Matryoshka wooden. Russian matryoshka - the history of the toy. The history of nesting dolls - Russian folk toys for children

In Russia, people are very fond of myths. Retelling old ones and creating new ones. Myths are different - stories, legends, everyday tales, stories about historical events, which over time acquired new details ... not without embellishment on the part of the next storyteller. It often happened that people's memories of real events eventually acquired truly fantastic, intriguing details, reminiscent of a real detective. The same thing happened with such a famous Russian toy as a matryoshka.

Origin story

When and where did the nesting doll first appear, who invented it? Why is a wooden folding toy doll called "matryoshka"? What symbolizes such a unique work folk art? Let's try to answer these and other questions.

From the very first attempts to find intelligible answers, it turned out to be impossible - information about the matryoshka turned out to be rather confusing. So, for example, there are “Matryoshka Museums”, in the media and on the Internet you can read a lot of interviews and articles on this topic. But museums or expositions at museums, as well as numerous publications, as it turned out, are mainly devoted to various artistic samples of nesting dolls made in different regions of Russia and in different time. But little is said about the true origin of the matryoshka.

To begin with, let me remind you of the main versions-myths, regularly copied as a carbon copy and wandering through the pages of various publications.

A frequently repeated well-known version: a matryoshka doll appeared in Russia at the end of the 19th century, it was invented by the artist Malyutin, turned by the turner Zvezdochkin in the workshop "Children's Education" Mamontov, and the figure of one of the seven Japanese gods of luck, the god of learning and wisdom Fukuruma, served as the prototype of the Russian nesting doll. He is Fukurokuju, he is also Fukurokuju (different sources indicate a different transcription of the name).

Another version of the appearance of the future nesting doll in Russia is that a certain Russian Orthodox missionary monk who visited Japan and copied a composite toy from a Japanese one was allegedly the first to carve a similar toy. Let's make a reservation right away: there is no exact information about where the legend of the mythical monk came from, and there is no specific information in any source. Moreover, some strange monk is obtained from the point of view of elementary logic: would a Christian copy a pagan, in fact, deity? What for? Did you like the toy? It is doubtful, although from the point of view of borrowing and the desire to remake it in your own way, it is possible. This is reminiscent of the legend about “Christian monks who fought against the enemies of Russia”, but who, for some reason, bore (after baptism!) the pagan names Peresvet and Oslyabya.

The third version - the Japanese figurine was allegedly brought from the island of Honshu in 1890 to the Mamontovs' estate near Moscow in Abramtsevo. “The Japanese toy had a secret: the whole family was hiding in the old Fukurumu. On one of the Wednesdays, when the artistic elite came to the estate, the hostess showed everyone a funny figurine. The detachable toy interested the artist Sergey Malyutin, and he decided to make something similar. Of course, he did not repeat the Japanese deity, he made a sketch of a chubby peasant lady in a colorful headscarf. And to make her look more efficient, he added a black rooster to her hand. The next young lady was with a sickle in her hand. Another - with a loaf of bread. What about sisters without a brother - and he appeared in a painted shirt. The whole family, friendly and hardworking.

He ordered the best turner of the Sergiev Posad training and demonstration workshops, V. Zvezdochkin, to make his own fairy tale. The first matryoshka is now kept by the Toy Museum in Sergiev Posad. Painted with gouache, it does not look very festive.

The first Russian matryoshka doll, carved by Vasily Zvezdochkin and painted by Sergey Malyutin, was eight-seater: a boy followed a girl with a black feather, then another girl, and so on. All figures differed from each other, and the last, eighth, depicted a swaddled baby.

Here we are all nesting dolls and nesting dolls ... But this doll didn’t even have a name. And when the turner made it, and the artist painted it, then the name came by itself - Matryona. They also say that at the Abramtsevo evenings tea was served by servants with that name. Go through at least a thousand names - and none is better for this wooden doll.

Let's stop at this point for now. Judging by the above passage, the first matryoshka was carved in Sergiev Posad. But, firstly, the turner Zvezdochkin did not work until 1905 in the Sergiev Posad workshops! This will be discussed below. Secondly, other sources say that “she (matryoshka - approx.) was born right here, in Leontievsky Lane (in Moscow - approx.), in house number 7, where the Children's Education workshop-shop used to be, owned by Anatoly Ivanovich Mamontov, brother the famous Savva. Anatoly Ivanovich, like his brother, was fond of national art. In his workshop-shop, artists were constantly working on creating new toys for children. And one of the samples was made in the form of a wooden doll, which was carved on a lathe and depicted a peasant girl in a headscarf and an apron. This doll opened up, and there was another peasant girl, in it - another one ... ".

Thirdly, the fact that the matryoshka could have appeared in 1890 or 1891 is doubtful, which will be discussed in more detail below.

Now confusion has already been created, according to the principle of "who, where and when was, or was not." Perhaps the most painstaking, thorough and balanced research was conducted by Irina Sotnikova, her article "Who invented the nesting doll" can be found on the Internet. The arguments given by the author of the study most objectively reflect the real facts of the appearance of such an unusual toy as a matryoshka in Russia.

About the exact date of the appearance of the matryoshka, I. Sotnikova writes the following: these dates were established according to the reports and reports of the Moscow provincial zemstvo council. In one of these reports for 1911, N.D. Bartram 1 writes that the matryoshka was born about 15 years ago, and in 1913, in the report of the Bureau to the handicraft council, he reports that the first nesting doll was created 20 years ago. That is, it is rather problematic to rely on such approximate reports, therefore, in order to avoid mistakes, the end of the 19th century is usually called, although there is also a mention of 1900, when the matryoshka won recognition at the World Exhibition in Paris, and orders for its manufacture appeared abroad.

