Taperstick thumbnail 1
Taperstick thumbnail 2
On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

This object consists of 2 parts, some of which may be located elsewhere.

Taperstick

1908-1917 (designed and made)
Artist/Maker
Faberge (designed and made)
Afanassiev, Fedor (made)
Place of origin
St Petersburg (designed and made)

Gold taperstick holder, enamelled translucent pale blue over a moiré guillochage, with chased yellow and green gold swags and festoons, the mounts finely chased with laurel and acanthus leaves, the sconce a circular piece of rock crystal. Signed with the initials of the workmaster Fedor Afanassiev. Engraved with the inventory number 18890.

Object details

Categories
Metalwork
Lighting
Object type
Taperstick
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Taperstick
  • Case
Materials and techniques
Gold, enamel, rock crystal.
Gold
Enamel
Rock Crystal
Brief description
Gold taperstick holder, Fabergé, 1908-1917.
Physical description
Gold taperstick holder, enamelled translucent pale blue over a moiré guillochage, with chased yellow and green gold swags and festoons, the mounts finely chased with laurel and acanthus leaves, the sconce a circular piece of rock crystal. Signed with the initials of the workmaster Fedor Afanassiev. Engraved with the inventory number 18890.
Dimensions
  • Diameter: 25mm
  • Height: 95mm
  • Width: 25mm
Gallery label
(2021)
Theme label:

FABERGÉ’S CUSTOMERS:ENTREPRENEURS AND FINANCIERS

During Fabergé’s time in London, the British aristocracy’s share of national wealth was waning. Their economic dominance was challenged by newcomers from the world of commerce. Money from international businesses flowed into the city and people made immense fortunes in the fields of finance and industry. Many of those with recently acquired wealth began to share the royal taste for Fabergé’s work and became customers of his London branch.

Tombstone label:
Taper stick
Workmaster: Fedor Afanassiev
About 1911
St Petersburg
Gold, enamel, rock crystal
Bought by Lady Cooper, heiress to a property and banking fortune, in February 1911
The Woolf Family Collection
Credit line
Gift of the Harry and Josiane Woolf collection
Object history
Signed with the Workmaster Fedor Afanassiev, St. Petersburg, 1908-1917, inventory number 18890.
Gift of the Harry and Josiane Woolf collection.
Purchased from Fabergé’s London branch by Lady Cooper on 8th February 1911 for £17-10s.
Lady Cooper was one of the many American heiresses who moved to London and patronised Fabergé’s London branch. She married George Cooper, later Sir George, in 1887, and they acquired Hursley Park in Hampshire, once the home of Oliver Cromwell’s son, in 1902.

Exhibited:
Carl Fabergé: A Private Collection, Wartski, 2012, no 8.
Fabergé Romance to Revolution, V&A, 2021-2022.
Published:
Fabergé Romance to Revolution, V&A, 2021.
Fabergé in London, Kieran McCarthy (Woodbridge, 2017) page 171.
Carl Fabergé: A Private Collection, Wartski, 2012, page 14.
Bibliographic references
  • Fabergé Romance to Revolution, V&A, 2021.
  • Fabergé in London, Kieran McCarthy (Woodbridge, 2017) page 171.
  • Carl Fabergé: A Private Collection, Wartski, 2012, page 14.
Collection
Metalwork Collection
Accession number
M.24-2022

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Record createdApril 13, 2021
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1605284/taperstick-afanassiev-fedor/
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