Incredibly rare Faberge carving of tyrannosaurus rex intended for Russian tsar Nicholas II and lost for more than 100 years sells for $100,000
- The ‘astonishingly rare’ dinosaur was initially listed by auctioneers for just £500
- Unidentified item was then recognised by British antique expert Geoffrey Munn
- Dinosaur had been sitting in family’s display cabinet in New York for 40 years
- With inclusion of auction house fees, anonymous buyer paid £62,000 for T-Rex
An incredibly rare Faberge carving of a tyrannosaurus rex intended for Russian tsar Nicholas II which was lost for more than 100 years has sold for £62,000.
The model, around six inches in height and made from jade and tiny diamonds, had been sitting in a family’s display cabinet in New York for 40 years.
The unidentified piece was put up for sale with a provincial auction house for just £500 when it was spotted by British antiques expert Geoffrey Munn.
He immediately realised the dinosaur was part of a series of animal carvings produced by prestigious Russian jeweller Carl Faberge at the turn of the 20th century.
The model, which is missing its two front legs due to possibly having been played with by a child, is believed to have been intended for Russian Emperor Nicholas II.
The incredible rare Faberge dinosaur may have fetched £250,000 if it did not have two missing arms
Mr Munn had earlier written about the T-Rex carving in his 2015 book about London Faberge dealers Wartski.
Similar to other experts, he assumed the carving had been lost forever and was stunned when he spotted it was for sale.
With his input, the item sold at auction for a hammer price of £50,000 – more than 10 times the initial sale price.
In total, with the inclusion of auction house fees, the price paid by an anonymous buyer was £62,000.
Without the damage, it is believed the dinosaur could have fetched up to £250,000.
Mr Munn said: ‘I have worked for Wartski all my life and have access to archive photos and there are some there of this object. I have never seen it or handled it before.
‘It is not that I thought it was a Faberge, I knew it was because of the archive photograph. It is almost 6ins tall which is a whopper for Faberge animal.
‘It is astonishingly rare. I never thought it would turn up in my lifetime. I had to let the auctioneers know what it was. I am hoping that it is bought by a museum who will restore it.’
The tyrannosaurus rex was sat in a small display cabinet belonging to a late gemologist in New York for around 40 years
The T-Red was consigned for sale by a woman living in New York.
She was left with numerous antiques following the death of her father-in-law, who acquired works of art while travelling the world as a gemologist.
He is understood to have brought the Faberge T-Rex to the US from Europe 40 years ago.
Mr Munn added: ‘Faberge was the great gift shop for the Russian imperial family and the carved stone animals were part of the Faberge output, like the imperial Easter eggs.
‘The British Royal Family have such a fabulous collection of Faberge because of their connection with the Russian Royal Family.
‘The strongest implication is that the animal carvings were made for Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra, the last emperor and empress of Russia.
‘After they were executed the communist regime that replaced them was broke and they needed foreign money and so they sold off all manner of things. Among them were 100 Faberge animals.’
Whitney Bria, a jewellery and silver specialist at Clarke Auctioneers of New York, said the rare item had been left in a ‘small curio cabinet’.
She added: ‘It came to us from a consigner who has been selling off items that belonged to her in-laws. This was in an upstairs office in a small curio cabinet. It stood out because it is a very unusual subject matter.
‘It had been in the family for about 40 years. Her father-on-law was a gemologist and a world traveller and had an affinity for carvings. He had very good taste.
‘I am sure they brought it back from their travels in Europe.
‘We are thrilled with the sale price.’
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