Palekh russian lacquer box
Purchased in Kiev, Ukraine in 1995
In Great Vintage Condition!
8" long
Hand painted and signed by artist and the school.
All pieces are in perfect condition.

Boxes from Palekh might well enjoy the highest world-wide acclaim. The lacquer art of Palekh has been called "a small miracle", a label particularly fitting since that the village specialized in icon-painting for centuries until the 1917 Russian revolution. To many collectors, Palekh boxes have the most elegant look to them. When you hold one in your hand, you know you are holding something truly special. Most often in Palekh works, innumerable fine lines of gold leaf, polished to a glow by a wolf's tooth, are applied to the ornamental border and drawing itself. A simple one-color background then provides a beautiful contrast to the gold leaf and scene itself. This background, usually black, also serves to take the observer into a new world where one's concept of time and space is left to the imagination.