In 1885 the Russian emperor Alexander III commissioned a jeweller to make an Easter gift to give to his wife, establishing a partnership that would endure more than 30 years and produce dozens of priceless works of art.
The present, an egg designed by the House of Fabergé, opened up to reveal yolk with a golden hen, miniature crown and a ruby egg.
It was the first gift in what would become an annual family giving tradition that only ended three decades later when the Russian revolution brought about the destruction of both houses.
The Bolsheviks, who seized control of the government and forced the tsar to abdicate, also closed all Fabergé workshops, forcing the family to flee Russia.
They later lost the right to produce designs in 1951, but the brand endured and announced the reunification with the Fabergé family in 2007.
And now as a result of a tie-up with Damas, the legendary designs are available to buy in the UAE at the Burj Al Arab and at the Dubai Mall.
"We are delighted to bring the splendour of Fabergé to the Middle East for the first time," says Katharina Flohr,the creative and managing director of Fabergé.
"Clients in Dubai have a very sophisticated taste and have a real appreciation for our exceptional handcrafted pieces."
Contemporary Fabergé creations, including the Les Favourites and the Les Saisons Russes collections, are being sold at the Dubai boutiques.
A piece from the Saisons Russes collection, a necklace called the Romanov, was on show earlier this year at the Doha Jewellery and Watches exhibition.
The glittering collar contains 2,225 gems totalling 363.48 carats, with 79 polished ethically sourced emeralds from a Zambian mine: 1,991 round white diamonds, 151 rose-cut diamonds, one rose diamond and a 3.48-carat pear-shaped rose-cut diamond.
It is a modern take on a Fabergé design dating back to 1885, the year the brand became jeweller to the Russian royal family.
But needless to say a brand with such history does not come cheap, with jewellery starting for "a few thousand dollars".
gduncan@thenational.ae
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
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Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
Honeymoonish
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Chelsea 2 Burnley 3
Chelsea Morata (69'), Luiz (88')
Burnley Vokes (24', 43'), Ward (39')
Red cards Cahill, Fabregas (Chelsea)
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British Grand Prix free practice times in the third and final session at Silverstone on Saturday (top five):
1. Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) 1:28.063 (18 laps)
2. Sebastian Vettel (GER/Ferrari) 1:28.095 (14)
3. Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Mercedes) 1:28.137 (20)
4. Kimi Raikkonen (FIN/Ferrari) 1:28.732 (15)
5. Nico Hulkenberg (GER/Renault) 1:29.480 (14)
Dhadak
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Itcan profile
Founders: Mansour Althani and Abdullah Althani
Based: Business Bay, with offices in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and India
Sector: Technology, digital marketing and e-commerce
Size: 70 employees
Revenue: On track to make Dh100 million in revenue this year since its 2015 launch
Funding: Self-funded to date
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