Bidspirit auction | Soviet Period Lacquered Papier-mâché? Oval

Soviet Period Lacquered Papier-mâché? Oval Box by A. Khorina, Kholuy?, 1966, 4.5” - A Soviet period oval lacquered papier-mâché? box from the village of Kholuy. The lid is hand-painted in egg tempera and gold leaf depicting a scene from Alexander Pushkin’s The Tale of Tsar Saltan, featuring Prince Gvidon standing on a rocky shoreline with a bow, having rescued the Swan Princess from a predatory bird. The central composition is framed by an intricate gold filigree scroll border against a black lacquer ground. The lid bears several Cyrillic inscriptions: to the bottom centre Сказка о царе Салтане (Skazka o tsare Saltane); to the lower right п. Холуй (p. Kholuy); and to the far right Хорина А. 66г. (Khorina A. 66g.). The box interior is finished in a red lacquer. Length: 11.5 cm.