This is followed by a very curious remark about the artist Malyutin, about whether he was actually the author of the nesting doll sketch: “All researchers, without saying a word, call him the author of the nesting doll sketch. But the sketch itself is not in the artist's legacy. There is no evidence that the artist ever made this sketch. Moreover, the turner Zvezdochkin attributes the honor of inventing the matryoshka to himself, without mentioning Malyutin at all.

As for the origin of our Russian nesting dolls from the Japanese Fukuruma, here Zvezdochkin does not mention anything about Fukuruma either. Now we should pay attention to an important detail, for some reason eluding other researchers, although this is visible, as they say, with the naked eye - we are talking about some kind of ethical moment. If we take as a basis the version of “the origin of the matryoshka from the sage Fukuruma”, a rather strange feeling arises - SHE and HE, i.e. the Russian matryoshka, they say, came from him, from the Japanese sage. Suspiciously, a symbolic analogy with the Old Testament fairy tale suggests itself, where Eve was created from Adam's rib (that is, she came from him, and not vice versa, as happens naturally in nature). A very strange impression is formed, but we will talk about the symbolism of the nesting dolls below.

Let's return to Sotnikova's research: “This is how the turner Zvezdochkin describes the emergence of the matryoshka: “... In 1900 (!) I invent a three- and six-seat (!) matryoshka and send it to an exhibition in Paris. Worked for Mamontov for 7 years. In 1905 V.I. Borutsky 2 writes me to Sergiev Posad in the workshop of the Moscow Provincial Zemstvo as a master. From the materials of the autobiography of V.P. Zvezdochkin, written in 1949, it is known that Zvezdochkin entered the workshop "Children's Education" in 1898 (he was from the village of Shubino, Podolsky district). This means that the matryoshka could not have been born before 1898. Since the master's memoirs were written almost 50 years later, it is still difficult to vouch for their accuracy, so the appearance of the matryoshka can be dated approximately 1898-1900. As you know, the World Exhibition in Paris opened in April 1900, which means that this toy was created a little earlier, perhaps in 1899. By the way, at the Paris exhibition, the Mamontovs received a bronze medal for toys.

But what about the shape of the toy and did Zvezdochkin borrow the idea of the future matryoshka or not? Or did the artist Malyutin create the initial sketch of the figurine?

“Interesting facts were collected by E.N. Shulgina, who in 1947 became interested in the history of the creation of nesting dolls. From conversations with Zvezdochkin, she learned that he once saw a “suitable chock” in a magazine and carved a figurine based on her model, which had a “ridiculous appearance, looked like a nun” and was “deaf” (did not open). On the advice of masters Belov and Konovalov, he carved it differently, then they showed the toy to Mamontov, who approved the product and gave it to a group of artists who worked somewhere on the Arbat to paint it. This toy was selected for an exhibition in Paris. Mamontov received an order for it, and then Borutsky bought samples and distributed them to handicraftsmen.

Probably, we will never be able to find out exactly about the participation of S.V. Malyutin in the creation of nesting dolls. According to the memoirs of V.P. Zvezdochkin, it turns out that he himself invented the shape of the nesting doll, but the master could forget about the painting of the toy, many years passed, the events were not recorded: after all, then no one could have imagined that the nesting doll would become so famous. S.V. Malyutin at that time collaborated with the publishing house A.I. Mamontov, illustrated books, so that he could well paint the first matryoshka, and then other masters painted the toy according to his model.

Let us return once again to the study by I. Sotnikova, where she writes that initially there was also no agreement on the number of nesting dolls in one set - unfortunately, there is confusion in this regard in different sources:

V. Zvezdochkin

“The turner Zvezdochkin claimed that he originally made two matryoshka dolls: a three- and six-seater. In the Toy Museum in Sergiev Posad, an eight-seat matryoshka doll is kept, which is considered the first, the same chubby girl in a sundress, apron, flowered scarf, who holds a black rooster in her hand. She is followed by three sisters, a brother, two more sisters and a baby. It is often stated that there were not eight, but seven dolls, they also say that girls and boys alternated. For the set kept in the Museum, this is not the case.

Now about the prototype matryoshka. Was there Fukuruma? Some doubt, although why then did this legend appear, and is it a legend? It seems that the wooden god is still kept in the Toy Museum in Sergiev Posad. Perhaps this is also one of the legends. By the way, N.D. Bartram, director of the Toy Museum, doubted that the matryoshka “we borrowed from the Japanese. The Japanese are great masters in the field of turning toys. But their well-known "kokeshi" in principle of their construction are not similar to a nesting doll.

Who is our mysterious Fukurum, a good-natured bald sage, where did he come from? ... By tradition, the Japanese on New Year visit temples dedicated to the deities of fortune, and purchase their small figurines there. Could it be that the legendary Fukuruma contained the other six good fortune deities within it? This is only our assumption (rather controversial).

V.P. Zvezdochkin does not mention Fukuruma at all - a figurine of a saint, which was decomposed into two parts, then another old man appeared, and so on. Note that in Russian folk crafts, detachable wooden products were also very popular, for example, the well-known Easter eggs. So there was Fukuruma, there wasn’t him, it’s difficult to find out, but it’s not so important. Who remembers him now? But our matryoshka is known and loved by the whole world!

