Alexander Ferdinandovich Kelch was a Russian nobleman who lived in
St Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
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 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.
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelch, Alexander
Nobility from the Russian Empire
Year of birth missing
Year of death missing
Nobility from Saint Petersburg