id: 142769
accession number: 1966.473
share license status: CC0
url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1966.473
updated: 2023-08-24 11:35:34.542000
Turtle Bell Push, c. 1895–1915. House of Fabergé (Russian, 1842–1918). Agate, gold, silver, diamonds, rubies; overall: 2.6 x 7.7 x 6.1 cm (1 x 3 1/16 x 2 3/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, The India Early Minshall Collection 1966.473
title: Turtle Bell Push
title in original language:
series:
series in original language:
creation date: c. 1895–1915
creation date earliest: 1890
creation date latest: 1918
current location: 211 Fabergé
creditline: The India Early Minshall Collection
copyright:
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culture: Russia, St. Petersburg, late 19th-early 20th Century
technique: agate, gold, silver, diamonds, rubies
department: Decorative Art and Design
collection: Decorative Arts
type: Miscellaneous
find spot:
catalogue raisonne:
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CREATORS
* House of Fabergé (Russian, 1842–1918) - maker
Peter Carl Faberge (1846-1920) took over the House of Faberge in 1870 from his father Carl Gustav Faberge who had founded the firm in 1842. Until 1881, the firm manufactured primarily jewelry for Saint Petersburg's aristocrats and wealthy elite. In 1885 the firm was awarded the coveted imperial warrant as goldsmith to the tsar and began to produce elaborate presentation Easter eggs as a gift for the tsarina from her husband every year. They also produced luxurious accessories, jewelry, and hardstone sculptures. At one point, Faberge employed over 300 workers including 22 workmasters who oversaw the production of the firm's jewelry and precious objects. A branch of the firm opened in Moscow in 1887, specializing in neo-Russian and pan-Slavic motifs in jewelry, silver, and enamel. Other branches followed in Kiev, London, and Odessa as well as new premises in Saint Petersburg. At the onset of the Russian Revolution, Peter Carl Faberge fled the country to Paris then Switzerland, where he died in 1920. His firm was nationalized by the Bolsheviks in 1918.
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measurements: Overall: 2.6 x 7.7 x 6.1 cm (1 x 3 1/16 x 2 3/8 in.)
state of the work:
edition of the work:
support materials:
inscriptions:
inscription: 7434 scratched
translation:
remark:
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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
title: The India Early Minshall Collection: Faberge and his Contemporaries
opening date: 1967-03-15T05:00:00
The India Early Minshall Collection: Faberge and his Contemporaries. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 15, 1967-January 21, 1968).
title: Year in Review: 1967
opening date: 1967-11-29T05:00:00
Year in Review: 1967. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 29-December 31, 1967).
title: Fabergé's Menagerie: The Animal Creations of the Fabergé Workshop
opening date: 2003-02-14T00:00:00
Fabergé's Menagerie: The Animal Creations of the Fabergé Workshop. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, MD (organizer) (February 14-July 27, 2003); Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, OH (October 12, 2003-January 4, 2004); Portland Art Museum, Portland, OR (February 8-May 2, 2004).
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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS
* Walters Art Museum (2/14/2003-7/27/2003); Columbus Museum of Art (10/12/2003-1/4/2004); Portland Art Museum (2/8/2004-5/2/2004): "Fabergé's Menagerie: The Animal Creations of the Fabergé Workshop," ex. cat. no. 120, p. 188.
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PROVENANCE
India Early Minshall [1885–1965], Cleveland, OH, bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art
date: ?-1966
footnotes:
citations:
The Cleveland Museum of Art
date: 1966-
footnotes:
citations:
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fun fact:
To summon the butler, a quick push on the turtle's head would ring the bell downstairs.
digital description:
In creating luxurious accessories for a desk or tabletop, Fabergé often used native hardstones such as multicolored agate and jasper, green nephrite, pink rhodonite, and rock crystal found in the Ural Mountains of western Russia. By paying careful attention to the unique colors and textures of the stones, Fabergé and his craftsmen brought them to life, turning milky agate into this turtle bell push or black jasper into sleeping puppies. The use of native materials also promoted Russian nationalism, which appealed greatly to the tsar and his family.
wall description:
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RELATED WORKS
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CITATIONS
Hawley, Henry H. Fabergé and His Contemporaries: The India Early Minshall Collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1967.
page number: Mentioned: p. 84, cat. 41; reproduced: p. 85
url: https://ingallslibrary.on.worldcat.org/oclc/836254532
Fabergé, Peter Carl, and Deborah E. Horowitz. The Fabergé Menagerie. Exh. Cat. Baltimore: The Walters Art Museum, in association with London: Philip Wilson Pub, 2003.
page number: Reproduced: p. 188, cat. 120
url: https://ingallslibrary.on.worldcat.org/oclc/196795062
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IMAGES
web: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1966.473/1966.473_web.jpg
print: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1966.473/1966.473_print.jpg
full: https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1966.473/1966.473_full.tif