Tale of a Hump-backed pony

This exceptionally detailed piece of Russian lacquer artistry was painted by the talented Zoya Bobkova from the village of Fedoskino. The composition show a scene from the popular Russian fairy-tale "The Humpbacked Pony".
In the center of the composition we can see the main character of the tale, Ivan, and his faithful friend the Humpbacked Pony, the beautiful Tsar-Maiden, and a Tsar. In the background to the left the artist depicts the huge whale that helped Ivan to bring the ring of Tsar-Maiden, lost somewhere on the bottom of the ocean.
In the end of the tale the Tsar-Maiden has ordered the old tsar to dip himself in three cauldrons of boiling water, boiling milk and ice cold water in order to regain his youth. But the coward tsar, in his turn, has ordered Ivan to be the first to jump into the boiling water. Having undergone this severe trial, Ivan emerges from the last cauldron as an extremely handsome young man, whereas the old tsar, who also decides to test the magic, is boiled alive.
The infinite details within the facial expressions of the characters and the setting are the perfect examples of the artist's skills. There are loads of texture within the leaves of the trees, the hills and the rolling currents of the ocean waters. Gold paint is used to detail the intricacies of the box.
The box is constructed from paper-mache. Black lacquer is used to paint the exterior of the piece while red lacquer completes the interior of the box, the exterior is black lacquered. The box has a hinge above the scene and rests flat. It is signed with the artist's name, village, title at the bottom of the composition.