Papier-mache, oil painting, laquer. Measures approx. 6" x 4 ¼" x 2". The artist's signature and date are hand-written in almost microscopic letters along the bottom curve of the oval centerpiece and are barely legible. As far as we could magnify and read them, it reads "Ф-но. 1968. Шабанов". "Ф-но" stands for "F[edoski]no" and to the right of the year, the last name of the artist, Shabanov. The background of the exterior and interior is, traditionally for Fedoskino lacquer boxes, black and red, respectively.

The shipping box is padded with cotton wool. The manufacturer's quality control label is well preserved, glued to the bottom of the shipping box and is worthy of special mention. It consists of two parts in square frames, the left one carrying the name of the item, its quality rating ("1" stands for high quality) and the month and year it left the factory (December '69). Notice that it took at least almost an entire year for the box to get through quality control and be ready for shipping. This level of disorganization was quite common in the manufacturing facilities of the Soviet industry guided by the requirements of centrally planned economics. The square on the right is made of microscopic lettering identifying the factory, its location and its designation as an "enterprise of artistic industry". Inside the square is the logo of the factory surrounded by its full name "Fedoskino Factory of Miniature Art".

Views of the Kremlin were a favorite subject for generations of Fedoskino artists but the quality of this box is far above what we are used to seeing on Soviet lacquer boxes. Especially striking are mother-of-pearl of the sky and subtle dawn sunlight touching the tips of the wall. Note also the almost impressionistic reflections and shadows on the wet pavement below. The Spasskaya Clock Tower is depicted in far better detail than usual; the silvery silhouette of distant buildings on the left nicely anchors and rounds up the composition.

The lacquer box is in excellent condition. The image is essentially pristine, its original luster fully preserved. The lacquer has no cracks, two tiny scuff marks on the black background toward the top left corner are almost unnoticeable. The bottom shows several very thin scratches that do not reach through the finishing coat of lacquer. There are no significant cracks, discoloration spots or other serious wear. The shipping box is very brittle where its parts were originally glued together but now show minute separations in some places. It should be handled with utmost care.

Please note, the medal in our photo is for size reference only.