Minneapolis Institute of Art

Caviar server

Jules Auguste Habert-Dys

Date

1905

Medium

Silver, enamel

Department

European Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

This long-legged caviar server looks as if it could inch its way along a tabletop. The blue enamel flower clusters are hinged so the cap can be removed. Inside, a metal tube for caviar sits atop a pin, allowing space for crushed ice to keep the delicacy cold. The tube is lined with gold, the only metal that will not cause caviar to spoil. The egg shape of this one-of-a-kind piece references its contents (roe, or fish eggs) and recalls the famous Russian Imperial Fabergé Easter eggs shown in Paris at the 1900 Exposition Universelle. France, Europe

The authoritative record is held by Minneapolis Institute of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.