Matryoshka name

Why was the original wooden toy doll called "matryoshka"? Almost unanimously, all researchers refer to the fact that this name comes from female name Matryona, common in Russia: “The name Matryona comes from the Latin Matrona, which means “noble woman”, Matrona was written in church, among the diminutive names: Motya, Motria, Matryosha, Matyusha, Tyusha, Matusya, Tusya, Musya. That is, theoretically, a matryoshka could also be called a motka (or muska). It sounds, of course, strange, although what is worse, for example, "marfushka"? Also a good and common name is Martha. Or Agafya, by the way, the popular painting on porcelain is called "agashka". Although we agree that the name “matryoshka” is very successful, the doll has really become “noble”.

The very name Matrona really means "noble woman" in Latin, and is included in the Orthodox church calendar. But, as for the assertion of many researchers that Matryona is a female name, very beloved and widespread among the peasantry in Russia, there are also curious facts here. Some researchers simply forget that Russia is big. And this means that the same name, or the same image, can contain both positive and negative, allegorical meaning.

So, for example, in "Tales and Traditions of the Northern Territory", collected by I.V. Karnaukhova, there is a fairy tale "Matryona". Which tells about how a woman named Matryona almost tortured the devil. In the published text, a passer-by potter saves the devil from a lazy and mischievous woman and, accordingly, further scares the devil with her.

In this context, Matryona is a kind of prototype of an evil wife, whom the devil himself is afraid of. Similar descriptions are also found in Afanasiev. The plot about the evil wife, popular in the Russian North, was repeatedly recorded by the GIIS expeditions in the "classic" versions, in particular, from A.S. Krashaninnikova, 79 years old, from the village of Meshkarevo, Povenets district.

Matryoshka symbolism

Considering one of the versions about the origin of the matryoshka, I have already mentioned “ japanese beginning". But does the above-mentioned foreign version in general suit our nesting doll in its symbolic meaning?

At one of the forums on the topic of culture, in particular, deployed on the Internet, the following was literally said: “The prototype of the Russian nesting doll (it also has Indian roots) is a Japanese wooden doll. A Japanese toy, a daruma, a tumbler doll, was taken as a sample. According to its origins, it is an image of the ancient Indian sage Daruma (Skt. Bodhidharma), who moved to China in the 5th century. His teachings spread widely in Japan in the Middle Ages. Daruma called for the comprehension of truth through silent contemplation, and in one of the legends he is a cave recluse, plump from immobility. According to another legend, his legs were taken away from immobility (hence the legless sculptural images of Daruma).

Nevertheless, the matryoshka immediately gained unprecedented recognition as a symbol of the Russian folk art.

There is a belief that if you put a note with a desire inside a nesting doll, then it will certainly come true, moreover, the more labor is invested in the nesting doll, i.e. the more places in it and the better the painting of the nesting dolls, the faster the desire will come true. Matryoshka is warmth and comfort in the house.

It is difficult to disagree with the latter - the more places in the nesting doll, i.e. the more internal figures, one smaller than the other, the more you can put notes with desires there and wait for them to come true. This is a kind of game, and the matryoshka here acts as a very charming, sweet, domestic symbol, a real work of art.

As for the eastern sage Daruma (here is another name for the “precursor” of the nesting doll!) – to be honest, the “wise man” who has grown fat from immobility, and even with his legs weaned, is extremely poorly associated with a Russian toy, in which every person sees a positive, elegant symbolic image. And thanks to this beautiful image our matryoshka enjoys great fame and popularity almost all over the world. We are not talking at all about “matryoshkas” in the form of male (!) political figures, whose caricature faces enterprising handicraftsmen flooded the entire Old Arbat in Moscow in the nineties. We are talking, first of all, about the continuation of the old traditions of different schools in the painting of Russian nesting dolls, about the creation of nesting dolls of different numbers (the so-called “locality”).

In the process of working on this material, it became necessary to use related sources, not only devoted to the topic of Russian folk toys. Do not forget that in ancient times, and not only in Russia, various decorations (female and male), household items, as well as toys carved from wood or made of clay, played the role of not just items that brighten up everyday life - but were also carriers of certain symbols, had some meaning. And the very concept of symbolism was closely intertwined with mythology.

So, miraculously there was a coincidence of the name Matrona, who migrated (according to the generally accepted version) from Latin to Russian, with ancient Indian images:

MATRI (ancient Ind. "mother"), the emphasis is on the first syllable - in Hindu mythology, divine mothers, personifying the creative and destructive forces of nature. The idea of an active feminine principle was widely recognized in Hinduism in connection with the spread of the shakti cult. Matri were considered as female personifications of the creative energy of the great gods: Brahma, Shiva, Skanda, Vishnu, Indra, etc. Matri's number ranged from seven to sixteen; some texts referred to them as "the great crowd".

Doesn't this remind you of anything? Matryoshka is also a “mother”, which symbolizes, in fact, a FAMILY, and even consisting of a different number of figures that symbolize children of different ages. This is no longer just a coincidence, but proof of common, Indo-European roots, which is directly related to the Slavs.

From this we can draw the following conclusion: figuratively speaking, if the symbolic "journey" of an unusual wooden figurine begins in India, then continues in China, from there the figurine ends up in Japan, and only then "unexpectedly" finds its place in Russia - the statement that that our Russian nesting doll was copied from the figurine of a Japanese sage is untenable. If only because the very figurine of a certain oriental sage is not originally Japanese. Probably, the hypothesis about the extensive settlement of the Slavs and the spread of their culture, which subsequently had its influence on the cultures of other peoples, including manifesting itself both in the language and in the divine pantheon, has a basis common to the Indo-European civilization.

