Vintage Russian Lacquer Miniature Box, Hand Painted Fairy Tale Scene, Signed

Vintage Russian hand-painted lacquer miniature box featuring a colourful traditional fairy-tale scene.

The lid depicts a man and woman travelling together on a magical flying carpet beneath a yellow moon, surrounded by stylised clouds. The painting uses wonderfully vivid red, turquoise, yellow and pink tones against the traditional glossy black ground, with delicate gilt detailing and a dotted gilt border.

Of particular interest, the painting carries original handwritten gilt inscriptions along the lower edge. These are partially worn and difficult to decipher, so I have deliberately not attributed the box to a particular Russian lacquer school or named artist.

The box has a black lacquered exterior, contrasting red interior and hinged lid.

Approximate dimensions:

• Length: 8 cm
• Width: 4 cm
• Height: 2.5 cm

Condition:

This is a vintage piece showing genuine signs of age and use.

There is surface scratching and rubbing to the lacquer, together with areas of wear to the gilt decoration and inscriptions. There is also a small area of damage/loss beside the hinge where the underlying material is visible. The hinge remains attached and functional.

These imperfections have been photographed clearly and are reflected in the price. Please examine all photographs as they form an important part of the description.

Despite the wear, the miniature remains extremely decorative, with particularly strong colours and an appealing fairy-tale subject.

A lovely addition to a collection of Russian lacquer miniatures, folk art, miniature painting or decorative boxes.