Matryoshka, the Russian doll

There are certain things from certain countries that are known worldwide. The sushi is Japanese, the kilt skirts are Scottish and so we could make a long list. It does not matter if we know that country little or a lot, that has come to identify it.

In the case of Russia, I would say that there are two things that are quintessentially Russian: vodka and dolls matryoshka. These cute dolls that fit inside each other are synonymous with Russian crafts.

Matryoshka, the story

Although one might validly think that these cute little dolls are something very old, they are not. It is a relatively modern invention or "modern" in the real sense of the word since appear for the first time in the late XNUMXth century.

Back then it worked en Abramtsevo, Moscow, an educational workshop for children that he had founded a wealthy industrialist who liked art, Sava Mamontov. Those were unruly times not only in Russia but in the world.

Think of how old Europe was reconfiguring itself politically and economically, with its consequent transformations in society, and although Russia was lagging behind in that process, the winds of change were blowing here as well.

In the field of the arts, a new russian art style and there were many artists summoned by this industrialist to participate in his workshops. According to the official story one fine day someone brought a Japanese figure, the fukurumaPrecisely a figure that had other smaller ones inside, like the future Russian matrioksa.

Russian craftsmen quickly got the idea and they began to work on wooden figures in the shape of apples, Easter eggs, and women. One of them called Sergei Maliutin decided to work with the Japanese figure to create something very Russian.

Designed it and asked for help from a wood craftsman named Zveudochin who was ultimately the creator of the first doll with others inside in wood. Maliutin gave life to a family of Russian peasants so those were the first "Russian dolls": a mother with seven children so there were eight dolls in all.

If one day you go to Russia and you are fond of this craft, you can take a tour of the Museum of Toys and see that first set of matrioskas and many others that are part of that first chapter in the history of the most famous Russian crafts.

The truth is that this craft has changed very little since 1890. Birch and lime wood are often used which is cut in early spring, the bark is removed, leaving it in some places to prevent it from drying out and breaking. Long strips are cut and placed in separate piles so that the air can circulate.

These piles are usually located outdoors for several yearsYes, you read that correctly, years and not days or months. The idea is that the wood adopts certain characteristics without it drying out, so the alert eye of a teacher is needed to remove it at its right point and start preparing the pieces that will be the future dolls.

The complete process that will shape the matryoshka consists of more or less fifteen different stages. However, Why is she known by the name of matryoshka o matryoshka? Nobody knows exactly who came up with it but it is true that it derivates from matron, an old Russian name very popular in rural areas. Mater it is mother in Latin so it is likely that it also derives from there.

And how does the story of these cute little dolls continue? Well, for a while they were just a product of this workshop but when everything closed, students, machines and teachers, they moved to Sergei posad, closer to Moscow. Officially this is where the first matryoshka, just 73 kilometers from the Russian capital, in a town with an old XNUMXth century monastery.

The monks encouraged handicrafts and wooden toys were easy to make, cheap and simple so the villages and towns around Sergei Posad Trinity Monastery became popular artisans.

In its huge market people and products like that circulated that matryoshka they began to see each other and to copy and those were the first steps in the rapid history of this doll.

Matryoshka experts identify phases in wrist development: at the beginning the design of the faces was the most important. Then the accent was put on clothes. The first representations were of peasants, merchants and later, yes, of nobles. Even the shape of the doll itself was evolving and changing, going from a primitive style to a more stylized one.

Finally they started to appear matryoshka discounts, more personalized and individual, which even represented political figures. This is the case of German, the governor of the then Ukraine, part of the Russian Empire.

Some families also began to hire artisans to represent them in this fantastic and fun design, but among the popular types were the Turkish, the Chinese, the Lithuanian, the Tatar family, the Ukrainian.

But how many pieces can one have matryoshka? Those that were sold in the Sergei Posad market had from two to 24 pieces but nowadays a common set can have three, eight and twelve pieces. There were artists who cheered up and made 48-piece sets. Cool! This set is in the Toy Museum but in Saint Petersburg.

The truth is that what began as a simple handicraft, something that was done quickly and was not decorated much, was taking on a life of its own and later, the passage of time and the different artistic styles left its mark.

If the matryoshka Sergei Posad's were the first, and those of Semiovo, for its colors, its varnishes and the style of its clothes. To this day they are one of the most popular and are famous precisely because many of their matryoshka sets are made up of many pieces.

The largest set had 72 pieces and was made for the anniversary of Lenin's birthday in 1970. This art has not stood still and continues to develop. Sergei Posad, Semionovo and Polkhovsky Maidan are places dedicated to creating these little wonders.

Today you have many styles to choose from: classic, traditional, political character, comic book character, religious style, custom.

All the matryoshka they are classic gifts in Russia on the wedding day, as children's toys, to collect, to decorate the thing or as a gift when a child is born or on Mother's Day. Don't forget to bring some!