Show all images on one page	#001824 Title: Tale of a Sleeping Princess Artist: Veselik Yu. Size: 12x10x2 Size (inches): 4.75x4x0.75 Price : $575 SOLD!

This traditional Palekh box was skillfully painted by Yu. Veselik. The artist has chosen to depict a scene from the popular story of, "Sleeping Princess and Seven Bogatyrs" written by A.S. Pushkin.
In the story a princess is born who becomes the most beautiful woman in the kingdom. Because of this, an evil queen's magic plate tells the queen that someone else is now the most beautiful person in the kingdom. The queen orders that the princess be taken to the forest to be killed, but ends up at the Seven Bogatyrs' cabin where she lives until she is put into an eternal sleep after eating one of the queen's apples.
The box shows the Sleeping Princess who has just been poisoned by the evil queen's servant by means of an apple. She lies on the bed surrounded by her sworn brothers. But she isn't dead, she sleeps and only the kiss of Prince Yelisey may awake her.
The composition is painted in subdued tones against the black background, and richly detailed with gold paints. The artist individualizes the faces of characters; each face has its own traits and shows different emotions. The bogatyrs' chain armor is elaborately detailed, countless folds create the natural texture of their costumes.
Beautiful Byzantine gold and aluminum ornamentation frames the composition, and wraps around the box's sides.
The box is constructed out of paper-mache. Black lacquer covers the exterior and red lacquer covers the interior of the box. The lid is hinged, and the box sits flat. Veselik has signed, and titled the composition on the lid. Inside the lid, she has again provided the title, the village of Palekh, her name, adding the year of 2004, and her personal signature.