"Old Moscow" lacquer box

Artist: Bugarin 
Village:  Fedoskino
Size: 4" x 3.25" x 1"  
Year: c. 2012

This evocative Russian lacquer box captures a quiet, melancholic moment in old Moscow, likely set in the late 19th or early 20th century. Painted in the Fedoskino style, known for its use of oil paints and subtle realism, the scene shows a wintry street lined with old buildings bearing Cyrillic signs—one prominently reading “Ломбард” (pawnshop). A horse-drawn carriage waits at the curb beneath bare trees and a soft, glowing streetlamp, while a woman wrapped in dark clothing holds a bundled child nearby.

The snow-covered rooftops, golden reflections on the wet street, and the onion domes of a church in the distance evoke a sense of time and place—an atmosphere of hardship and endurance during a cold Russian evening. The composition balances somber tones with a quiet elegance, inviting the viewer to reflect on the lives and struggles of ordinary people in a bygone era.

The box sits on four small legs and the name of the artist and title are written both on the top and the bottom of the box. Lacquer is very shiny with no cracks of flaws.