Show all images on one page	#001617 Title: Ivanushka (Princess Frog) Artist: Gaiduk A. Size: 14.5x6x4.5 Size (inches): 5.5x2.25x1.75 Price : $235 SOLD!

One day it was decreed that the Tsar's three sons would be married. The Tsar told them to take their bows and a single arrow out to the field. So they did and they were told that they would shoot an arrow and the nearest maiden standing to the arrow when it landed would be their bride. So the first two, older, brother shot their arrows and found that beautiful maidens would be theirs to wed.
Then came the turn of the youngest son, Ivan Tsarevich. Ivan drew back his bow and shot his arrow. But Ivan's arrow didn't find a maiden, it flew off into a swamp. To Ivan's great surprise, his arrow had landed next to a frog. His two older brothers laughed at him, and Ivan begged the Tsar not to make him marry the frog. But the Tsar understood the fate of young Ivan, and Ivan and the frog were married.
This piece by A. Gaiduk of Fedoskino is based on an original composition by Gennady Larishev, which is shown in Nikolai Malakhov's book FEDOSKINO, as images 120 and 121. Another rendition is on page 41 of Lucy Maxym's book RUSSIAN LACQUER LEGENDS AND FAIRY TALES, published in 1997.
This handsome box shows the two central figures in the Russian tale The Princess Frog: Ivan Tsarevich, and his lovely bride to be. The colors used radiate vividly against the black background. Precise brushwork and a mastery of perspective and positioning create a meaningful scene, full of emotion and realism. Gold paint and aluminum powder are used to add even more radiance to the composition.
The box was constructed out of paper-mache made in the village of Fedoskino. Black lacquer covers the exterior and red lacquer covers the interior of the box. The exterior is ornamented with beautiful gold scrollwork along the lid's bevel and on the sides of the box. The box has a hinge to the left of the composition and rests on a flat bottom. The Fedoskino "troika" insignia can be found on the interior of the lid. The artist wrote Fedoskino, 2000, and his signature below the composition.