However, most likely, the idea of a wooden toy, which consists of several figures inserted into one another, was inspired by Russian fairy tales to the master who created the matryoshka. Many, for example, know and remember the tale of Koshchei, with whom Ivan Tsarevich is fighting. For example, the story about the prince’s search for “Koshcheev’s death” sounds from Afanasyev: “To accomplish such a feat, extraordinary efforts and labors are needed, because Koshchei’s death is hidden far away: on the sea, on the ocean, on the island on Buyan there is a green oak, under that oak is buried an iron chest, in that chest a hare, in a hare a duck, in a duck an egg; one has only to crush the egg - and Koschei instantly dies.

I agree that the plot is dark in itself, because. associated with death. But here we are talking about a symbolic meaning - where is the truth hidden? The fact is that this almost identical mythological plot is found not only in Russian fairy tales, and even in different versions, but also among other peoples! “Obviously, in these epic expressions lies a mythical tradition, an echo of the prehistoric era; otherwise, how could different peoples so identical stories? Koschey (serpent, giant, old sorcerer), following the usual method of the folk epic, tells the secret of his death in the form of a riddle; to resolve it, one must substitute metaphorical expressions for common understanding.

This is our philosophical culture. And therefore, it is highly likely that the master who carved the matryoshka remembered and knew Russian fairy tales well - in Russia, a myth was often projected onto real life.

In other words, one is hidden in the other, enclosed - and in order to find the truth, it is necessary to get to the bottom, opening, one by one, all the "cloaked caps". Perhaps this is precisely the true meaning of such a wonderful Russian toy as a matryoshka - a reminder to posterity of the historical memory of our people?

And it is no coincidence that the wonderful Russian writer Mikhail Prishvin once wrote the following: “I thought that each of us has life, like the outer shell of a folding easter egg; it seems that this red egg is so big, and this is only a shell - you open it, and there is a blue, smaller one, and again the shell, and then green, and for some reason, for some reason, a yellowish egg always pops out at the very end, but it no longer opens, and this most, most of ours.

So it turns out that the Russian nesting doll is not so simple - this component our life.

An inexperienced, and even a sophisticated foreign tourist, first of all, carries a matryoshka doll from Russia. It has long become a symbol of our country, along with vodka, a bear and similar clichés that have developed in the mass consciousness. On the other hand, the Russian matryoshka is a brilliant example of folk talent, weakly influenced by mass culture.

History of Russian matryoshka

The most surprising thing is that until the end of the 19th century, there were no nesting dolls in Russia at all. In the second half of the century, the Great Reform of Alexander II was bearing fruit: industry was rapidly developing, railways. At the same time, the level of national self-consciousness is growing, there is an interest in national history and culture, folk crafts are being revived. From the 60s of the 19th century, a new branch began to form fine arts, called "Russian style". In Soviet times, it was contemptuously called “pseudo-Russian” or even “rooster” style - after the carved and embroidered “roosters” - a favorite motif of the artist and architect I.P. Ropet. Many famous artists, including V.M. Vasnetsova, K.A. Somova, M.A. Vrubel, V.A. Serov, F.A. They were supported by well-known patrons: Savva Ivanovich Mamontov, the creator of the Abramtsevo art circle, who invited these painters to his Abramtsevo estate near Moscow. At Mamontov's, the artists discussed the ways of developing Russian art and created it right there, on the spot. The Mamontovs also tried to revive ancient folk crafts, collected folk art, including peasant toys. Savva Ivanovich's brother, Anatoly Ivanovich Mamontov, was the owner of the Children's Education shop-workshop.

A.I. Mamontov hired highly qualified toy artisans and demanded from them a non-standard approach in the manufacture of toys. To expand the horizons of the masters and develop their creative imagination, samples of toys were ordered from different countries peace. At this time, there is an increased interest in oriental, especially Japanese art. The exhibition of Japanese art, held in St. Petersburg in the second half of the 90s, contributed a lot to the emergence and development of the fashion for “everything Japanese”. Among the exhibits at this exhibition was a figurine of the Buddhist sage Fukurumu, a good-natured bald old man, in which several more wooden figurines were invested. The figurine Fukurumu was brought from the island of Honshu, according to Japanese tradition, the first such figurine was carved by a certain Russian monk, who came to Japan by unknown means. It is believed that the Fukurumu figurine became the prototype of the Russian nesting doll.

Author of Russian matryoshka

The author of the first Russian nesting doll is unknown, but its appearance was predetermined by the wide interest in national art in all spheres of society, the desire of the owner and craftsmen of the Children's Education shop-workshop to interest the public, to create something new and unusual in the Russian spirit. Finally, the appearance of the Fukurumu figurine at the exhibition of Japanese art was a kind of precise crystallization of this idea.

The first Russian matryoshka was carved in the workshop of A.I. Mamontov. It has a stamp on it: "Children's upbringing." It was carved by hereditary toy master Vasily Petrovich Zvezdochkin, and painted by S.V. Malyutin, who collaborated with A.I. Mamontov, illustrating children's books.

Why is the matryoshka so called

The name “matryoshka” for a wooden detachable painted figurine turned out to be just right. In the old Russian province, the name Matryona was one of the most common and beloved female names. This name comes from the Latin "mater", which means "mother". The name Matryona evokes the image of a real Russian woman, the mother of numerous children, with real peasant health and a typical portly figure.

The first Russian nesting doll looked something like this.

Vasily Zvezdochkin carved the first Russian matryoshka. It was painted by Sergey Malyutin. It consisted of 8 places: a girl with a black rooster, then a boy, followed by a girl again, etc. The artist painted all the figures differently, and the last one depicted a swaddled baby.

What is a Russian nesting doll made of?

