Russian Fairy Tale Box with the Mystical White Hart

A Russian miniature trinket box featuring the magical white hart.

This tiny box is made from papier-mache, lacquered, then decorated with a magical forest scene and gold hand painted edging. It has a hinged lid.

The exterior of the box has been hand painted with a wave design in gold around the sides and a more ornate frame design around the main picture. The scene is a nightscape in a forest where a white deer is featured as the centrepiece. The painter’s signature appears at the bottom of the picture.

Many Russian boxes of this type feature fairy tales as their theme and the white deer, also known as the white hart, surely fits into this category. The white hart or deer is regarded as a magical creature all over the world, symbolising purity with its white coat and sometimes interpreted as a messenger from the otherworld. Some say a sighting of a white deer means a challenge or difficulty ahead or it appears to signify change.

In old English folklore, King Arthur was constantly attempting to capture one. They have also been associated with the Kings of England as the most magnificent hunting trophy even though to kill one was unlucky. The royal fascination with hunting them is why many old pubs throughout the British Isles were named The White Hart. King Richard II had a white hart on his coat of arms.

The box is in excellent vintage condition and measures approx. 7cm x 5cm x 2.5cm.