Alexander Ferdinandovich Kelch was a Russian nobleman who lived in

St Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

at the end of the 19th century. He is remembered mainly as a patron of Fabergé, having commissioned the

Kelch Gothic Revival silver service The Kelch Gothic Revival silver service, created in 1900, was one of the finest silver services made by Peter Carl Fabergé. The tableware, silverware was commissioned by Alexander Kelch, Alexander and Barbara Kelch (Russian: Кельх, Kelkh ...

and seven eggs for his wife Barbara (Varvara). His wealth came from marrying his brother's widow Varvara Petrovna Bazanova, whose family had made a fortune in Siberian industry, particularly gold-mining. The Bazanov business empire collapsed after the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

; the couple divorced in 1915, Varvara moving to Paris and Alexander remaining as a pauper in Russia; he was arrested and disappeared in Siberia in 1930.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kelch, Alexander Nobility from the Russian Empire Year of birth missing Year of death missing Nobility from Saint Petersburg