris event.

Open for bidding through April 9, the London auction features one of the most significant Fabergé collections to come to market in decades. The Fabergé pieces belonged to Lady Zia Wernher (1892–1977) and her husband, Sir Harold Wernher (1893–1973), and many of them boast imperial Russian provenance, as Lady Zia inherited them from her parents, Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich of Russia and Countess Sophie of Merenberg.

Faberge strawberries — Fabergé wild strawberries in red enamel, with leaves crafted of nephrite and a flower of pearls and rose diamonds set in gold and silver, all in a vase of rock crystal, circa 1900, estimate $160,000–$230,000

Fabergé highlights include Lady Zia’s whimsical animal figurines and remarkably lifelike hard-stone renditions of flowers and plants, such as the delicate forget-me-nots pictured at top. They are made of turquoise and enamel and accented with rose-cut diamonds, with their gold stems gathered in a rock crystal vase—the piece dates to around 1900 and carries a Christie’s estimate between $200,000 and $320,000.

Faberge pig — *Fabergé pig in agate with ruby cabochon eyes, estimate $7,800–$10,000*

Paris’ Collections sale, open for bidding through April 15, presents a curated assortment of elegant gold boxes dating to various eras, from an 18th-century German enameled lady’s snuff box by the Souchay brothers (estimate $11,000–$17,000) to a striking art deco Cartier cigarette box with an Asian artistic influence.

Cartier cigarette — *Cartier* laque-burgauté *cigarette box in 18k yellow gold with lapis lazuli and diamonds, circa 1925, estimate $28,000–$39,000*

With exquisite items from the estates of nobility as well as private owners, Christie’s Collections sales offer the opportunity to acquire objects steeped in history and craftsmanship, with a touch of imperial romance.

(Photos courtesy of Christie’s Images Ltd. 2025)

Follow me on Instagram: @anniedavidsonwatson