What are Matryoshka Dolls?

Hey dear community, at the beginning I would like to welcome you to my new post and hope you had a weekend which has brought many interesting experiences into your life! In this article I would like to go into something about a cultural topic and I am happy if you can learn new things.

Some time ago I bought Matryoschka dolls which are an important part of the Russian culture and traditionally they are made of wood and are then painted in different colors and are especially popular as a toy, souvenir or simply as a work of art. It has developed into one of the best-known Russian symbols and one of the typical characteristics is that it's a doll in which several small ones can be found and the traces of the creation can be traced back to the 19th century and the exact origin is often discussed and it is assumed that the first design was created by the painter Sergei Vasiljewitsch Maljutin (1859 - 1937). The Russian carpenter Vasily Petrovitsch Svyosdotschkin (1876 - 1956) was inspired by the first designs and decided to produce the first specimens and even if at first thought suggests that it was only connected with the Russian culture, the inventors oriented themselves to the creation of the Japanese mythology which was later also associated with folk art and represented a farmer who wears a headscarf. Depending on the manufacturer, it may vary how many dolls are in one and in this specimen there are a total of five while there are also productions with more and behind them there is also a deep symbolism and it was considered a typical lucky charm which was also associated with motherhood or fertility and the dolls in different sizes can also be considered as a metaphor for a family. Today these dolls are popular worldwide and the principle has also been changed by some artists and even today, the dolls are still made by hand and should not be missing in any collection of people fascinated by art and especially the great variety of colors makes it particularly interesting.

Many thanks for stopping by and I hope you could learn something new about culture! I captured these pictures with my Camera Sony Alpha 6000 plus 55-210 mm lens.