The elongated figure of a woman, carrying a golden twig, floats across the surface of the box, echoing the image of a lion formed from the clouds above. Is this a product of an artist's overactive imagination, or is there something else here, something he is trying to tell us. Notice the couple below her legs, hunched over a cross, as the child points to the objects above. Meanwhile, on the far right hand side near the bottom, there is the silhouette of another person, half hidden behind a large rock. Her pose seems to be one of temptation, as if calling the lady and lion to her direction. The box was done in an era of relative turbulence for Russia. Perhaps this all reflects the uncertainty to which they were approaching the future, tempted by the thought of a new life, but with one foot still planted in the past? Or perhaps you have a different interpretation? Regardless, the piece beckons to be analyzed on both a aesthetic and symbolic level.

The artist, Pavel Anokhin, uses a soft delicate brush and nuances of color for the people and the physical surroundings in this piece. Two large inlays of mother of pearl in the sky, meanwhile, provide a spectacular contrast to the subtleties of his artwork and will catch the eye of any one even remotely interested in objects of this nature.
The box is made out of high quality papier mache, has a red interior, and sits flush on the surface of the table. It has a little gold knob in front. The lacquer on the top has thinned just slightly, but is still shiny. The box is signed with the title, artist's name, and year. The artist, Pavel Anokhin, is well known in Fedoskino for his surrealistic style and has had numerous boxes featured in books on the subject throughout the years. Anokhin has actually done this work more than once (we had a similar box in the early 2000's), but there are always slight differences, and in this case the box itself is a little more interesting, too.

Lacquerbox Condition Ratings

Surface Condition (exterior)	Surface Condition (interior/bottom)	Box Materials and Soundness	Hinge and Lid Placement	Signature	Total Rating	Mother-of-pearl Condition
9.0	9.5	10.0	10.0	10.0	48.5	9.5

(Each category rated 1-10. For low scores, look for explanation in the description of box. In general, any total rating over 40 is excellent. For more information on rating system, click here.)