Alexander Edward Tillander (Alexander Gustavovich Tillander, 1837-1918) came from Finland to St. Petersburg in the first half of the 19th century. and already in 1860 he founded his own jewelry workshop. He worked under three Russian emperors – Alexander II, Alexander III and Nicholas II.
The company served Grand Dukes, the royal family, state advisers, prima ballerinas of the Mariinsky Theater, and university scientists. Among those who used the services of the Tillanders were the families of Baron Wrangel, the composer Glazunov and many other well-known persons in Russia, not only in the capital, but also in Yekaterinburg, Kyiv, Vyborg, etc. However, during the revolution in 1917, a significant part of the jewelry was exported from St. Petersburg, as well as the most valuable documents revealing the nature of the activities of these jewelers – reports for 1901-1917. These documents could provide a more complete picture of the internal life of a jewelry company in Russia, and in St. Petersburg in particular.
The Tillander jewelry company actively collaborated with Faberge; it is also noted that this company in 1909-1911. supplied her products to the royal court. The addresses where the Tillander enterprise was located are mentioned: the company occupied premises in a very prestigious area of St. Petersburg – on Bolshaya Morskaya, 28, and since 1911 the company’s office moved directly to Nevsky, 26, which overlooked the Kazan Cathedral with its windows.
Alexander Tillander managed to organize the sale of jewelry in very profitable and wealthy jewelry stores on Nevsky Prospekt, owned by Vaillat and Clement Huber Bolin.
The company’s products also included insignia for distinguished officers, which were awarded in the Senate or other government departments.
In 1910, the company moved to Nevsky Prospekt to the premises of the court jeweler K. Gan. In St. Petersburg in 1914, there were five known jewelry stores – Faberge, Bok, Bohlin, Burchard and Tillander. These stores were located close to each other. There were a lot of buyers there. People even came there from distant countries of the Arab world. The jewelry service was elegant, the audience was rich and did not skimp on beautiful things.
Currently, in the center of Helsinki there is a store and workshop of the company Oy A. Tillander Ab.
