News Archive

Founding member of OTI, Ted Crom, died at age 87

Ted Crom became an esteemed horologist and wrote many books and articles on the subject, with a particular interest in the tools used to manufacture clocks and watches. He was an honorary Doctor of Engineering at the University of Maryland, a Silver Star Fellow of the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors, a British Horological Institute Fellow, a Barrett Silver Medal awardee, and was a member of numerous horological associations worldwide.  

Ted had a great love for ornamental turning and in 1989 organized a meeting of ornamental turners at the Smithsonian Institute, which became the start of Ornamental Turners International. As a founding member and president, he later organized meetings of the OTI in Oil City PA, Rochester NY, Kansas City MO, Portsmouth NH, Kennebunkport ME, and at his home in Hawthorne FL. He had a passion for collecting watches, clocks, horological tools, early trade catalogues, books, and ornamental turning equipment .

The Society of Ornamental Turners Annual General Meeting

Hillingdon, Middlesex, UK – November 10, 2007

The annual general meeting of the Society of Ornamental Turners is always a friendly and enjoyable gathering with usually more than 100 members attending from the UK and overseas. In addition to the formal business meeting, it includes a lecture, competition awards, and auction. This year's auction features over 250 lots!

Visit the SOT news desk for more information

Historic Reunification Of Fabergé

Fabergé Ltd announces the historic reunification of the Fabergé brand with the direct descendants of the nineteenth century founder of the House of Fabergé. In January 2007, an investor group Fabergé Ltd. acquired Unilever’s worldwide portfolio of Fabergé trademarks, licences and associated rights with the intent that all future development of the Fabergé name reflects the original heritage of excellence in creativity, design and craftsmanship. Sarah Fabergé (great-granddaughter Peter Carl Fabergé) said "This constitutes the reunification of the House of Fabergé and a new chapter in its history. My father, Theo Fabergé, grandson of Peter Carl Fabergé, passed away on August 20th, 2007. It is poignant that, only days before he died, both he and I entered into the arrangements reuniting the family and the Fabergé name."

Read complete press release (PDF)

Rothschild Fabergé Egg Found – To Be Sold at Christies

Christie’s announces that they will offer at auction a remarkable discovery – The Rothschild Fabergé Egg. Previously unrecorded and an addition to no more than 12 documented examples known to have been made to Imperial standards for anyone other than the Russian Imperial Family, this exceptional work of craftsmanship is expected to realise £6 million to £9 million ($12 to $18 million) and potentially establish a new world record price for a Russian object. The Rothschild Fabergé Egg will be offered at the auction of Russian Works of Art sale on November 28, 2007.

Read complete press release

Lindow-White Machine Works taking orders for new rose engine lathes

After their first run of new rose engine machines sold out in November 2006, Lindow-White is now taking orders for the next run of thirteen machines. Delivery date has not yet been announced. The Lindow-White rose engine, without stand and cross-slide, is offered at $2600 US.

Lindow-White Machine Works is the result of the collaboration of Steve White and David Lindow. With the common goal of producing machines and tooling for the ornamental turning world that had long been out of production and available only to those with deep pockets, the two enthusiasts combined their talents and produced a run of affordable rose engine machines, cutting frames, and accessories.

Visit the Lindow-White website

M. Dale Chase, well-known ornamental turner died at age 73

Known as "the maker of boxes," Dale Chase became intrigued with making the finest boxes possible – pushing the very definition of sensuous, colorful and striking. The turned box became his passion during the last fifteen years of his more than thirty years as a woodturner. After acquiring a 150 year-old Holtzapffel lathe in 1972, he began creating wood boxes with engraved ornamental designs. As his skills continued to develop, he grew from traditional index ornamenting to the less common (at that time) rose engine work.

During a "sabbatical" from wood box making during the 1990s, he explored making gold, silver, jade and quartz crystal boxes. In 2003, after encouragement from collectors, curators and gallery owners, he began to study his two-layer wood boxes from earlier years, eventually developing successful multi-colored three layer boxes. These became the highlight of his turning career as seen during the solo exhibition at del Mano Gallery in December 2005. The boxes are in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Honolulu Museum of Art, Yale University Museum of Art, and several others, as well as in personal collections on all continents.

Dale Chase died after succumbing to a rare strain of cancer that was recently diagnosed. His skillful hands were not limited to making wood boxes, as he was a vascular surgeon for 32 years before retiring. Dale will be missed by the ornamental turning community and all who knew him.

