Which Fabergé imperial eggs remain missing and what are their last known locations?
Executive summary
Seven of the roughly 50 Imperial Fabergé eggs remain unaccounted for; reporting around the Winter Egg sale reiterates that 43 survive and seven are missing [1] [2]. Specialist research and dealer accounts name specific missing pieces (for example the Nécessaire egg) and give last-known documentary locations such as inventories or dealer sales, but no single source in the set provides a definitive, fully itemized list of all missing eggs with up-to-date last sightings [3] [4] [5].
1. The headline: seven missing, 43 known — what reporters repeat
Contemporary coverage of the Winter Egg sale treats as settled that of the roughly 50 Imperial eggs made for the Romanovs, 43 are extant and seven are missing; multiple outlets repeated the 43/7 figure around the December 2025 auction [1] [2] [6]. That summary is widely quoted by major outlets and auction houses as shorthand for the remaining mystery surrounding the series [7].
2. Why “missing” is a slippery term in Fabergé lore
“Missing” covers several states: eggs destroyed, dispersed into private hands with hidden provenance, miscatalogued in early sales, or surviving but unidentified in collections. Reporting and scholarship show some eggs once thought lost later surfaced (the Third Imperial Egg found in a scrap‑metal sale is a recurring example), so “missing” is provisional and subject to new discoveries [8] [9].
3. Eggs with archival last sightings: inventories and museum records
Several missing eggs’ last documentary traces are Soviet inventories or pre‑Revolution palace lists. For example, the “Hen with Sapphire Pendant” (an early Imperial egg) was last documented in the Armory of the Kremlin inventory in 1922, according to historians who compile surviving sighting data [4]. These inventories are often the last reliable public record before private sales and dispersals.
4. The Nécessaire Egg: a clear example of a last‑known dealer sale
Wartsk i’s research highlights the Nécessaire Egg as last recorded in Wartski’s ledgers and sold on 19 June 1952 to an anonymous buyer recorded only as “A Stranger”; that 1952 dealer sale is the most specific recent trail for that missing egg [3]. Wartski published the photograph and ledger entry as a public clue to anyone who might unknowingly hold it [3].
5. The Third Imperial Egg case shows how eggs reappear
The Third Imperial Egg — once considered lost — resurfaced after a scrap‑metal purchase and subsequent identification; museums and dealers later displayed it. That recovery underscores how eggs can survive in obscurity for decades and then be recognized, often after archival detective work tying maker marks or inscriptions to Imperial records [8] [5].
6. Disagreements and counting inconsistencies in the sources
Not all sources agree on the precise numbers: some older or specialist accounts list different totals (for example, 46 or 44 accounted for in some writeups), reflecting differing definitions (Imperial only vs. all Fabergé eggs) and evolving discoveries [10] [11]. Secondary websites sometimes report 46 or 44 survivors; major contemporary outlets covering the Winter Egg sale coalesced on “43 survive, seven missing” for that moment [1] [12].
7. What the sources do not provide — and why that matters
Available sources in this set do not publish a single authoritative, up‑to‑date roster naming every one of the seven missing eggs with precise last‑seen coordinates and dates; rather, they offer fragments — dealer ledgers, Soviet inventories, museum catalogues and occasional press reconstructions [3] [4] [8]. Without access to consolidated primary inventories or new provenance disclosures, absolute statements about each egg’s fate are not in the provided reporting.
8. Practical implications for provenance hunters and museums
The pattern in the sources is clear: eggs can and do reappear after long absences, often because someone recognizes a maker’s mark or archival reference [8]. Publicizing ledger entries and photographs (as Wartski did for the Nécessaire) is an explicit tactic to flush items out of private closets; reporters and scholars encourage transparency and archival cross‑checking as the path to recoveries [3].
9. Bottom line for readers wanting specifics
If you seek a fully sourced, current list of the seven missing Imperial eggs and their definitive last‑known locations, available sources do not mention a single consolidated list in these search results; the closest we have are individual case studies and archival leads for certain eggs (for example the Nécessaire and eggs last seen in Kremlin inventories) [3] [4] [8]. Journalistic and specialist accounts agree that recoveries remain possible and that archival detective work — exhibition photographs, dealer ledgers, and inventories — drives breakthroughs.