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拍品专文
Alexandra Anastasia Hamilton, Duchess of Abercorn (1946-2018)
Alexandra Anastasia Hamilton, Duchess of Abercorn was the eldest daughter of Lt.-Col. Harold Phillips and his wife Georgina Wernher. Her maternal grandmother was Countess Anastasia de Torby, otherwise known as Lady Zia Wernher, the daughter of Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich of Russia and Countess Sophie Merenberg, Countess de Torby.
'Sacha', as she was always known to family and friends, was a keen philanthropist and founder of the Pushkin Prize and The Pushkin Trust, named after her ancestor, the famous Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, who was the grandfather of Countess de Torby.
The Duchess of Abercorn spent much of her childhood in the English countryside, often visiting Luton Hoo, the estate of her grandparents Sir Harold and Lady Zia Wernher and home to the famous Wernher art collection and Fabergé Collection assembled by Lady Zia’s parents.
Fabergé Collection
The best introduction to this unique collection of Fabergé items put together by Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich of Russia and Countess de Torby is provided by Henry Bainbridge, the former manager of Fabergé’s London branch and author of the first ever book published on Karl Fabergé and his creations:
‘Countess Torby, the wife of the Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich, [..] collected Fabergé elephants; that is the most significant thing I can say about her, because it implies a quiet, undisturbed and jolly humour. Bound together as they were, coupled in perfect harmony, these two, he of Russia and she of Luxembourg, forged for themselves a unique place in Edwardian Society. They were representative of all that is best in English life but with just that touch of cosmopolitanism which mellowed it.’ (H.C. Bainbridge, Peter Carl Fabergé, London, 1949, p. 89)
The above is wonderful testimony to the diverse and exuberant style of the collection. Arguably the most notable object is the large model of an elephant and castle, inspired by the Order of the Elephant, the highest order of chivalry in Denmark, and usually presented by the Danish-born Empress Maria Feodorovna to members of her family. However, the pair of enamelled gold candlesticks acquired by Leopold de Rothschild from Fabergé in London, the group of hardstone animals, the frame with a miniature portrait of Emperor Nicholas I and the jewellery pieces all exemplify the joyful opulence of Fabergé’s creations, popular amongst the Russian and English nobility in the early 1900s.
Alexandra Anastasia Hamilton, Duchess of Abercorn was the eldest daughter of Lt.-Col. Harold Phillips and his wife Georgina Wernher. Her maternal grandmother was Countess Anastasia de Torby, otherwise known as Lady Zia Wernher, the daughter of Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich of Russia and Countess Sophie Merenberg, Countess de Torby.
'Sacha', as she was always known to family and friends, was a keen philanthropist and founder of the Pushkin Prize and The Pushkin Trust, named after her ancestor, the famous Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, who was the grandfather of Countess de Torby.
The Duchess of Abercorn spent much of her childhood in the English countryside, often visiting Luton Hoo, the estate of her grandparents Sir Harold and Lady Zia Wernher and home to the famous Wernher art collection and Fabergé Collection assembled by Lady Zia’s parents.
Fabergé Collection
The best introduction to this unique collection of Fabergé items put together by Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich of Russia and Countess de Torby is provided by Henry Bainbridge, the former manager of Fabergé’s London branch and author of the first ever book published on Karl Fabergé and his creations:
‘Countess Torby, the wife of the Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich, [..] collected Fabergé elephants; that is the most significant thing I can say about her, because it implies a quiet, undisturbed and jolly humour. Bound together as they were, coupled in perfect harmony, these two, he of Russia and she of Luxembourg, forged for themselves a unique place in Edwardian Society. They were representative of all that is best in English life but with just that touch of cosmopolitanism which mellowed it.’ (H.C. Bainbridge, Peter Carl Fabergé, London, 1949, p. 89)
The above is wonderful testimony to the diverse and exuberant style of the collection. Arguably the most notable object is the large model of an elephant and castle, inspired by the Order of the Elephant, the highest order of chivalry in Denmark, and usually presented by the Danish-born Empress Maria Feodorovna to members of her family. However, the pair of enamelled gold candlesticks acquired by Leopold de Rothschild from Fabergé in London, the group of hardstone animals, the frame with a miniature portrait of Emperor Nicholas I and the jewellery pieces all exemplify the joyful opulence of Fabergé’s creations, popular amongst the Russian and English nobility in the early 1900s.