Crystal Fabergé egg crafted for Russian royalty shatters record and sells for $30.2 million

LONDON (AP) — A rare crystal and diamond Fabergé egg crafted for Russia’s ruling family before it was toppled by revolution shattered records Tuesday as it sold at auction for 22.9 million pounds ($30.2 million).

The Winter Egg, which was compared to the iconic Mona Lisa, was just one of seven of the opulent ovoids remaining in private hands, Christie’s London auction house said.

The 4-inch (10-centimeter) tall egg is made from finely carved rock crystal, covered in a delicate snowflake motif wrought in platinum and 4,500 tiny diamonds. It opens to reveal a removable tiny basket of bejewelled quartz flowers symbolizing spring.

The sale price, which included a buyer's premium, topped the $18.5 million paid at a 2007 Christie’s auction for another Fabergé egg created for the Rothschild banking family.

Craftsman Peter Carl Fabergé and his company created more than 50 of the eggs for Russia’s imperial family between 1885 and 1917, each elaborately unique and containing a hidden surprise. Czar Alexander III started the tradition by presenting an egg to his wife each Easter. His successor, Nicholas II, extended the gift to his wife and mother.

Czar Nicholas II commissioned the egg for his mother, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, as an Easter present in 1913. It was one of two eggs created by female designer Alma Pihl; her other egg is owned by Britain’s royal family.

The Romanov royal family ruled Russia for 300 years before the 1917 revolution ousted it. Nicholas and his family were executed in 1918.

Bought by a London dealer for 450 pounds when the cash-strapped Communist authorities sold off some of Russia’s artistic treasures in the 1920s, the egg changed hands several times. It was believed lost for two decades until it was auctioned by Christie’s in 1994 for more than 7 million Swiss francs ($5.6 million at the time). It sold again in 2002 for $9.6 million.

Each time the egg has sold, it has set a world record price for a Fabergé item, Christie's said.

Margo Oganesian, the head of Christie's Russian art department, called the egg “the ‘Mona Lisa’ for decorative arts," a superb example of craft and design.

There are 43 surviving imperial Fabergé eggs, most in museums.

The Winter Egg by Faberge is displayed at Christie's auction rooms in London, Thursday, Nov. 27, 2025, it is expected to sell for in excess of 20 million UK Pounds when it is auctioned on Dec. 2. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

The Winter Egg by Faberge is displayed at Christie's auction rooms in London, Thursday, Nov. 27, 2025, it is expected to sell for in excess of 20 million UK Pounds when it is auctioned on Dec. 2. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

The Winter Egg by Faberge is displayed at Christie's auction rooms in London, Thursday, Nov. 27, 2025, it is expected to sell for in excess of 20 million UK Pounds when it is auctioned on Dec. 2. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Head of Department Margo Organesian looks towards the Winter Egg by Faberge as it is displayed at Christie's auction rooms in London, Thursday, Nov. 27, 2025, it is expected to sell for in excess of 20 million UK Pounds when it is auctioned on Dec. 2. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

The Winter Egg by Faberge is displayed at Christie's auction rooms in London, Thursday, Nov. 27, 2025, it is expected to sell for in excess of 20 million UK Pounds when it is auctioned on Dec. 2. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

MEXICO CITY (AP) — A strong earthquake rattled southern and central Mexico on Friday, interrupting President Claudia Sheinbaum ’s first press briefing of the new year as seismic alarms sounded.

The earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.5 and its epicenter was near the town of San Marcos in the southern state of Guerrero near the Pacific coast resort of Acapulco, according to Mexico ’s national seismological agency.

The state’s civil defense agency reported various landslides around Acapulco and on other highways in the state.

Residents and tourists in Mexico City and Acapulco rushed into the streets when the shaking began.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake occurred at a depth of 21.7 miles (35 kilometers), 2.5 miles north-northwest of Rancho Viejo, Guerrero, which is in the mountains about 57 miles northeast of Acapulco.

Sheinbaum, who resumed her press briefing a short time later, said she spoke with Guerrero's Gov. Evelyn Salgado, who told her there was no serious damage reported.

José Raymundo Díaz Taboada, a doctor and human rights defender who lives on one of the peaks ringing Acapulco, said he heard a strong rumble noise and all the neighborhood dogs began barking.

“In that moment the seismic alert went off on my cell phone," he said, "and then the shaking began to feel strong with a lot of noise.”

He said the shaking was lighter than in some previous quakes and he had prepared a backpack of essentials to be ready to leave as the aftershocks continued.

He said he had been unable to reach some friends who live along the Costa Chica southeast of Acapulco because communications were cut.

A view of Mexico City, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, after a magnitude 6.5 earthquake that originated in the Acapulco area. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

A view of Mexico City, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, after a magnitude 6.5 earthquake that originated in the Acapulco area. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

A couple walks their dogs after leaving their home due to an earthquake that was felt in Mexico City, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, amid a magnitude 6.5 quake that originated in the Acapulco area. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)