Merida, Mex., (Notimex). - An egg covered with gold, the pillow that knew the dreams the tsarist royalty, a dress with blood stains that dates from the awakening of the Russian Revolution, these and other pieces from the world of privilege and opulence in which Tsar Nicholas II lived, can still can be admired... and now here in Mexico.  The "Blue Winter Egg", created in gold and silver with1,753 sapphires presented at its base is estimated at several million dollars and earns the premiere place among the collection of 30 pieces made by Carl Fabergé being exhibited.

The exterior of this exceptional work has the tree of the life and inside a phoenix which was created at the request of Tsar Nicholas II, a gift for his mother.  It can be seen in person in Merida in the southeastern part of Mexico.  Few imagine that in this calm city, known for its crafts made from henequen, huipil dresses on its women and its rich foods, that they will experience some of the most surprising treasures of Tsarist Russia and original works of Fabergé, the famous jeweler of the Russian imperial court who is renowned for his famous imperial Easter eggs. 

These treasures are reunited in the collection of Freddy Novelo.  There are more than 2,500 original pieces of Imperial Russia that date from the medieval era to the magical splendor of the Tsars.  Many of these pieces were property of the late Charles Rockefeller who bequeathed this collection to this Yucatecan, Freddy Novelo, currently  45 years old.  Among the collection can be seen nobility titles which were given by Catherine The Great, commemorative documents of the coronation and proclamation of Tsar Alexander III, as well as personal handwriting and photographs from the Duchess Anastasia which are spectacular. 

Extraordinary work was necessary to recover these important historical photographs, one of which is the last known photo of the mother of Tsar Nicholas II, Marie Feodorovna, just before she left Russia after the outbreak of the Russian revolution which ended the Tsarist reign.  The restoration works of the Fine Arts & Design Foundation Miami has already begun to show the fruits of its labor.  The foundation was created by Freddy Novelo and its president Mr. Christopher Clark with philanthropic goals in mind.

 This current exhibition contains only 200 pieces, as Mr. Novelo explains, and it  took him a long time to ascertain its value of his inheritance which is considered the most important and largest collection of imperial Russian objects in Latin America.   This has placed his collection within the 10 most important collections of Fabergé in the world.  "Fabergé, The Visit of the Czar" is the name that was chosen for the title of the exhibition which includes a porcelain cup, a favorite of his, which was used in the coronation of Nicholas II.

 A thousand of these porcelain cups were prepared for that event, one of which appears in this exhibition.   They were to be given to the onlookers as a souvenir of the ceremony.  From 4am in the morning of the 21 of May in 1896 more than a half million people had already formed hoping to receive one of them.   Three hours later at 7am, the crowd surpassed a million people when a rumor circulated that within one of those porcelain cups was a gold coin. The rumor was sufficient cause a avalanche of people each attempting to obtain one.  However very few were obtained, and in the aftermath of the crowd surge there were over 3,000 people who were trampled to death. 

 When the newly crowned Tsar became aware of the tragedy, he sent out an order to gather all the cups and destroy them.   For this reason the cup being exhibited has a high historical value, and the reason it makes it one of this collector’s preferred pieces in addition to the Blue Winter Egg.   The collection which Novelo inherited from his close friend Charles Rockefeller also includes a pillow, the same pillow on which Duchess Anastasia rested. "That pillow holds many memories because first it was witness to personal dreams of playing, games, vacations with her grandmother, times of beautiful dresses and extravagant meals, and then the eventual nightmare of the revolution and the uncertainty of her destiny", explains Mr. Novelo.

 And it is this same Anastasia who is one of the most well-known and fascinating personalities of the world of the Tsars.  She was witness to the fall of the Tsarist reign, and at times had a difficult life, yet at the same time, extraordinary.  The entire exhibition is full of surprising pieces and, like this one, each has a history in addition to its economic value. Each one reflects the opulent world that was created by the tsars, whose emotionless postures regarding the misery of the Russian people eventually collided writing the turbulent historical change of a country.  

 THE AUTHENCITY AND HISTORIC VALUE 

 Days ago, when he inaugurated the exhibition in the Merida, the ambassador of Russia in Mexico, Valery Ivánovich Morozov, was surprised by the mysticism which each piece holds.  But there was one which interested him in particular: an earring from the time of medieval Russia, and he commented that there were four similar pieces in the Hermitage Museum in Russia.  He knew that in the Russian Federation there had been five, but lacked one.  "The fifth piece is the one that you are seeing now” Novelo told the Ambassador while showing him  a book entitled “The Golden Treasure Trove of the Russian Museum”, which was created by experts of that nation and which shows a photo for the earring.  

“How did they obtain it from Russia?” exclaimed the surprised diplomat.  “I assured him that we did not take it, but someone must have” responded Novelo.  There is a dress that is believed to belong to one of the family members of Tsar Nicholas II.  It stands proud and reflects the majesty of the time for royal clothing.   But as well the dress is witness of their end.  There are holes in the dress made by bullets shot by the Bolsheviks who killed the royal family at the beginning of the Russian revolution.

THE ULTIMATE EXPRESSION OF FABERGE

Fabergé pieces have always called much attention, which is why his creations formed part of the Panrusa Exhibition in Moscow in 1882 where they received many recognitions from the Russian imperial court and other European monarchies.  His gold and enamel Easter eggs are objects of desire for many collectors. Since World War II there have been only six of these works of art offered for auction, and one of them, the "Winter Egg", which was believed lost until 1984, reached the record of 5.6 million dollars.  Fabergé was born May 30, 1846 in
St. Petersburg.  In 1870 he took charge his family’s jewelry shop and earned an excellent reputation as a designer. 

The creation process of each one of his pieces was always kept in strict secrecy, even from the people requisitioning the piece.  That detail made more desirable and that increased the price, giving his pieces the connotation of enchanted objects.  "On one occasion Fabergé met with Nicholas II and he told him that that year he will create one special egg.  The Tsar asked him for specific details but the jeweler always said “it’s a surprise”.   The history recounts that the Tsar was so intrigued and anxious with curiosity to know how the piece would look like that he would personally go to the Fabergé workshop to see the piece.  

"When Fabergé saw the Tsar opening the door, he would completely cover the work-in-progress and would ask the Tsar to please wait til it was finished and leave.  Finally the day arrived and the goldsmith gave to the Czar a commemorative egg, the Tercentenary Egg of Russia. Nicholas was in end pleased by the infinite beauty of the work ".  A ring which once belonged to Peter the Great which has an amazing green diamond, articles that belonged to the Romanov dynasty, a liturgical book collection, a plate from the set of dishes which Catherine the Great used daily, these pieces and more can be appreciated in this exhibition.

“I had a very intense feeling when I was notified of the inheritance”, Novelo relates.  “I was moved by Charles´ decision, but I knew that he left me a legacy with a great responsibility.  He left these historic treasures to the right person.  We were great friends, Novelo says, and he declined to comment in more detail, adding that this story which sounds like a fairy tale had changed the life of Freddy Novelo in 1992. 

There will be a lot of people who will see this collection as a "triviality", but for others there is insufficient money to cover the historical value and pay for the beauty of these objects and their infinite magic which each piece holds,  affirms Novelo, convinced that there is no monetary value that one can assign to this legacy.

By Tomás Martín / Especial Notimex

NTX/TAM

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