The extraordinary success of Peter Carl Fabergé in his lifetime and the fact that he is remembered when other excellent craftsmen have been forgotten can be explained in a number of ways: his work reflects the highest traditions of European applied art, he used only the finest materials and employed the best craftsmen to carry out his ideas, and, finally, there is a crucial element that distinguishes his work from that of others--a unique quality that has come to be expressed in one word -- Fabergé.