Fantastic Rare 1890s Russian Faberge Imperial Desk Clock. 

This is a triangular Faberge Imperial guilloche desk clock made in Moscow before 1908, with the marks of the Imperial warrant double-headed eagle and “K. Faberge” in Cyrillic script on the back side of the clock and the kokoshnik mark, which features a woman’s traditional headdress in Russia, in the oval cartouche to the right of the eagle, and the woman’s headdress faces left, which means the clock was made before 1908; if the headdress faced right, the clock would have been made after 1908. The oval also has the numbers 84 in the cartouche, which indicates the purity of the metal, or .875 silver, and the clock has all the gold and silver hallmarks needed to make this a special Faberge clock.  

We know the clock was made in Moscow because Moscow-made pieces often feature         "K. Fabergé" in Cyrillic script and the double-headed eagle symbol, representing the Imperial warrant. St. Petersburg pieces typically used "Fabergé" in Cyrillic script, while smaller items might just use the initials "KF" in Cyrillic. 

Russia didn’t use carats to calculate how much their precious metals weighed, either, but zolotniki, a system of standard units or measurements introduced by Peter the Great in the 1700’s. The production of silver was fixed in four units of purity - 62, 84, 90, and 96 zolotniki - and in 1779, 72 zolotniki replaced the 62 zolotniki as the minimum legal standard for the purity of silver. Pure silver consisted of 96 zolotniki, and the “84” stamped on the back of the clock here means that the silver content is 875 parts per 1000 pure silver, or .875 silver. (To calculate the weight in pure silver, take the standard number in the cartouche on the back and simply divide the number by 4 to get the silver weight, so 84 divided by 4 is 21, which is equivalent to 875 parts per 1000 pure silver, or .875 silver.) 

In 1896, Tsar Nicholas II issued an edict that reformed the old hallmark system and the Kokoshnik mark came into being as the assayer’s new mark, but it didn’t come into full use until 1899, to account for the thousands of new die stamps that had to be created; the Russian hallmark system also included a mark for the city of production, the date of the piece, and sometimes the name of the maker (work master), and the marks on the backside of the clock here indicate the clock was made in Moscow before 1908. 

“Guilloché" refers to an engraving technique that leaves intricate, repeating patterns on the surface of the clock, typically on the dial or case. These patterns are then filled with enamel, often translucent or semi-translucent, creating a striking, luxurious effect. This clock has a white enamel face with a wavy guilloche ground, black Arabic numerals (chapters) on the face, pierced gold hands, the bezel surrounding the clock face has seed pearls around the border of the dial, the framed beveled edge is marked 56 K. Faberge in Cyrillic script with a kokoshnik mark next to it facing left, which means the framed edge is 14k gold and was made in Moscow before 1908. (Divide 56 by 4 to figure that out.) The feet are silver gilt, a silver scroll strut has a touch mark that reads 84 with the kokoshnik mark facing left and K. Faberge in Cyrillic script to the right of the two marks, which means the strut is .875 silver and was made in Moscow before 1908 as well, the clock movement is marked Moser & Cie on the inside, with an engraved serial number ______ near the Moser & Cie name, there are two manual winds on both sides of the clock to set the day and month of the clock, the date and month are in French, and the clock works.  

The clock is 5 1/2 inches high, not counting the feet, and 5 inches wide, and is in very good condition. We had a jeweler in Palm Brach open up the plate on the back side to see the Moser & Cie name inside, and the consignor bought the clock in Moscow about twenty years ago, which adds to the provenance.  

Markings on back and underside. 

Condition: Excellent condition. Works.

Provenance (From the Consignor): Purchased by Yelena Sheluyhina in St. Petersburg prior to Russian revolution. She was a dentist in Riga Latvia and aaclose friend of my father's family. She was also close to my mother's family, my mother's aunt worked as Dr. Sheluyhina's maid. After WWII, Dr. Sheluyhina emigrated to the U.S. and brought the clock with her. Once in the U.S., she was responsible for my parents meeting in New York. Later she moved to Lakewood, NJ, she passed away about 90 and left the clock to my father!

My father gifted me the clock in 2022.

Size: 5 x 6 1/8 x 2 in.