Matryoshka is usually cut from linden, birch, alder and aspen. Harder and more durable conifers are not used for such “pampering”. The best material for making nesting dolls is linden. The tree from which nesting dolls will be cut is harvested in the spring, usually in April, when the wood is in the juice. The tree is cleaned of bark, be sure to leave bark rings on the trunk, otherwise it will crack when dried. The logs are stacked, leaving a gap between them for air. The wood is aged outdoors for two years or more. Only an experienced carver can determine the degree of readiness of the material. The turner performs up to 15 operations with a lime chock before it becomes a finished nesting doll.

The very first carve a small one-piece figure. For drop-down nesting dolls, first grind the lower part - the bottom. After turning, the wooden doll is carefully cleaned, primed with a paste, achieving a perfectly smooth surface. After priming, the matryoshka is ready for painting.
The workshop "Children's Education" became the first-born in the manufacture of nesting dolls, and after its closure, this craft was mastered in Sergiev Posad. The local craftsmen created their own type of matryoshka, which to this day is called Sergiev Posad.

Russian matryoshka painting

In 1900, the Russian nesting doll was presented at the World Exhibition in Paris, where it received a medal and world fame. At the same time, international orders were sent, which could only be fulfilled by highly qualified craftsmen from Sergiev Posad. V. Zvezdochkin also came to work in the workshop of this city.

The first Russian nesting dolls were very diverse both in shape and in painting. Among the early Sergiev Posad samples, in addition to girls in Russian sundresses with baskets, sickles, bunches of flowers, or in winter coats with a shawl on their heads, there are often male characters: a bride and groom holding wedding candles in their hands, a shepherd boy with a flute, an old man with a shawl beard. Sometimes the matryoshka was a whole family with numerous children and household members.

The fashionable Russian style led to the appearance of a historical nesting doll depicting boyars and boyars, representatives of the Russian nobility, epic heroes. Various memorable dates also influenced the decoration of the matryoshka, for example, the centenary of the birth of N.V. Gogol, celebrated in 1909. For the anniversary, a series of nesting dolls based on the works of the writer (“Taras Bulba”, “Plyushkin”, “Mayor”) was made.

Matryoshka “Taras Bulba”

By the 100th anniversary of the war of 1812, matryoshka dolls depicting M.I. Kutuzov and Napoleon appeared, inside which were placed figures of Russian and French military leaders.

Very popular were nesting dolls painted based on fairy tales, legends and even fables: “King Dodon” and “The Swan Princess” from the fairy tales of A.S. Pushkin, "Humpbacked Horse" from P.P. Ershov's fairy tale, characters of I.A. Krylov's fables. In Sergiev Posad, they also made nesting dolls decorated with pyrography. Usually, an ornamental pattern was made all over the matryoshka, her clothes, face, hands, scarf and hair by burning.

International recognition of Russian nesting dolls

Matryoshka receives international recognition: in 1905, a store was opened in Paris, where an order was immediately received to make a batch of boyar nesting dolls. In 1911 Sergiev Posad craftsmen completed orders from 14 countries. In the price list of the Sergiev Zemstvo educational and demonstration workshop in 1911, twenty-one types of nesting dolls were listed. They differed in painting, size, number of inserts. Sergiev Posad nesting dolls had from 2 to 24 inserts. In 1913, the turner N. Bulychev carved a 48-seat matryoshka specially for the toy exhibition held in St. Petersburg.

Sergiev Posad nesting dolls

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the turner played quite important role in the creation of nesting dolls, turning figures with the thinnest walls. At that time, the carvers reasonably considered themselves the authors of nesting dolls, the painting of nesting dolls played a secondary role. Professional artists who painted the first toys did not take this activity very seriously.

The largest Sergiev Posad nesting doll was carved by the turner Mokeev in 1967. It consists of 60 (!) seats. Matryoshka from Sergiev Posad is distinguished by a squat shape, the top, smoothly turning into the expanding lower part of the figurine, gouache painting, varnished. The preferred proportion of nesting dolls - 1: 2 - is the ratio of the width of the nesting doll to its height.

Semyonovskaya matryoshka

The huge popularity of the Sergiev Posad matryoshka has led to the emergence of competition. Masters from other places could see the novelty at fairs, especially at the country's largest Nizhny Novgorod fair. Sergiev Posad nesting dolls attracted the attention of Nizhny Novgorod toy carvers. In the Nizhny Novgorod province, a large handicraft center for the production of matryoshka appears - the city of Semyonov (the nesting doll is called Semyonov after it).

The traditions of painting the Semyonov nesting dolls originate from the hereditary toy masters Mayorovs from the village of Merinovo. The village is located near Semyonov. In 1922, Arsenty Fedorovich Mayorov brought an unpainted Sergiev Posad nesting doll from Nizhny Novgorod. His eldest daughter Lyuba drew a drawing on the matryoshka with a goose quill and painted it with aniline paints with a brush. She depicted a Russian kokoshnik on her head, and in the center she placed a bright scarlet flower, similar to a chamomile.

For almost 20 years, Merinovsky nesting dolls have been ranked first among the masters of the Nizhny Novgorod region for 20 years.

The painting of the Semyonov matryoshka, which is brighter and more decorative than the Sergiev Posad one. The painting of Semenov nesting dolls originates in the folk traditions of the "grass" ornament of Ancient Russia. The Semyonov masters left more unpainted surfaces, they use more modern aniline paints, also varnished.

