The volume contains annotated reproductions of the best examples of lacquered miniatures from the villages of Fedoskino, Palekh, Mstiora and Kholui in Middle Russia, together with a concise introduction. Lacquer work first appeared in Russia in the 18th century and workshops soon sprang up around St Petersburg and Moscow producing the distinctive handpainted and varnished paper-mache wares. They employed skilled miniaturists to decorate fans, snuff-boxes, etc. with scenes from fairytales, literature and rural life. Fedoskino formed part of the famous Lukutin works in the 19th century, trained its own master craftsmen and was well-known outside Russia, Palekh, Mstiora and Kholui, however, were primarily centres for icon-painting and only turned to lacquered miniature painting after 1917, successfully fusing Fedoskino techniques with their own icon traditions.