Probably now it’s quite difficult to meet a person who would not be attracted to dolls of the peoples of the world. Why? As a matter of fact, there are several reasons for this.
Of course, first of all I would like to emphasize the unusual and originality of this type of toy. But culturally, its role is generally difficult to overestimate. You must admit that the collection of dolls of the peoples of the world can introduce schoolchildren and adults alike to the customs, traditions and beliefs of representatives of completely different corners of our planet. Maybe this is precisely the secret of popularity? Let's try to figure it out together.
What is it - the largest collection of dolls of the peoples of the world?
Dolls are present in one way or another in the life of every person. True, this happens more often in childhood, and especially in girls. One way or another, now you will not meet someone who cannot give a more or less intelligible definition of this concept.
Some adults also do not part with them, because for us, you must agree, a doll can perform several functions at once. For example, to act as a piece of childhood, a talisman, an addition to the interior, or even an amazing instance of a carefully collected collection.
To date, collectors have become real hunters for such toys. They are interested in rare dolls in costumes of the peoples of the world, they track the releases of new models, scrupulously care for their already found samples.
It's no secret that a true collector allows himself to spend impressive money on the acquisition of more and more new things. There are collections of dolls that may well be considered true historical and cultural values.
The most famous collectors in Moscow are E. Loseva and N. Bartram. Their rare dolls in costumes of the peoples of the world became the basis for the creation of the Moscow Toy Museum. The Vakhtanov collection, which consists of modern art pieces, is also very famous.
In addition, many collectors gained fame thanks to Barbie, who became mega-popular in the 1990s. The largest collection of such sophisticated girls with chic hair belongs to Leonid Celluloid Boy.
It should be noted that the Barbie collection in Germany, owned by B. Dorfman, today has 6025 models, 4000 are assembled by I. Ribel in Holland, but in Britain the largest collection belongs to T. Matia.
In addition to modern copies, collectors collect other species. For example, the owner and author of the largest selection of valuable porcelain dolls, surprisingly similar to famous people, is the artist O. Powell. T. Finnanger from Norway became famous thanks to the creation of tildes. And the scary uglies monster dolls brought worldwide popularity to their designers D. Horvath and S. Kim.
How and when did the first toys of such a plan arise
Dolls of different nations have a very long and eventful history. As you know, even ancient people gave their children a play, however, not dolls in the modern sense of the word, but different pebbles and pieces of wood. But the children of the Persians and Indian tribes already had real fairies, sorceresses and sorceresses made of wood or fabric with traced eyes.
In addition, do not forget that in ancient times, some dolls of the peoples of the world, photos of which can now be found in almost every encyclopedia, were an integral part of religious rituals, and children were strictly forbidden to play with them.
The first baby dolls were found in Egypt. Their age is approximately 4, 500 years. They were decorated with beads, had real hair and moving arms and legs.
In ancient Greece and Rome, a toy in the form of a Trojan horse with figures of soldiers inside was very popular with the boys. Products were created from clay and wax and brightly painted.
In antiquity, these figures have already begun to be made from expensive materials, and among them the most expensive was considered to be that made of ivory.
Dolls of the peoples of Russia are most often identified with toys made of rags or straw.
Puppet theater on the city streets
This unusual kind of representation originates from the pagan rites used to worship the gods. Initially, he was present in the form of short farcical miniatures with nasty remarks towards higher persons in ancient Egypt in the 16th century. BC e., and in ancient Rome - in the II century. BC e.
A little later, starting around the XI century. n e., in Europe, in the Catholic churches, parishioners with special zeal began to arrange gospel performances with the main character in the form of the Virgin Mary. True, it should be noted that these sketches caused great disapproval of the local authorities and were under the strictest ban.
At the end of the XVI century. at squares and fairs, an image of a stupid, obscene, but bold, innocent, clever and sharp glutton and a lump named Pulcinella, from which the era of European dolls began, was created.
