Show all images on one page	#009554 Sale! Title: Tale of a Hump-backed horse Artist: Kuzmenko Galina Size: 10x7.5x7.5 Size (inches): 4x3x3 Price: $365 $340

This small five-sided casket was painted by the talented Palekh artist Galina Kuzmenko.
The sides and a lid of the box are covered with colorful scenes that depict episodes from the popular Russian fairy-tale "The Humpbacked Pony".
On the lid of the box the artist depicts the Giant Whale, which was so big, that it has small villages on it. In the tale Ivan got several tasks from Tsar and one of them was to bring the ring of Tsar Maiden lost somewhere on the bottom of the ocean. We can see this huge Whale, the back of which is covered with forests, meadows and villages. This monster will help Ivan to find the ring of Tsar Maiden. Ivan and the Whale arrange a deal: Ivan has to find out why the While is punished and suffers loaded with villagers, having no possibility to swim like other fishes; while the While has to find the ring. To find out the reason of the Whale's suffering, Ivan and his pony rise high into the sky on their way to the Moon's palace. The Moon tells Ivan that the Whale is punished because he has swallowed three dozen ships. (this scene is depicted a little above the image of the Whale). After that the Whale lets the ships go, receiving his freedom, whereas Ivan receives the ring.
The left hand side shows the very begginning of the tale, when Ivan has catch a Hump-backed horse.
On the right hand side we can see a moment of another's Tsar task- getting him a Fire-bird.
The back side shows how Ivan managed to catch the beautiful Tsar Maiden by the tsar's order. The Tsar Maiden, whose mother is the Moon, and whose brother is the Sun, sails in her small boat and plays the gusli, while Ivan is waiting for her. He has prepared a trap for her, setting up a tent with dinner and sweets inside. So, when the maiden enters the tent to taste the food, he will be able to capture her.
On the front side we can see the end of the story. The Tsar-Maiden has ordered the old tsar to dip himself into three cauldrons of boiling water, boiling milk and ice cold water in order to regain his youth. But the coward tsar, in his turn, orders 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. All people of the kingdom welcome Ivan, and ask him to become their tsar!!! And, of course, he has married Tsar-Maiden!
A broad spectrum of colors is used to create this highly detailed work. The artist used the sky of black color, which is one of Palekh's stylistic trademarks, but does not mean that the scene is taking place at night. Gold paint and aluminum paints are used to enhance the life and brightness of the scene. Aluminum is found texturing the flow of the river's water, while the gold makes the trees leaves come to life as well as the detail on the buildings in the background. The costumes of the characters are also decorated with gold and aluminum paints. The brushstrokes that attract the eye are very precise, solid, and move very smoothly between every different aspect in the compositions.
The box rests on two platforms, that comes from the sides. The edges of the lid and it's short sides are decorated with beautiful gold and aluminum floral patterns.
The box is made out of paper-mache made. Black lacquer covers the exterior and red lacquer covers the interior of the box. The lid is hinged and the box is signed with the artist's name and the village of Palekh.