Three traveling trunks of Dowager Empress Maria Fyodorovna, the wife of Alexander III and mother of Nicholas II, are the latest acquisition of Tsarskoe Selo, which became possible with financial support from PAO Sberbank's North Western Bank.

Purchased from a private collection as the objects of great memorial value,  the leather trunks are numbered in one style: 17, 24 and 26. The latter has a metal mount with Maria Fyodorovna's engraved monogram of the letter F (Russian Ф) placed under the Russian imperial crown and entwined with a ribbon forming the letter M. That monogram was featured on the dowager empress' letterhead paper and envelopes, as well as on Easter eggs by the Imperial Porcelain Manufactory.

The first two trunks bear the label of the St Petersburg workshop of Wilhelm Dering, who was bestowed the title of court purveyor by Maria Fyodorovna in 1899. Given its similar style, materials and parts, Trunk 26 most probably comes from the same maker. 

Our research stuff will enjoy studying the acquired objects and their history in more detail. After a minor restoration job,  the trunks will be put on display in the Dressing Room of the Alexander Palace.