In England, by the way, the rogue and brawler Patch, who always quarrels with his wife, became such a hero. In France, the hunchback and badass Polycinel, who was completely unable to keep secrets, was a favorite character. In Germany - a vulgar simpleton Casperl with rude jokes. In the Czech Republic, the beloved hero was considered a good-natured joker and a prankster Kashparek, known for his strong vocabulary.
Note that such characters were present in almost all nations. For example, Denmark is often associated with Mester кakel, the Netherlands with Jan Klaassen, Greece with Fazoulis, etc.
But in Russia, the jester and brawler Petrushka gained special popularity and love.
Features of Japanese Toys
Dolls of the peoples of the world can not even be imagined without Japanese Kokeshi.
Initially, she had no limbs and looked very much like a Russian nesting doll. Such pupae were made of cherry, dogwood and maple, and then, by hand, painted with floral and plant motifs.
At first, Kokeshi used shamans to perform ritual rites and commemoration. However, over time, they began to be given to children and made of wood, rags and paper.
In the XX century. so-called large-sized interior dolls resembling geishas appeared, with a hand-embroidered kimono. They were generously decorated with gold thread and precious stones.
The culture of the Eskimos and Nenets. Doll of the peoples of the North
The Nenets and Eskimos for a very long time used various kinds of figurines to communicate with otherworldly forces. These toys were without eyes, ears, mouth and nose.
It was believed that dolls of the peoples of the world of this type had a special energy, and having a painted face, they could come to life and frighten young children. Families of the northern peoples possessed a large number of dolls, and the dowry of young girls necessarily included more than a dozen such items.
To preserve the culture, they later made a face and a robe in the form of a national costume.
Slavic specimens
The Slavs made dolls from literally everything. If necessary, straw, clay, ash, rags and tree bark were used … People considered these figures as amulets.
For example, the Slavs believed that a toy made from flax would drive away all illnesses from the child, and the “ten-armed” would bring happiness and prosperity to the family, wealth would come with a “krupenichka” filled with grain. By the way, different grains had their own meaning: rice - holiday, buckwheat - wealth, pearl barley - satiety, oats - strength.
“Strigushki” made from a shear of sheared grass were also popular, while older girls liked to play with dolls made from rags.
Dolls of the peoples of Africa
In Africa, dolls in costumes of the peoples of the world, in this case the African continent, were passed down from generation to generation. They were manually created from grass or carved from wood. Then the products were decorated with colorful dresses, beads and bracelets.
Mostly African dolls wore traditional costumes and portrayed adult married women. But the shamans for their rites separately made special ritual figurines.
Russian doll
Matryoshka is considered the Russian national painted doll of our country. Not everyone knows that it originates in China, but in Russia they began to be made after the end of the 19th century. A. Mamontov brought a figure of a Japanese old man to Moscow, which was revealed.
In the middle of the first was the same figurine, only smaller, and behind it more. The figures were revealed until the smallest was found at the bottom of the last.
Russian craftsmen created and painted a toy consisting of eight figures. They all depicted a woman, and on the smallest painted a baby. They called the toy Matryoshka in honor of the most popular name in Moscow at that time - Matryona.
Beauty of the last century: Barbie doll
A doll named Barbie is, perhaps, the object of desire of all girls without exception and the most famous doll in the world. It is unlikely that anyone will deny the fact that this attractive fashionista has truly become the standard of female beauty.
Created this masterpiece by Ruth Handler. And it was like that. In the 40s of the twentieth century. a still unknown woman, together with her husband, opened a company specializing in the manufacture of picture frames. A lot of wooden waste remained during the production, of which Ruth came up with the idea of making small wooden furniture for dolls.
After a 1956 trip to Switzerland, in which Ruth saw a Lilith doll - a blonde with defiant shapes and a fashionable wardrobe, she decided to create an image herself that would become a dream for adults for girls. Ruth made Lilith out of the vulgar, the copyright to which she, incidentally, bought, a positive and beloved beauty. The doll got its name in honor of the daughter of the inventor - Barbara. The first outfits of Barbie were sewn by Dior and Givenchy. In 1958, Barbie was patented. By the way, Ken was invented and named after the son of the inventor - Kenneth.
Now the Barbie doll is among the top ten best-selling goods in the world.
