Alexander Ivanov (art collector)

In May 2009 Ivanov opened the Fabergé Museum in the German spa city of Baden-Baden. Besides the Rothschild Faberge Egg, other items in the museum collection include a rare silver decanter in the form of a rabbit, and Karelian Birch, the last Imperial Easter Egg, made of Karelian birch with gold and diamonds for Easter 1917. Czar Nicholas II, however, was deposed before he could give it to his mother. When Ivanov first bought the Karelian egg, some experts resisted because its existence wasn't known previously. Ivanov now has a convincing group of documents that his researchers found in the Russian state archives, proving that the egg is genuine. It has been shown at a number of major international exhibitions and is now accepted by scholars, he says.[5]

Ivanov said his museum building cost about 17 million euros to buy and renovate, including a 1 million euro security system. He chose Baden-Baden, near Germany's western border, because it's "close to France, a resort for the rich, and historically it has always been the most popular resort for Russians." He has stated that the local government has been supportive.[5]

Peter Carl Fabergé was official supplier to the Russian Imperial court from 1885 to 1917. It also catered to the growing demand for luxury items from the Russian Empire's newly rich as the economy boomed in the two decades before World War I. In addition to Easter eggs, Fabergé made a wide range of jewelry and decorative artworks, the most famous of which are semi-precious stone and jewelled figures of people, animals, and vases with flowers. The company had international brand recognition, with a shop in London, and among its international customers were the Queen of the United Kingdom, and the King of Siam (now Thailand). After 1917 Bolshevik revolutionaries began to sell off Imperial treasures, and Fabergé's artworks became popular with American collectors, first with Armand Hammer in the 1920s, and then later with Malcolm Forbes in the 1960s. When Russian billionaires appeared on the market in the early 2000s, prices soared to record levels.

Ivanov said another reason why he opened the museum in Germany was security. He told Britain's The Independent newspaper: "It's very difficult [in Russia] because of all the administrative barriers. You have to be indebted to someone, and you can never feel that your collection is safe – not from the state, not from bandits, not from anyone. In Germany we spend serious money on security of course, but at least you know that the state itself won't do anything."[2]

In April 2009, just a month before the opening of the Fabergé Museum, a company called Fabergé Ltd., registered in the Cayman Islands, filed a lawsuit against the Fabergé Museum claiming it owned the rights to all things named "Fabergé". This legal action made the Fabergé Museum's first year a difficult one because the museum was barred from using the Fabergé name, which meant no advertising or even a sign on the door. In January 2010, a German court upheld the Fabergé Museum's right to use its name.[3]

In December 2014, Russia's President Vladimir Putin gifted the Rothschild Egg to the State Hermitage Museum. Days before this gift was made, British and German Customs officers raided the Faberge Museum looking for the egg. The museum said that the officers' actions were politically motivated, coming amid tensions between the West and Russia, and hoping to ruin the gift ceremony and embarrass Russia's head of state.[6]