Skeleton rocking chair , Carved wood. Russia, 19th century.

Odd, weird, strange, and unusual

Yelizaveta Byom. Illustrations from "The Most Important Edible and Harmful Mushrooms" (Russia, 1889).

18th Century gilt and gem encrusted single ring smallsword. One side of the blade is inscribed in French “Don’t draw me without reason” while the other reads “Sheathe me with honour”

From the Museums of the Moscow Kremlin.

Imperial Russian court dress worn by Princess Maria Maximilianovna of Leuchtenberg. x

Designed by Charles Frederick Worth in Paris, France, c. 1888.

Russian Antique Guilloché Enamel, Diamond and Silver Over 14k Gold Earrings by Fabergé, Circa 1899

Assay Marks Of Workmaster's Mark IP For Julius Alexander Rappaport, Who Produced Works For Fabergé Between 1883 - 1908

Source: Pinterest

Empress Alexandra of Russia, having her likeness modeled in clay, three years before the revolution of 1917.

Source & colorization credit: https://www.reddit.com/r/ColorizedHistory/comments/9h2q7x/empress_alexandra_of_russia_having_her_likeness/

The Amber Room in Catherine palace, Tsarskoe Selo, Russia

The impressive beauty of malachite furniture made in the 18th-19th century :

Artist G.K. von Meier - This painting formerly hung on the wall of the Pershino Palace. Size 137 x 170 cm (1907)

The pack borzois of His Imperial Highness, KURA, daughter of Aragonka, TASKAI, son of Armavir, BLISTAI, son of Almaz.

House & Garden’s Best in Decoration, 1987

A ring made of hair, according to legend, owned by Natalia Goncharova and presented by her to her fiancé - A.S. Pushkin. Russia, the first third of the XIX century. On the ring there is an insert (or lock) made of gold (0.7×1.1 cm) with an engraved monogram "NG". It is preserved in a ladies' velvet handbag stuffed with satin embroidered with metal beads; there is also a piece of sermot and a cut of posum, attached is a portrait of N.N. Goncharova (engraving of the XIX century). Everything is enclosed in a Karelian birch box.

A ring, according to legend, belonged to Natalia Nikolaevna Goncharova (future Pushkina), woven by her own hair for a gift to her fiancé, a great Russian poet. Monogram "N. G." ("Natalia Goncharova") corresponds to her maiden name, which she was called before the wedding. Probably, the ring was handed over in the spring of 1830 in Moscow, m.b. after April 6, when Pushkin received consent to the marriage.

In Pushkin's time, hair jewelry was in great fashion: this weather came from France and quickly spread. The most frequent was the gift of such a ring by a girl to her betrothed, which was reflected in French novels of the Romantic era. Such rings could also be of a memorial nature. K.N.'s request is known. Batyushkova, addressed to a friend: "Do you want me to make a very nice gift? Order me a ring of your hair, all three, with the hair of your late sister, you will lend me very much with it." Fragile, subject to decay, often stored secretly (since the material of manufacture added special intimacy to the gift), they have hardly survived to the present day, except for some exhibits, whose memorial value served as a certificate of protection for them.

Litfund

And you absolutely know that as soon as they're stolen, they're melted down for the gold. Heartbreaking.

Russian Christmas postcards from 1910s

(Unlike today, Christmas was celebrated in the Russian Empire on Dec. 25)

Destroyed Russian UAZ-452 off-road cab over engine military van, May 29, 2023. Source: ukr.warspotting.net

P.S. The Russian imperialists, with minor cosmetic changes, continue to produce this technically outdated Soviet era van... The only advantage of this car is its cheapness, but as Russian orcs are also cheap, the Russian army does not have to worry about their survival in the event of an accident or shooting...

This van was already hopelessly antique even before the collapse of the Soviet Union in the late 1980s. Putin's regime is really funny when they send their orcs with this pile of scrap metal to conquer Ukraine...However, It should be added here that there are still fools-Russophiles who believe in Russian propaganda and military might, and they took care of observing the "interests" of the Kremlin...  

Interiors of the New Hermitage Museum - The Room of Sculpture

by Konstantin Andreyevich Ukhtomsky