Two-hundred and seventy-five colorplates document the ornamental art of the House of Fabergé, as well as other work by rival goldsmiths of Imperial Russia, whose creations were often just as elaborate. It features pieces from the former Soviet Union and also pieces held in widely diverse private and public collections elsewhere. Hill (curator of Russian art for Sotheby's, New York, US) provides a biographical essay on Peter Carl Fabergé and Smorodinova and Ulyanova (curators at the Historical Museum in Moscow, Russia) provide an essay describing the activities of the rival goldsmith firms. The famed Fabergé eggs, produced for the Russian imperial court, are naturally enough the subject of the first non-textual chapter, followed by presentation of flowers and hardstone carvings, boxes and cases, frames and clocks, religious objects, table ornaments and objets de vitrine, and objets de luxe. Universe Publishing is an imprint of Rizzoli. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)