The Decorative Arts: Master Works of Fabergé from Southern Collections

Art lovers rejoice! The Fabergé Gallery at the New Orleans Museum of Art is re-opened. The new exhibition, made possible by a group of Southern collectors, is larger and contains a broader range of Fabergé objects than the Museum has ever exhibited before.

There are a total of 82 objects on exhibition, not including 44 miniature Easter Eggs by Fabergé which are displayed on three separate objects: 13 on a miniature golden tree, 19 on a 17th century gold Russian necklace and 12 on a bracelet.

Those that were charmed by the Matilda Geddings Gray Foundation Collection of Fabergé, now at its new home at the Cheekwood Museum in Nashville, should also be delighted with the new collection, some of which has never been displayed publicly.

The new installation includes, but is not limited to, Fabergé Easter Eggs, a box in the form of an Easter egg, a pink clock set with peals that was owned by the last Tsarina of Russia, a Bismark Box laden with 90 carats of diamonds, an Imperial Horse Guard helmet, cigarette and card cases, clocks, inkwells, letter knives, glue pots, photograph frames and stamp viewers.

But the collection is not all glitter and gold. Fans of history will be fascinated by an enamel and palisander wood frame that contains a period photograph of the Grand Duchess Anastasia in court dress. Anastasia, of course, was one of the many victims of the Russian revolution.