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拍品專文
It is exceptionally rare for original design books of such scale and precision as the present Henrik Wigström album to appear on the market. This remarkable album emerged in the 1990s, when descendants of Wigström’s neighbours discovered it tucked away in a bookcase in a private home in Finland. Its survival in such completeness makes it an extraordinary document of Fabergé’s creative process, offering unparalleled insight into the design and production of the firm’s most sophisticated objects.
Containing over a thousand meticulously detailed drawings, the album documents Fabergé's objects produced between 1911 and 1916, including clocks, bonbonnières, frames, parasol handles, bell-pushes, and more. Notably, the 1912 Imperial Napoleonic Easter Egg is among the illustrated pieces. Each design is drawn to scale and annotated with materials and techniques, serving as a testament to the extraordinary precision and artistry for which Fabergé’s workshop was renowned.
The primary purpose of the album was to serve as a visual reference for completed pieces. Most drawings are accompanied by a date and a production number, which should not be confused with the inventory numbers typically scratched onto objects after their entry into Fabergé’s sales ledgers. Since the discovery of this album, a number of Fabergé objects have been successfully matched to their corresponding designs, while many others remain unidentified.
The present Wigström album is comparable only to a handful of other archival discoveries: the stock books from Albert Holmström’s workshop, documenting jewellery designs from 1909 to 1915 and uncovered in the late 1980s; and a second Wigström album, located by Ulla Tillander-Godenhielm in the National Archives of Finland in the 2000s.
The second Wigström album, donated to the National Archives by the widow of Henrik Wigström’s son, is more modest in scale, containing just over 200 designs (see U. Tillander-Godenhielm, Fabergé: The Twilight Years, Drawings and Objects from the Second Henrik Wigström Album, 2023).
HENRIK WIGSTRÖM (1862–1923)
Henrik Wigström served as Fabergé’s head workmaster from 1903 to 1917, overseeing the most complex and technically demanding aspects of the firm’s production. Born in Finland, he moved to St Petersburg at the age of just thirteen to begin an apprenticeship in the workshop of goldsmith Werner Elfström.
In 1884, Wigström joined the House of Fabergé as an assistant to Michael Perchin (1860-1903), the leading workmaster at the time. Following Perchin’s untimely death in 1903, at the height of his career, Wigström succeeded him, bringing the expertise and craftsmanship required to direct the workshop at the firm’s highest level.
The drawings in the present album show that Henrik Wigström’s workshop specialised primarily in objets de vertu and finely crafted functional items, many commissioned as presentation pieces by the Imperial Court or acquired by Fabergé’s most eminent private clients. Under his direction, nearly half of the Imperial Easter Eggs were produced, along with numerous important state commissions.
Following the nationalisation of the House of Fabergé and the closure of its workshops in 1918, Wigström was forced to abandon his life’s work. He fled with his family to Finland, where they owned a summer residence, taking the design albums with him. His granddaughter, Anni Sarvi, later recalled spending her summer holidays at her grandfather’s home, leafing through the leather-bound volumes of exquisitely coloured drawings from Fabergé’s workshop (see U. Tillander-Godenhielm, Fabergé: The Twilight Years, Drawings and Objects from the Second Henrik Wigström Album, 2023, pp. 13–14).
The present Henrik Wigström album is not merely an archival record; it is a testament to the extraordinary creativity, technical mastery, and visionary design that defined the final years of Fabergé’s workshop. Its exceptional rarity, scope, and provenance make it a work of outstanding significance - offering a rare insight into the artistry of one of history’s most celebrated jewellers.
Containing over a thousand meticulously detailed drawings, the album documents Fabergé's objects produced between 1911 and 1916, including clocks, bonbonnières, frames, parasol handles, bell-pushes, and more. Notably, the 1912 Imperial Napoleonic Easter Egg is among the illustrated pieces. Each design is drawn to scale and annotated with materials and techniques, serving as a testament to the extraordinary precision and artistry for which Fabergé’s workshop was renowned.
The primary purpose of the album was to serve as a visual reference for completed pieces. Most drawings are accompanied by a date and a production number, which should not be confused with the inventory numbers typically scratched onto objects after their entry into Fabergé’s sales ledgers. Since the discovery of this album, a number of Fabergé objects have been successfully matched to their corresponding designs, while many others remain unidentified.
The present Wigström album is comparable only to a handful of other archival discoveries: the stock books from Albert Holmström’s workshop, documenting jewellery designs from 1909 to 1915 and uncovered in the late 1980s; and a second Wigström album, located by Ulla Tillander-Godenhielm in the National Archives of Finland in the 2000s.
The second Wigström album, donated to the National Archives by the widow of Henrik Wigström’s son, is more modest in scale, containing just over 200 designs (see U. Tillander-Godenhielm, Fabergé: The Twilight Years, Drawings and Objects from the Second Henrik Wigström Album, 2023).
HENRIK WIGSTRÖM (1862–1923)
Henrik Wigström served as Fabergé’s head workmaster from 1903 to 1917, overseeing the most complex and technically demanding aspects of the firm’s production. Born in Finland, he moved to St Petersburg at the age of just thirteen to begin an apprenticeship in the workshop of goldsmith Werner Elfström.
In 1884, Wigström joined the House of Fabergé as an assistant to Michael Perchin (1860-1903), the leading workmaster at the time. Following Perchin’s untimely death in 1903, at the height of his career, Wigström succeeded him, bringing the expertise and craftsmanship required to direct the workshop at the firm’s highest level.
The drawings in the present album show that Henrik Wigström’s workshop specialised primarily in objets de vertu and finely crafted functional items, many commissioned as presentation pieces by the Imperial Court or acquired by Fabergé’s most eminent private clients. Under his direction, nearly half of the Imperial Easter Eggs were produced, along with numerous important state commissions.
Following the nationalisation of the House of Fabergé and the closure of its workshops in 1918, Wigström was forced to abandon his life’s work. He fled with his family to Finland, where they owned a summer residence, taking the design albums with him. His granddaughter, Anni Sarvi, later recalled spending her summer holidays at her grandfather’s home, leafing through the leather-bound volumes of exquisitely coloured drawings from Fabergé’s workshop (see U. Tillander-Godenhielm, Fabergé: The Twilight Years, Drawings and Objects from the Second Henrik Wigström Album, 2023, pp. 13–14).
The present Henrik Wigström album is not merely an archival record; it is a testament to the extraordinary creativity, technical mastery, and visionary design that defined the final years of Fabergé’s workshop. Its exceptional rarity, scope, and provenance make it a work of outstanding significance - offering a rare insight into the artistry of one of history’s most celebrated jewellers.