Probably there is no person on earth who at least once in his life has not seen a small, chubby, painted in bright colors doll. Of course, we are talking about Russian nesting dolls. In itself, it causes so much positive that even foreigners coming to Russia consider a matryoshka doll an obligatory souvenir. A kind and cheerful round face causes a smile, regardless of mood. And after all, few people know that this is not a folk toy. And when the craftsman Vasily Zvezdochkin came up with a Russian nesting doll, almost no one guesses.
Developing constructor
And how happy the little one is when he picks up this wooden miracle! For children, this is also not just a doll, but also a kind of designer. Indeed, thanks to its features, the Russian folk nesting doll develops children's thinking.
The secret lies in its design. The fact is that this doll is collapsible. It consists of two parts, separating which, you will see inside exactly the same bbw, only smaller. Sometimes there are as many as 48 such “clones”! One can imagine children's joy when such a treasure is discovered - a lot of miniature toys.
In addition, according to experts, this form of presentation trains the child’s intellect, showing him that everything in life goes from small to large, and vice versa.
Craftsmanship and sophistication
The adults are struck by the sophistication of turning and art work, especially in dolls with great nesting. After all, the smallest Russian nesting doll (whose pictures accompany us all our lives) sometimes does not exceed a few millimeters in height. Nevertheless, it is painted by hand. Just like a big one.
Despite the simplicity and simplicity of the toy, as soon as you take it in your hands, you feel like a piece of an old Russian ethnic group. An interesting fact is that they invented and made the doll relatively recently. And although historians find it difficult to say when the craftsman Vasily Zvezdochkin came up with the Russian nesting doll, it was established for sure that this miracle appeared in the 90s of the XIX century.
Legends around the origin story
The history of Russian nesting dolls, according to a common version, began in the workshop "Children's Education", which belonged to the family of A. I. Mamontov (brother of the world famous industrialist and philanthropist Savva Mamontov). There is a legend according to which, the wife of Anatoly Mamontov brought from Japan, where she traveled for a long time, an amazing toy figure of the Japanese god Fukorokoju. In Russia, it was called Fukuruma. It is curious that such a word does not exist in Japanese, and most likely the name Fukurum is already the Russian version of the name of the Japanese god. The toy figure was with an interesting secret. It was divided into two halves, and inside was a smaller copy of it, also consisting of two parts.
Co-authorship
The beautiful god adored the famous modernist artist Sergei Malyutin. Admiring the curiosity, Malyutin unexpectedly caught fire with an interesting idea. To implement it, he drew a turner Vasily Petrovich Zvezdochkin, a hereditary toy maker. Malyutin asked the master to make a small wooden blank, which was made in a matter of minutes. Passing the blank into the hands of the artist, the turner still did not understand the meaning of the undertaking. Without wasting time, Malyutin, having picked up paints, painted a wooden block with his own hand.
What a surprise Zvedochkin was when he saw that the result was a little tidy girl in a simple peasant sundress with a cock in her hands. It consisted of two halves, inside of which was still the same young lady, but already smaller. There were eight in total, each of them holding a different object. There were a sickle for harvest, and a basket, and a jug. Interestingly, the last figure depicted the most ordinary baby.
However, biography historians who have studied the activities of Malyutin are rather skeptical of this beautiful legend. A Russian nesting doll, pictures of which (at least in outline) were not found in the artist’s heritage, could not be invented in a second. And for communication with a turner, sketches and drawings were needed.
Why is the doll called a nesting doll
Historians almost unanimously assert that the name of Matren is the most common in the villages of Russia at the end of the 19th century. It is possible that it was it that prompted the authors of the toy. But another assumption: when they came up with Russian nesting doll, its name came from the word "matron", that is, the mother of a large family. They say that in this way the creators of the doll wanted to emphasize the peace and kindness of their invention. And they gave her a very affectionate and gentle name.
And another version
The toy-turner himself claimed that the first Russian nesting doll was made according to a drawing from some magazine. He sawed a “deaf” figure (that is, it did not open). The doll looked more like a nun, and she looked hilarious. Having made the figurine, the master then gave it to the artists for painting. This version can also serve as a kind of answer to the question of when the craftsman Vasily Zvezdochkin came up with the Russian nesting doll.
There is, however, the possibility that the figure was really painted by Sergey Malyutin. Because at that time he actively collaborated with Mamontov Publishing House and was engaged in illustrations for children's books. In other words, these two people were at one time quite close to each other. Nevertheless, there is still no reliable version when the craftsman Vasily Zvezdochkin came up with Russian nesting dolls. It is only known that the doll has no ancient roots.