Del Mano's Dale Chase exhibition web page

San Francisco Chronicle obituary

The last surviving grandson of Russian court jeweler Carl Fabergé died at age 85

From the St. Petersburg Times, September 7, 2007:

Theo Fabergé, the last surviving grandson of Russian imperial jeweler Carl Fabergé died last month in the U.K. aged 85, the jewelry company with which he was associated said in a statement issued on Tuesday.

Romanov court jeweler Carl Fabergé had five sons, the last of whom Nikolai was sent from St. Petersburg to England to represent the family business in 1903.

Theo Fabergé furthered his turning skills particularly with an 1861 Holtzapffel ornamental lathe which he restored. He made an ivory casket for the Queen Elizabeth II’s Silver Jubilee in 1977 and developed techniques employing precious metals, enamel and gemstones. He established a workshop but initially refused to make eggs in deference to his grandfather. It was only the chance comment: “Why, Mr Fabergé, you’re making eggs!” by a visitor who saw him turning a piece of yew-wood as a gift for an 8-year old boy, that persuaded him.

Read complete St. Petersburg Times article

Visit the Theo Fabergé memorial website

Fabergé "Sunburst" Clock Sold for $126,500 by Cowan Auctions

From the Antiques & Arts Online Newspaper, August 28, 2007:

A Fabergé triangle sunburst desk clock sold for $126,500, highlighting Cowan's Auctions spring Americana, fine and decorative arts sale on June 23. The Fabergé triangle sunburst desk clock was created by Fabergé's leading work master, Henrik Wigstrom, as signified by the H.W. marked on the edge of the frame. The clock in translucent rose pompadour, over a engine turned sunburst ground, contained within a cased silver acanthus leaf border, was made circa 1903–1908.

Read complete Antique & Arts article with photo

Enthusiast Jon Magill announces kit for making a rose engine lathe

The Spring 2007 issue of American Woodturner, the journal of the American Association of Woodturners, features an article aimed at those people who have been initially intrigued with ornamental turning and want to give it a try but found the barriers to getting started too intimidating.

If you have watched a demo or ornamental turning at a past symposium, or perhaps read an old article with interest, but quickly lost enthusiasm after digging a little deeper and realizing how difficult or expensive it is to find, purchase and restore an antique ornamental lathe, then this may be the project for you.

This article presents a very simple design for a rose engine lathe which is capable of doing high quality work, yet is easy to build in a home workshop. If you don't have a copy of the magazine at hand, you can view the lathe construction instructions here:

View MDF Rose Engine Construction Instructions (PDF)

Ornamental Turners International launches website

Ornamental Turners International, the US-based ornamental turning club, launches a website to help expose others to the craft, related equipment and tools, plus the fantastic results that are possible. OTI has an active forum, along with many pictures in their gallery, as well as a links to related resources.

Visit the OTI site | Visit the OTI Forum

Rare J.J. Holtzapffel Portrait Sells for $7771 at David Stanley's International Auction

From the Chronicle of the Early American Industries Association, May/Jun 2004, by John Wells:

A miniature portrait of John Jacob Holtzapffel (1768-1835), one of the most important men in the history of English tools and founder of the firm John Holtzapffel in London in 1794, created a lot of buzz at David Stanley's 43rd International Auction held March 24. The 3 ½ × 2 ¾ inch miniature (Lot 1910) was painted on ivory in the style of the English school of 1810 to 1820, and came in a red Morocco case with domed glass protective cover. It sold in the room after an enthusiastic exchange of bids for $7771.

Early American Industries Association, Inc. – Publications

Sotheby's Announces Private Sale of the Forbes Collection of Fabergé to Russian Industrialist

The largest private collection of Fabergé Imperial Easter Eggs, owned by the Forbes family, has been sold privately to Russian oil and gas magnate, Victor Vekselberg. The eggs were due to go up for auction at Sotheby's in New York in April along with the rest of the Forbes Fabergé collection. No price has been disclosed for the private sale, but pre-auction estimates for the collection were in the range of $80 million to $120 million.

Vekselberg plans to return the eggs to Russia. The collection "represents perhaps the most significant example of our cultural heritage outside Russia", he says. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to give back to my country one of its most revered treasures."

Related press releases:

Russian Tycoon Buys Forbes Faberge Eggs February 4, 2004 | Additional Info

Sotheby's Announces Private Sale of the Forbes Collection of Fabergé to Russian Industrialist, February 4, 2004

Forbes Fabergé Auction, January 13, 2004

Faberge And Forbes: A History Of Collecting