Skaski I Basni (Russian: Fairytales and Fables)

Abstract

This is one of the simplest items in the collection. It is a 16-page pamphlet -- that includes both covers -- that has a simple thread through two holes emerging between 8 and 9. The top of the first text page has L. Tolstoy, and so I will presume that all three stories here are taken from him. The cover shows a stag standing proud and looking at an eagle. The first illustration inside the booklet shows a wolf who has captured a hare. To judge from the pictures, he lets him get up onto a branch of a tree. Not a good idea, Wolf! The next story involves a tiger and a stag. The next set of images has a fox riding the tiger: this motif is well known to fable narratives. Soon the tiger has grasped the fox in his jaws. The final fable involves a bird and a lobster. The bird seems to let the lobster fall into the water. This pamphlet is, shall we say, open to further investigation! This collection exists particularly to rescue ephemeral pieces like this one!