1960s Palekh Black Lacquer Box With Hand-Painted Fairy Tale Scene

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Description

This vintage UUSR black lacquer box is an amazing and elegant example of this kind of art from the Palekh … Read more This vintage UUSR black lacquer box is an amazing and elegant example of this kind of art from the Palekh region of Russia. This type of Palekh lacquer art is created one at a time by an artist on a papier mâché box. Markings on the hinged cover of this box include the box number, Palekh (in Cyrillic lettering), the year the box was made (1965), and the name of the artist. The bottom of the box is simply marked “handpainted in USSR”.

As is typical for lacquer boxes from Palekh, this box bears an intricate fine line and dots gold border on the sides and the cover. The stark black background on the exterior of the box sets off the scene of Ruslan encountering a huge head on a battlefield from the “Ruslan and Ludmila” Russian fairy tale. You’ll be glad to know that Ruslan was victorious in his battle with the huge head, while also obtaining critical information in his quest to reunite with his beloved Lumila! The brilliant red lacquer interior of the box is also beautiful.

Palekh lacquer boxes typically have icon-like figures depicted primarily in red, black, green and gold, which can be seen in the scene from the fairy tale on the cover of this box. It is noted that it can take as long as two months to make one of these boxes. The artists are said to prefer papier mâché for this type of art because of its ability to withstand changes in atmospheric conditions and to avoid cracking. This box has some minor scuff marks on its exterior consistent with its age.

My mother purchased this Palekh box during a trip to the Soviet Union. It’s larger size and less frequently encountered fairy tale scene make it rather unique.

Relevant Measurements:
Length: 7”
Width: 5”
Height: 1-3/4” See less