A RUSSIAN PORCELAIN FIGURE OF A PEASANT SALTING BREAD, GARDNER PORCELAIN FACTORY, MOSCOW, LATE 19TH CENTURY officially titled A Peasant?s Dinner, the figure realistically modeled, depicting a barefoot man sitting on a plinth, his hat at his side holding a handkerchief containing salt, the man?s shoes standing on the ground and tied together with rope, on a circular grass-like base, red overglazed Gardner factory mark and impressed numeral 158 under base; overall height: 13 cm (5 1/8 in.) LOT NOTESLots 276-328 in this auction come from the estate of a prominent New York collector of European heritage. After purchasing his first Gardner figurine more than 20 years ago, he developed an interest in Russian porcelain figures, and amassed a formidable collection over the next two decades, paying particular attention to quality of craftsmanship and authenticity.