The egg is an ancient traditional symbol of fertility and rebirth. In Christianity, it has been reinterpreted as the symbol of the empty tomb from which Jesus was resurrected. The tradition of giving colored eggs on Easter is attributed to Saint Mary Magdalene, Equal to the Apostles. After the Ascension of Jesus, Mary preached in Rome. She met Emperor Tiberius and greeted him with “Christ is risen!” She presented him with a red egg as a symbol of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice for mankind. Legend has it that this offering, commemorating Christ’s blood shed on the cross, healed the emperor’s eye disease. Thus, Mary Magdalene started the tradition of giving Easter presents and determined the symbolism of red eggs.

Initially, the eggs were only painted “blood red” but later they began to be decorated with various patterns and ornaments to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus, the awakening of spring nature, and the divine beauty of the world. In Russia, painted eggs were kept next to icons in the holy corner.

In 1673, Bogdan Saltanov, a professional Armory painter, decorated eggs “with paint on gold” as an offering to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich.

The egg displayed at the Andrei Rublev Museum is an offering to Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, born Princess Elisabeth of Hesse. The obverse depicts the Resurrection of Jesus — Christ destroys the gates of hell and leads out the saints who had been kept there. Angels beat a defeated demon in the foreground at the bottom. The inscription on the inside part of the panel with the Resurrection reads, “From Moscow Old Believers accepting the Priesthood.”

For the family of Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich and his wife, Elizabeth Feodorovna, the symbolic meaning of Easter eggs has always been associated with Saint Mary Magdalene. She was the patron saint of Empress Maria Alexandrovna, the Grand Duke’s mother.

Elizabeth Feodorovna founded the Convent of Saints Martha and Mary in Moscow where she worked tirelessly along with her fellow nuns. After the Revolution of 1917, she refused to leave Russia and continued to work for charitable causes in her convent. However, she was soon arrested.

On the evening of July 18, 1918, Elizabeth Feodorovna was thrown into a mine near Alapayevsk and was killed along with other members of the imperial family. Several years later, her remains were transported to Siberia and then to China, before finally being brought by sea to Jerusalem. There they were laid to rest in the Church of Mary Magdalene at Gethsemane.