Erik Kollin for faberge or just Erik Kollin

[Juke*]

In the book Masterpieces from the House of Fabergé is said of the Fabergé marks in St.Petersburg:

(I) FABERGÉ in cyrillic: full signature (without initials)
(II) K.FABERGÉ in cyrillic: silver objects from the workshops Nevalainen, Rappoport, Wäkevä and the First Silver Artel (ICA) have the signature in Cyrillic with the initial K. and the imperial warrant in a separate punch
(III) KF in cyrillic: for small objects
(IV) FABERGÉ or CF in roman letters: usually made for export.

[numis.geneve]

Faberge and the trade mark are indeed mysterious, just like
No one can explain the К.Ф. Punch in Moscow as well in the early 1890’s. Most people say it’s Karl Fend 90% of the time, but how come we see 2 times more of Karl Fend who had a tiny workshop compared to a much bigger faberge factory is inexplicable to me. I have small spoons marked K.Ф. That are illustrated in the 1893 catalog….

[Qrt.S]

Yes this is not always so simple as it looks like. You have to understand when you are talking about a trade mark and when about a maker's mark. Unfortunately it doesn't stop here. The maker's mark is a kind of a problem. It doesn't necessarily mean that the maker's mark indicates who made the object in question only where (in what workshop) it was made. In the workshop worked apprentices, journeymen and goldsmiths among other workers. Only an authorizes goldsmith carry the right to punch his mark on an made object. BUT! Some parts of the object could have been made and were too made by other workers not (yet) having a punch of their own (apprentice, journeyman...). Punches were used only by the authorized goldsmiths who inspected and approved the object before punching his punch on it.
The trade mark again has nothing to do with the manufacturing of the object. It only tells WHERE it was made but never by whom.
I believe that the most of you readers are aware of this above mentioned fact. If not known yet, now you do!

While writing this input an as well interesting message dropped in regarding this:
Yes, the КФ mark is a kind of a mystery. It is also found as К.Ф. ,КФ, and К.Ф.. There are a few alternatives among those Karl Fabergé, but who is who is not known with certainty. The К.Ф. could be Kirill Fyodorov in Moscow, but ???

[Silverstone]

Dear members,

we had a lot of snow this year. At home enough time to write something about Erik Kollin.

„Erik Kollin (*28.12.1836 - 16.07.1901), born at Brödtorp, Pohja/Finland, was trained by and later worked for August Holmström.
He opened his own workshop in 1870.
Fabergé gradually contracted a network of skilled master goldsmiths, all of whom were owners of their workshop.
The entire production of Fabergé was carried out in these ateliers according to designs provided by the employer.
Before a contact was signed, the prospective craftsman underwent intense scrutiny – only the best of the best was good enough für Fabergé.
A workshop collaborating with him was the foremost „nursery“ for new independant workmasters.

Kollin inturn traines the future workmasters Antti Nevalainen and Gabriel Nykänen.
Nevalainen trained and worked with Hjalmar Armfelt.
Henrik Wigström worked with Michael Perkin from 1884 until his colleague's death in 1903, at which the time he became Fabergés third workmaster.
August Holmström trained his own son and successor Albert and his son-in-law Oscar Pihl, who headed Fabergé's jewelry workshop in Moscow.“ (a)

„Stylistically Erik Kollin lent primarily toward the revival movement.
He reproduced antique models in dull gold of objects from the of the Scythian Treasure, discovered near Kerch in the Crimea.
Alexander III, found it difficult to distinguish these replicas from the originals.“ (b)



Erik Kollin is also known for the first imperial egg the „Hen Easter Egg“ that was most likely made in Kollins workshop in 1885, in the same year for Emperor Alexander III, beginning an Easter tradition lasting until the end of the Romanov Dynasty in 1917.
Kollin kept supplying Fabergé until his death, in 1901.
His widow Henrika (Henrietta) carried on with the independent workshop after his death and was granted the use of her late husband’s workmaster mark until 1917. (c)

„The artefacts produced by Kollin for Fabergé before his departure in 1886 generally bears his initials EK, together with Fabergé's hallmark and are frequently to be found in a Fabergé box.
Evidently these pre-date the change of hallmarks in 1899.
Objects bearing EK mark only and produced between 1885 and 1899 should be considered as the work of an independent operator, unless cased by Fabergé.“ (d)

Workshop:
1870 - 9, Kazanskaya Street, St. Petersburg

Source:
a) Jewels From Imperial St. Petersburg, Ulla Tillander Goldenhielm, Helsinki 2012, p. 278
b) Carl Fabergé - Goldsmith to the Imperial Court of Russia, A. Kenneth Snowman, New York 1983, p. 48
c) CF.: fabergereasearch.com
d) Wikipedia
Photo: Fabergé in America, Géza von Habsburg, San Francisco 1990, p. 240

Regards
Silverstone