The box presented in the exhibition was made in a single copy in 1935 by Aristarkh Dadykin, a famous Palekh artisan.
A lyrical scene, based on the Russian folk song “Masha is Told Not to Cross the River…”, is painted on the lid. The heroine sits outside her parent’s house and grieves for her soulmate, who sings and plays on the other side of the river. This topic was not typical for Palekh painting. Masters of lacquer miniatures usually depicted scenes from Russian fairy tales and byliny (Old Russian oral epic poems).
The box was gifted to the Civil War hero, Soviet statesman, and party figure Vasily Blyukher by his wife Glafira. A significant event served as the occasion for the gift: Blyukher was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union.
The rank of marshal was the highest military rank. It was established on September 2, 1935, by the Resolution of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR and the Council of People’s Commissars of the USSR “On the Introduction of Personal Military Titles of the Red Army Officers” for the personnel of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army and the Workers' and Peasants' Red Fleet.
On November 21, 1935, the title of marshal was awarded for the first time to the military leaders who had distinguished themselves in the Civil War: Kliment Voroshilov, Alexander Yegorov, Mikhail Tukhachevsky, Semyon Budyonny, and Vasily Blyukher.
Marshal Blyukher kept this gift from his wife in his study at home. He used the box to store cigarettes. In 1938, Blyukher was arrested, and Ivan Konev, the corps commander, and his family moved into Blyukher’s apartment. He also received all of Blyukher’s personal possessions. Many years later Maya, Konev’s eldest daughter, when sorting through old things, found the box with a dedicatory inscription and returned it to Glafira Blyukher, at that time the widow of the posthumously rehabilitated Marshal.
Glafira donated the box to the Vasily Blyukher Memorial Museum, which was established in 1982 to commemorate the period of his residency in Tyumen. In 1919, during a battle with the White Army in Tobolsk governorate, the headquarters of the 51st rifle division of the Red Army was located in the town. The headquarters of commander Blyukher were located at the building of the former estate of the merchants Kolokolnikovs.
The marshal’s widow came to Tyumen personally in 1986 to donate the box to the museum. It is currently on display in the hall “Cabinet of V. K. Blyukher”.
A lyrical scene, based on the Russian folk song “Masha is Told Not to Cross the River…”, is painted on the lid. The heroine sits outside her parent’s house and grieves for her soulmate, who sings and plays on the other side of the river. This topic was not typical for Palekh painting. Masters of lacquer miniatures usually depicted scenes from Russian fairy tales and byliny (Old Russian oral epic poems).
The box was gifted to the Civil War hero, Soviet statesman, and party figure Vasily Blyukher by his wife Glafira. A significant event served as the occasion for the gift: Blyukher was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union.
The rank of marshal was the highest military rank. It was established on September 2, 1935, by the Resolution of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR and the Council of People’s Commissars of the USSR “On the Introduction of Personal Military Titles of the Red Army Officers” for the personnel of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army and the Workers' and Peasants' Red Fleet.
On November 21, 1935, the title of marshal was awarded for the first time to the military leaders who had distinguished themselves in the Civil War: Kliment Voroshilov, Alexander Yegorov, Mikhail Tukhachevsky, Semyon Budyonny, and Vasily Blyukher.
Marshal Blyukher kept this gift from his wife in his study at home. He used the box to store cigarettes. In 1938, Blyukher was arrested, and Ivan Konev, the corps commander, and his family moved into Blyukher’s apartment. He also received all of Blyukher’s personal possessions. Many years later Maya, Konev’s eldest daughter, when sorting through old things, found the box with a dedicatory inscription and returned it to Glafira Blyukher, at that time the widow of the posthumously rehabilitated Marshal.
Glafira donated the box to the Vasily Blyukher Memorial Museum, which was established in 1982 to commemorate the period of his residency in Tyumen. In 1919, during a battle with the White Army in Tobolsk governorate, the headquarters of the 51st rifle division of the Red Army was located in the town. The headquarters of commander Blyukher were located at the building of the former estate of the merchants Kolokolnikovs.
The marshal’s widow came to Tyumen personally in 1986 to donate the box to the museum. It is currently on display in the hall “Cabinet of V. K. Blyukher”.
