A VERY FINE AND LARGE BIRCHWOOD CASKET SHOWING A WELCOMING SCENE WITH A BOYAR Russian, Moscow, Stroganoff School, circa 1910 The hinged lid set with an enamelled plaque, possibly depicting a scene from Pushkin’s The Tale of Tsar Saltan. 21 cm long. The Stroganoff School was founded in Moscow by Count Sergei Grigoryevich Stroganoff in 1825 and became officially the Imperial Stroganoff Central Institute for Industrial Art in 1901 when it was placed under the patronage of the Empress’ sister, Grand Duchess Elizabeth. The school’s enamel workshop opened in 1902. Students followed an eight-year course of study and were encouraged to create their own designs in addition to copying well-known works of art.