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Presented by Tsar Nicholas II to the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna on
Easter 1916, the egg commemorates the 1915 presentation of the Order of
St. George. The Order was created by Catherine the Great to be bestowed by
members of the army for military bravery. Nicholas II was presented with
the highest class of the Order for his leadership during the First World
War. His 12-year-old son, Alexis, who had joined him at army headquarters,
received a lower grade of the decoration. A ribbon in the Order's colors
of black and orange encircle representations of the medals presented to
the Tsar and Tsarevich. When a button is pressed, painted miniatures of
the honored recipients are revealed under their respective awards. Soon
after receiving the egg, Maria Feodorovna was forced into exile. The Order
of St. George Egg was hidden in a jewel box she carried while fleeing the
country. It was the only Imperial egg to leave Russia in the possession of
its original recipient.
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