$33 million Faberge Egg discovered by scrap metal dealer

A United States scrap metal dealer intending to melt down an ornament for its gold was shocked to discover it was a $33 million Faberge egg. According to sources, the scrap metal dealer bought the gold egg for $13,302 from an antiques dealer about a decade ago and had planned to melt it down and sell the metal, but the project was put on hold when he was unable to find a buyer.

After failing to sell it online because potential buyers thought it was over-priced, the man decided to Google his find – and discovered he was the owner of a $33 million Faberge egg.

The scrap metal dealer did a Google search "egg" and "Vacheron Constantin," the name etched on the timepiece inside the egg. The man discovered a Telegraph article from earlier that year that included an interview with McCarthy and a picture of the egg in his possession. McCarthy flew to the United States and verified the egg.

The ornamental egg is the third of more than 50 Imperial Easter Eggs designed by Carl Faberge for the Russian royal family. After the 1917 revolution the eggs were seized by the Bolsheviks and most were sold to the West.