FABERGÉ (Attributed to) RABBIT In finely carved and matt polished Ural lazurite, with ruby eyes, depicted sitting on his haunches, ears perched on his rounded back, front paws raised, in imitation of Japanese netsuke. Russian work attributed to Fabergé, circa 1900. A lazurite and ruby rabbit sculpture, attributed to Fabergé. Circa 1900. RC : Unmarked. Dimensions: H. 2.5 x W. 4 x D. 2.5 cm. Gross weight: 34.6 g. Related works : - An identical purpurine rabbit with moonstone eyes, by Fabergé (private collection), reproduced in "The Last Flowering of Court Art. A Russian private collection of Fabergé", Wartski, 2010, cat. 47, pp. 128-129. Sold for £55 by Wartski on 9 November 1956 to Mrs. Lucas of East Grinstead, Sussex. - A similar obsidian rabbit with ruby eyes, attributed to Sumin, L. 2.9 cm (private collection), reproduced in Géza von Habsbourg, "Fabergé - Cartier. Rivalen am Zarenhof", 2003, cat. 543. Historical background: The existence of another rabbit by Fabergé of the same shape as ours but carved from a block of purpurine allows us to attribute our example to Fabergé's workshops, at least as far as marketing is concerned. Not all of Fabergé's animals were naturalistic. Their forms were influenced by many sources, the most important of which were Japanese works of art. Japanese decorative arts had a considerable influence on European art in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Carl Fabergé was a passionate collector of netsuke, the rounded sculptures used as clasps on Japanese clothing. He kept a large number of them at his home in St Petersburg, and they strongly influenced his work. This rounded rabbit is typically Japanese.