A woman emerges from behind an abstract curtain of blue, silver and gold lines. Her lovely face and light blue eyes look right at you, yet for some reason this enchanting beauty still seems to remain a mystery. Even her age is a matter of opinion; she could be 20 or she could be 50. Just a hint of her body is revealed, and her golden hair is intertwined with the flowing vertical lines. The lines of the piece continue on the side, and on the bottom, too, where the artist wrote the name of the work, the year it was done, and the village. Curiously, she did not write her name, though any avid collector of this art form will know the box was done by her because of her signature style. (We also know that Chirkova did it because we bought it directly from her). The box is made out of high quality papier mache and has a hinge at the left. The interior is red.

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
9.5	9.5	10.0	10.0	10.0	49	N/A

(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.)