INTRODUCING THE FABERGÉ X GEMFIELDS MALAIKA EGG

Fabergé, the world’s most iconic artist jeweller, has collaborated with Gemfields, a world-leading responsible miner and marketer of coloured gemstones, to create the one-of-a-kind Fabergé x Gemfields Malaika Egg. This exquisite egg objet is being unveiled in July, the month for which ruby is the birthstone, with US$100,000 from its sale to be donated to the Gemfields Foundation, to support community projects which alleviate poverty in Mozambique.

‘Malaika’ means ‘angel’ in Swahili, a language spoken in Mozambique, where the rubies on this precious egg were unearthed. The fiery, deep red gems featured in this piece were responsibly mined at the Montepuez ruby mine in Mozambique, which is majority-owned by Gemfields. These rare and precious rubies are set in 18k rose gold and paired with white and brown diamonds, pink sapphires, amethysts and pearls. The Fabergé x Gemfields Malaika Egg was made by a small team of craftspeople in England, using time-honoured techniques.

The exterior of the egg is a homage to Mozambican rubies, with a symphony of the red gems, accented with other precious gemstones and guilloché enamel, dancing together in a pattern resembling the feathers on an angel’s wings. A closer inspection reveals carefully placed gaps within the design, allowing one to catch a glimpse of a Fabergé surprise nestled within.

4,312 round brilliant-cut white diamonds and 252 round brilliant-cut brown diamonds bring out the colours of the 308 rubies. These colours are further complemented by 421 round pink sapphires and 61 amethysts, all set in 18k rose gold. Peter Carl Fabergé was one of the first to put rose gold in his most elaborate creations, specifically his infamous Fabergé eggs, and this is a material which Fabergé continues to use today in many of its creations.

Guilloché enamel is a craft technique synonymous with Fabergé. Peter Carl Fabergé was considered a genius of the ancient technique of enamelling, offering over 145 new colours and establishing himself as a true pioneer in the field, a legacy that the Maison proudly continues today. Enamelling is a seemingly magical process by which powdered coloured glass is bonded to a surface via heat of around 800 degrees centigrade. It’s a delicate art: a few seconds too long in the kiln and the piece will need to be re-started from scratch. This highly complex and delicate technique requires great skill and many years of experience. Fabergé’s craftspeople have meticulously hand-painted the enamelling powder onto the gold sections. It takes at least three layers and five firings in the kiln to create the desired translucent effect, to best showcase the beauty of the light reflecting off the enamel and the depth of the detail that lies beneath.

In true Fabergé spirit, a surprise treasure is hidden within the egg. As the pearl ring at the base is turned anti-clockwise, the blades of the egg slowly unfurl, resembling the wings of an angel – inspiring the name choice of ‘Malaika’. The five ‘wings’ gracefully open in unison and reveal a hidden gem: a five-carat, responsibly mined Gemfields Mozambican ruby, encased in a rose gold filigree-like sphere. The golden sphere can be opened and removed from the egg, allowing a closer view of the lively gemstone. While the ruby gemstone surprise has been set within the piece, it can be removed and set into a bespoke jewellery creation designed especially for the owner.

Once described as ‘the Heart of Mother Earth’, rubies have long been associated with passion, prosperity and protection. Many believed that rubies held the power of life, and so they were often carried into battle for protection.

Once described as ‘the Heart of Mother Earth’, rubies have long been associated with passion, prosperity and protection. Many believed that rubies held the power of life, and so they were often carried into battle for protection.

Despite being formed over 500 million years ago, rubies were only discovered in Mozambique in 2009. The Montepuez deposit is in Cabo Delgado, the northernmost province in the country, bordering the Indian Ocean and Tanzania. Today, Montepuez Ruby Mining sells rough rubies on the international stage to some of the world’s most respected cutters and polishers. All revenue is repatriated to Mozambique, and taxes paid in full on the prices achieved at auction. Gemfields believes that gemstones should bring benefit to their country of origin, including the communities that surround the mine. With this in mind, Montepuez Ruby Mining has funded schools, mobile health clinics, agricultural cooperatives and a vocational training centre, amongst other initiatives developed in partnership with the communities. It is Gemfields’ aim to create a positive impact from the discovery and sale of these vibrant gemstones.

As well as being beautiful to behold, this special objet also houses a charitable spirit, as Fabergé has pledged to donate US$100,000 to the Gemfields Foundation upon the sale of the piece. This will be spent on projects that aim to alleviate poverty in Mozambique. Established in 2019 as a UK-registered charity, the Gemfields Foundation is the charitable arm of the Gemfields Group, through which donors can contribute funding to directly support community and conservation projects in Africa, boosting the scale and scope of the work that has been carried out by Gemfields since 2009.

The Gemfields Foundation works hand-in-hand with Gemfields, benefiting from Group funds and resources, to deliver poverty-alleviating projects in the communities around Gemfields’ mines in Mozambique and Zambia, and more widely in sub-Saharan Africa. Governed by an international board of trustees originating from five countries, the Gemfields Foundation provides a vessel through which donors can leverage Gemfields’ proven on-the-ground project delivery capability to make a material positive impact, all within the governance and regulatory framework provided by Gemfields as a publicly listed company.

The Fabergé x Gemfields Malaika Egg is available for US$1,200,000/£960,000, which includes a US$100,000 pledge to the Gemfields Foundation.