Royal Doulton Character Jug pair, Dr. Yuri Zhivago and Larisa (Lara) Feodorovna D7286 & D7287, modeled by Robert Tabbenor. Issued 2009 in a limited edition of 100 each. Size: 7.5″H each. From the Literary Characters collection.
Dr. Yuri Zhivago and Lara are the main characters from Boris Pasternak’s 1957 Nobel Prize-winning novel, Doctor Zhivago. A sweeping epic set against the backdrop of the Russian Revolution of 1917, the novel tells the story of a man torn between two women. More deeply, the novel discusses the plight of a man as his life is slowly destroyed by the violence of the revolution.
In 1965, the film version of Dr. Zhivago, starring Omar Sharif and Julie Christie, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture. The story traces the life of surgeon-poet, Yuri Zhivago, as he marries, raises a family, and then has his life totally disrupted by war. Married to an upper-class woman who is devoted to him, yet in love with Lara, an unfortunate woman who becomes his muse, Zhivago is torn between fidelity and passion. Sympathetic with the revolution but shaken by the war, Zhivago struggles to retain his individualism amid the spirit of collectivism.
Modeled within the handle of the Dr. Zhivago character jug is a train, his book of poems, the Communist Revolution symbol, and an Imperial Badge. Lara’s handle contains her nurse’s armband, the icy mansion she and Dr. Zhivago took refuge in, and a Russian mandolin, which recalls “Lara’s Theme” from the Academy Award winning film.
These limited-edition jugs are sold together.