Employees of the House-Museum of A.P. Chekhov in Yalta discovered an unexplored valuable artifact

CrimeaPRESS reports:

According to Vladislav Kozhin, the chief curator of the Crimean Literary and Artistic Memorial Museum-Reserve, which includes Belaya Dacha, Vladislav Kozhin, while dedusting the memorial furniture in the room of the writer’s sister Maria Chekhova, a secret box was found in her desktop, in which a powder box with the engraving «MKhAT», and in it — a pendant-loket.

The specialist notes that the pendant dates from around the end of the 19th — beginning of the 20th century. The decoration is made in the form of a book, with multi-colored enamels and is intercepted by a loop with a cut of a red silk ribbon, corresponding to the first decades of the 20th century. “When we managed to open the pendant, we saw two paired photographs inside the frames: Anton Pavlovich and his wife Olga Leonardovna were captured. We know that the miniatures were cut from one common and well-known photo taken during the couple’s honeymoon trip in the Ufa province,» the chief curator of the museum shared and noted that the staff made this discovery very symbolically, on the eve of the writer’s wedding anniversary.

New items, according to Vladislav Kozhin, are already undergoing scientific attribution and are being carefully studied. “Perhaps it is this locket that Chekhov mentions under the name “medallion” in a letter to his wife dated February 5, 1903, when he writes:

I also received a medallion with glass pieces — a frame for portraits. Who is this from? From Vishnevsky? Thank you, my dear, I am very pleased. It is known for certain that the owner of the powder box was the wife of the writer, the famous actress of the Moscow Art Theater, Olga Knipper-Chekhova, as evidenced by the engraving of the curtain, the seagull and the four letters «MKhAT» on the cover of the item, as well as the barely readable inscription on the bottom, made by the hand of the writer’s sister in pencil : «Olechkino»— said the keeper.

After a thorough study and passing all the necessary procedures, next year visitors will be able to see this unique exhibit at exhibitions, but for now, employees shared photos of the items in the museum community on social networks.

source: press service of the Yalta administration

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