The basis of the composition in the painting of the Semyonov matryoshka is an apron, which depicts a lush bouquet of flowers. Modern masters create a painting in three colors - red, blue and yellow. They change the combination of colors of the apron, sundress and scarf. The bouquet on the apron is traditionally written not in the center, but slightly shifted to the right. Semenov turners came up with a special form of matryoshka. She, unlike the Sergiev Posad, is more slender. Its upper part is relatively thin and sharply passes into a thickened lower one.

The Semyonov matryoshka differs from others in that it is multi-seated and consists of 15-18 multi-colored figures. It was in Semyonov that the largest 72-seat matryoshka was carved. Its diameter is half a meter, and its height is 1 meter.
Semyonov is considered the largest center for the creation of matryoshka dolls in Russia.

Matryoshka from Polkhovsky Maidan

In the south-west of the Nizhny Novgorod region there is another famous center for the manufacture and painting of nesting dolls - this is the village of Polkhovsky Maidan.
This is an old handicraft center, the inhabitants of which specialized in woodcarving and the manufacture of wooden toys. The first Polkhov nesting dolls, made following the example of the Sergiev Posad ones, were trimmed with burning. Later, local residents began to paint them using floral ornament. The masters of Polkhovsky Maidan, as well as Semyonov, paint with aniline paints. coloring

The Polkhov-Maidan matryoshka is distinguished by an even brighter, sonorous colors and larger painting.

The style of the Polkhovo-Maidanovskaya matryoshka belongs to the so-called. peasant primitive, its painting resembles a child's drawing. The artists of Polkhovsky Maidan, like the masters of Semyonov, pay the main attention to the flower painting on the apron, omitting all the everyday details of the costume.

The main motif of their painting is a multi-petal rosehip flower (“rose”). This flower has long been considered a symbol of the feminine, love and motherhood. The image of a “rose” is necessarily present in any version of the painting created by the masters of Polkhovsky Maidan.

Matryoshka inlaid with straws

Vyatka matryoshka is the northernmost of all Russian nesting dolls. She received a special originality in the 60s of the twentieth century. Then the matryoshka was not only painted, but also inlaid with straws. This is a very complex, painstaking work, which includes the preparation of a special type of straw and its use in decorating a wooden figurine. Straw inlay makes Vyatka products unique.

Author's matryoshka

From the end of the 80s, the beginning of the 90s of the 20th century, new stage in the development of the art of nesting dolls - the so-called period of the author's nesting dolls. The political and economic changes known as Gorbachev's "perestroika" aroused great interest in the world in Russian culture, its original, folk origin. Economic changes allowed the opening of private workshops. The master craftsman got the opportunity to freely sell his products, as it was 100 years ago.

Among those who willingly took up painting matryoshkas were professional artists. In place of the standard identical matryoshka doll, which developed in Soviet times, a new, author's one has come. First of all, nesting dolls brought back the thematic variety in the painting that existed in the early Sergiev Posad period.

Modern matryoshka

A characteristic feature of the modern author's matryoshka is its extraordinary picturesqueness. Her pattern is similar to a flowery fabric and creates a festive mood. One of the main themes of the painting is the world around. Many artists turn to motifs from Russian history - from the campaign of Prince Igor to modern history. It turned out that the matryoshka has a huge potential for conveying events unfolded in time and space. This movement, as it were, appears before our eyes, and just before our eyes it can be “rolled up and put away” in a matryoshka case.

For example, the so-called political matryoshka represents a portrait gallery of Russian sovereigns, domestic and foreign statesmen. Matryoshka dolls depicting modern politicians are more like good caricatures - a tradition that comes from the early period of the development of nesting dolls. Known, for example, is a caricature nesting doll painted by V.A. Serov. S.I. Mamontov, V.A. Serov himself, N.A. Rimsky-Korsakov and other participants in Mammoth theatrical productions were presented in Turkish costumes.

“Subordination” in the matryoshka of a political nature is expressed very clearly. It is worth mentioning that for the inauguration of Bill Clinton in Russia, nesting dolls with the image of the future US president and his closest associates were specially ordered.

Sometimes only one fairy tale is illustrated on one nesting doll, sometimes on each of the nesting dolls we will see the heroes of different fairy tales, folk or author's - Pushkin, Ershov, Aksakov, Tolstoy, etc. What a wonderful book of fairy tales, the plot of which is suggested by illustrations, the logical sequence of which is gradually opens on each of the figures? And, as in a book, the intention of the artist-author is traced, in contrast to it, the scope of children's imagination opens up.

Russian doll. architectural painting

Very often, artists draw architectural monuments on the aprons of nesting dolls. Such a matryoshka is the best souvenir, it will remind you of visiting a particular place. Often in the ornament of nesting dolls there is an ensemble of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, architectural monuments of Moscow, Vladimir, Suzdal, Novgorod and many other cities of Russia.

You can often find nesting dolls painted under "Gzhel", "Zhostovo", "Khokhloma", "Palekh". In other words, the modern nesting doll, as it were, concentrates all the richness of the artistic traditions of Russian applied art.

The author's matryoshka can rightfully be considered a new kind of art that has enriched the world artistic heritage and has become a desirable collector's item for museums and private collectors.
Matryoshka is a phenomenon of great artistic value, this work is both sculptural and pictorial, it is the soul and image of Russia.

When and where did the nesting doll first appear, who invented it?

Why is a wooden folding toy doll called "matryoshka"?

What does such a unique work of folk art symbolize?

