December 2010, Issue 11
Dollhouse Tourism, Russia
Page 79
The gift so enchanted the Empress that the tradition continued with both Tsars gifting their Empress the prized eggs. From 1887 on, Peter Carl Faberge was given complete artistic freedom to design each egg. The only requirement was that each egg contain a miniature surprise inside.
Although not traditionally thought of for its wide miniature community, Russian tsars and military leaders would often commission miniature figures and armaments which were used for battle reenactments, strategizing and best points of maneuvering their armies. These pieces were finely detailed figures of men,
horses and battlefields in which
one could visualize the movements of men and weaponry in hopes of creating a plan that would produce the desired military results. Those wealthy enough could also have historic reproductions commissioned of a particular battle scene or armies to display. With the advent of modern day computing, these figures are no longer used for playing out battle scenarios and are now produced only for collectors.
Custom Dolls, Houses & Miniatures / CDHM