How matryoshka was put on stream
Mamontov liked the idea of a folding doll, and in Abramtsevo, where his main workshop was located, mass production was soon established. Photos of Russian nesting dolls confirm that the first prototypes of folding figures were quite modest. Girls are “dressed” in simple peasant dresses, not distinguished by special delicacies. Over time, these patterns became more complex and brighter.
The number of nested figures also changed. Old photos of Russian nesting dolls show us that at the beginning of the twentieth century manufacturing of 24-seater toys, and in exceptional cases 48-seater ones, was considered the standard. In 1900, the workshop "Children's Education" was closed, but the production of nesting dolls did not stop. It is transported to Sergiev Posad, 80 km north of Moscow.
Is there a deep meaning in the image of a nesting doll
If we talk about a possible prototype with which the history of Russian nesting dolls began, then we need to return to the figure of the Japanese god Fukurokuju. What is this god in Japanese mythology? The ancient sages believed that man has seven bodies: physical, etheric, astral, cosmic, nirvana, mental and spiritual. Moreover, each state of the body corresponded to its god. Based on this teaching, an unknown Japanese architect made his figure precisely "seven-seater".
It seems to be a complete resemblance to the samples known to us and the photo of Russian Russian dolls? Indeed, was it not from such motives that Zvezdochkin himself and other masters proceeded to create this amazing doll? Maybe they wanted to show the versatility of the original Russian woman, who can do any job?
It is enough to recall the different objects that each Russian nesting doll holds in its hands. A story for children would be very instructive. But this version is unlikely. Because Master Zvezdochkin himself never in his life recalled any Japanese gods, especially with such complex names. Well, the subsequent large "nesting" of Russian nesting dolls does not at all fit with the Japanese prototype. The number of internal dolls was measured in dozens. So the story of the seven bodies of the Japanese god is most likely just a beautiful legend.
Monk Shaolin and Matryoshka
And yet in eastern mythology there is another character whose descendant could become a Russian nesting doll. A story for children offers to get acquainted with the monk Daruma. This is an analogue of the famous Bodhidharma character from Chinese folklore, the founder of the famous Shaolin Monastery.
According to an ancient Japanese legend, Daruma decided to achieve perfection by immersing himself in meditation. For 9 years, he looked at the wall without taking his eyes off, but soon realized that he was just sleeping. And then Daruma cut off his eyelids with a knife, throwing them to the ground. And a little later, the monk's arms and legs were seized from long sitting in one position. That is why the figures with his image made armless and legless.
However, the hypothesis of the emergence of a Russian doll in the image of Daruma is very imperfect. The reason lies on the surface. The fact is that the Daruma doll is non-separable and made like our tumbler toy. Therefore, although we see that the customs are similar, the stories of the origin of both dolls are clearly different.
Make a wish and trust his nested doll
An interesting belief is also connected with the eyes of Daruma. They are usually depicted on the doll as very large and without pupils. The Japanese buy these figures and make a wish that it must be fulfilled. At the same time, symbolically painting one eye. After a year, if the wish is fulfilled, the second eye is “opened” to the doll. Otherwise, the figurine is simply taken to the temple from which it was brought.
Why so much attention to ancient Japanese beliefs? The answer is simple. Not only does the photo of Russian nesting dolls show us similarities, but similar rituals are also held with her. It is believed that if you put a note with desire inside the doll, it will certainly come true.
An interesting fact is that the quality of fulfillment of a desire directly depends on the artistic complexity of the nested doll. The more “nesting” the nesting doll has, and the more skillfully it is painted with bright colors, the higher are the chances of the person making the secret to get the secret.
But still…
By the way, the history of the emergence of collapsible dolls has its roots in the Russian past. Even in Ancient Russia, the so-called pysankas were known - artistically painted Easter eggs from a tree. Sometimes they were made hollow inside and a smaller egg was laid there. It seems that these very Easter eggs became indispensable attributes in Russian folk tales, where Kashchei's death was necessarily in an egg, an egg in a duck, and so on.
It is strange to realize that the Russian nesting doll, whose pictures are presented in this article, is shrouded in so many legends regarding its origin. However, this is true. What proves once again: whoever made the nesting doll and whatever he was guided by at the same time, this person (or a group of masters) could touch people for the living. After all, only that which is very popular and constantly heard is surrounded by so many fabulous assumptions. Russian nesting doll is a souvenir to which both old and young are happy. It is a fact.