Matryoshka name

Why was the original wooden toy doll called "matryoshka"? Almost unanimously, all researchers refer to the fact that this name comes from the female name Matryona, common in Russia: “The name Matryona comes from the Latin Matrona, which means “noble woman”, Matrona was written in the church, among the diminutive names: Motya, Motya, Matryosha, Matyusha, Tyusha, Matusya, Tusya, Musya. That is, theoretically, a matryoshka could also be called a motka (or muska). It sounds, of course, strange, although what is worse, for example, "marfushka"? Also a good and common name is Martha. Or Agafya, by the way, the popular painting on porcelain is called "agashka". Although we agree that the name “matryoshka” is very successful, the doll has really become “noble”.

Nevertheless, the matryoshka has gained unprecedented recognition as a symbol of Russian folk art.

There is a belief that if you put a note with a desire inside a nesting doll, then it will certainly come true, moreover, the more labor is invested in the nesting doll, i.e. the more places in it and the better the painting of the nesting dolls, the faster the desire will come true. Matryoshka is warmth and comfort in the house.

And it is no coincidence that the remarkable Russian writer Mikhail Prishvin once wrote the following: “I thought that each of us has life, like the outer shell of a folding Easter egg; it seems that this red egg is so big, and this is only a shell - you open it, and there is a blue, smaller one, and again the shell, and then green, and for some reason, at the very end, for some reason, a yellow little egg will always pop out, but this is no longer opened, and this most, most of ours.

So it turns out that the Russian nesting doll is not so simple - this is an integral part of our life

The principles of making nesting dolls have not changed over the years. long years that this toy exists.

Matryoshka dolls are made from well-dried durable linden and birch wood. The smallest, one-piece nesting doll is always made first, which can be quite tiny - the size of a grain of rice. Turning matryoshkas is a subtle art that takes years to learn; some craftsmen-turners even learn how to turn nesting dolls blindly!

Matryoshkas are primed before painting, varnished after painting. In the nineteenth century, gouache was used to paint these toys - now unique images of nesting dolls are also created using aniline paints, tempera, and watercolors.

But gouache still remains the favorite paint of artists who paint nesting dolls.

First of all, the face of the toy and an apron with a picturesque image are painted, and only then - a sundress and a scarf.

From the middle of the twentieth century, nesting dolls began not only to be painted, but also decorated - with mother-of-pearl plates, straws, and later with rhinestones and beads ...

There are entire museums in Russia dedicated to nesting dolls. The first in Russia - and in the world! - Matryoshka Museum opened in 2001 in Moscow. The Moscow Matryoshka Museum is located in the premises of the Folk Crafts Fund in Leontievsky Lane; its director - Larisa Solovyova - devoted more than one year to the study of nesting dolls. She is the author of two books about these cheerful wooden dolls. And quite recently, in 2004, a museum of nesting dolls was opened in the Nizhny Novgorod region - it collected more than 300 exhibits under its roof. There are nesting dolls of a unique Polkhmaydanovsky painting - the same Polkhov-Maidanovsky nesting dolls that are known all over the world and which the villagers have been bringing for sale to Moscow for many decades in huge baskets, where sometimes they load up to a hundred kilograms of precious toys! The largest matryoshka in this museum is one meter long: it includes 40 dolls. And the smallest one is the size of just a grain of rice! Nested dolls are admired not only in Russia: quite recently, in 2005, a group of painted dolls also came to the International Trade Exhibition of High-Quality Consumer Goods "Ambiente-2005" in Germany, in the city of Frankfurt am Main.

In the image of a matryoshka, the art of the masters and a great love for the Russian folk culture. Now on the streets of St. Petersburg and Moscow you can buy a variety of souvenirs for every taste - nesting dolls depicting politicians, famous musicians, grotesque characters ...

But still, every time we say “matryoshka”, we immediately imagine a cheerful Russian girl in a bright folk costume.

Russian matryoshka is one of the most famous symbols of Russia. This is a toy whose popularity has stepped far beyond the borders of the state itself. Sergiev Posad is the birthplace of the Russian matryoshka. It was there that a wooden young lady was first invented, from which, when opened, similar toys of various sizes appeared.

Unlike many folk crafts, the popularity of which, due to the emergence of new techniques and materials, has been lost, the Russian matryoshka is still very popular all over the world.

The history of the appearance of the fishery

(Turner Vasily Petrovich Zvezdochkin, creator of the first Russian matryoshka)

The appearance of the first Russian nesting doll dates back to 1898-1900. It was at this time that the famous turner, Vasily Petrovich Zvezdochkin, who was engaged in the manufacture of wooden toys, at the request of Sergei Malyutin, made a blank from wood, into which the same drop-down blanks were inserted, but of different sizes. The plot for painting the very first toy was the daily activities that Russian beauties were engaged in. The nesting doll consisted of eight wooden dolls.

(Classic matryoshka)

Later, various variations of nesting dolls appeared, the number of dolls in which was different. So, at the beginning of the 20th century, products consisted of 24 elements, and the famous turner Nikita Bulychev created a doll consisting of 48 wooden young ladies. On a mass scale, nesting dolls began to be produced in the artel of Mamontov in Sergiev Posad.

A few years after its manufacture, the Russian matryoshka was presented at an exhibition in Paris. Foreigners liked the toy so much that Russian craftsmen received orders for it not only from the expanses of the Motherland, but also from other states. Not even ten years have passed since the first precedents for the manufacture of fake nesting dolls appeared in other countries.

Fishing elements

Russian nesting dolls differed not only in the number of dolls that were invested in one product. The depicted subjects and painting techniques were different.

(Matryoshka family of 8 dolls)

The most common were dolls consisting of 3, 8 and 12 elements. Masters also produced nesting dolls of 21, 24, 30 and 42 dolls.

Traditional plots for the image on nesting dolls were everyday topics. Most often, the occupations of Russian young ladies of one period or another were reflected. The girls were depicted in traditional dresses with scarves on their heads. In their hands they could hold sickles for harvesting, jugs of milk, baskets with berries, etc. A little later, other subjects began to be depicted on nesting dolls, for example, characters from fairy tales and fables, heroes of stories by famous writers.

Also, instead of young ladies, commanders, politicians and other prominent figures could be depicted.

(Old end XIX beginning XX centuries and modern nesting dolls of the XX-XXI centuries)

At some point in time, even the shape of nesting dolls was changed, for example, cone-shaped dolls appeared that were inserted one into the other. Such forms did not gain popularity among the common people, and quickly sunk into oblivion.

Traditional nesting dolls also differed from each other in the style of painting. To date, there are:

Zagorsk style with bright and saturated colors and many small, clearly traced elements;
Merino matryoshka doll with large flowers painting;
Semenov style with strict symmetrical painting;
Polkhovskaya with the obligatory image of a wild rose flower;
Vyatka doll depicting a young northerner, modest and shy.

(Types of nesting dolls from different regions of Russia, as well as Ukraine)

Deciduous trees are the traditional material for making nesting dolls, since they are the easiest to process. Most often, masters use linden, as paints for painting they take colored gouache, ink, as well as aniline paints. Protects the finished product with wood wax or an oil-based clear varnish.

Execution technique

Matryoshka is traditionally made by a turner. It is his task to prepare blanks from linden. For turning, only seasoned and thoroughly dried samples of trees are taken.

(Matryoshka making)

First, the master carves out the smallest solid figure. After that, he moves on to the next largest figure and makes only the lower part of it. After processing, this element is well dried, and only then is the upper part of the figure adjusted. According to this scheme, all the components of the nesting dolls are prepared.

Dried parts are necessarily treated with starch glue. It is applied as a ground layer and serves as the basis for painting. After the primer dries thoroughly, the craftsmen begin to paint nesting dolls. To do this, use goose feathers, brushes, sponges, etc.

(Painting finished nesting dolls)

The painting techniques used today are different, but the traditional images are very simple, since the doll was originally intended to be played by children. Masters draw a simple face. The head of the doll is necessarily depicted covered with a scarf, which is painted in traditional Russian ornaments. Of the clothes, a sundress is most often depicted, sometimes it can be complemented by an apron. The figurine is decorated with floral ornaments.

After the paint dries, a finishing layer is applied, which protects the matryoshka from moisture and chips.

Matryoshka is one of the famous and beloved Russian souvenirs.
The first Russian nesting doll appeared at the end of the 19th century and gained unprecedented recognition as one of the all-encompassing images of Russia, a symbol of Russian folk art.
The predecessor and prototype of the Russian matryoshka doll was the figure of a good-natured bald old man, the Buddhist sage Fukuruma, in which there were several more figures nested one inside the other, brought from the island of Honshu. The Japanese, by the way, claim that an unknown Russian monk was the first to carve such a toy on the island of Honshu.
The Russian wooden detachable doll was called a matryoshka. In the pre-revolutionary province, the name Matryona, Matryosha was considered one of the most common Russian names, which is based on the Latin word "mater", meaning mother. This name was associated with the mother of a large family, with good health and portly figure. Subsequently, it became a household name and began to mean a detachable turning colorfully painted wooden product. But even now, the matryoshka remains a symbol of motherhood, fertility, since a doll with a large doll family perfectly expresses the figurative basis of this ancient symbol of human culture.
The first Russian matryoshka doll, carved by Vasily Zvezdochkin and painted by Sergey Malyutin, was eight-seat: a boy followed a girl with a black rooster, then another girl, and so on. All figures differed from each other, the last, eighth, depicted a swaddled baby.
As a rule, nesting dolls are made from hardwood. The most fertile material is linden. Trees intended for making nesting dolls are cut down in early spring, usually in April, when the wood is in sap. Sawn trees are cleaned, leaving bark rings in several places. Otherwise, the wood will crack during drying. The logs prepared in this way with smeared ends are stacked in piles so that there is an air gap between them. Harvested wood is kept outdoors for at least two years. Logs ready for processing are sawn into blanks for future nesting dolls. In the hands of a turner, the workpiece goes through up to 15 operations before becoming a finished nesting doll. Usually, the smallest non-opening figurine is turned first, then all the other figurines. Finished dolls are primed with starch glue, dried, now the nesting doll is ready for painting.
Until the end of the 90s of the last century, nesting dolls were carved and painted in the Moscow workshop "Children's Education", and after its closure in Sergiev Posad, near Moscow, an old center for making toys. According to legend, the first "Trinity" toy was carved by the abbot of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, founded in 1340, Sergius of Radonezh. He personally gave toys to children. Even among the toys of the royal children there were wooden Trinity ones. They were bought in Sergiev Posad, where Russian tsars with their children and households came to the Trinity-Sergius Monastery on a pilgrimage.
In 1900, the Russian matryoshka was exhibited at the World Exhibition in Paris, where it received a medal and world recognition. From the end of the 18th - beginning of the 19th century, carved wooden toys depicting a peasant girl in a kokoshnik, a dancing peasant, elegant ladies and hussars have come down to us. The first matryoshka dolls, with their shapes and painting, also capture a motley diverse life: girls in Russian sundresses with baskets, sickles, bunches of flowers or in winter coats with a shawl on their heads; bride and groom holding candles in their hands; shepherdess with flute; an old man with a bushy beard. Sometimes the matryoshka was a whole family.
Matryoshka is both a sculpture and a painting, it is the image and soul of Russia.