Russian symbols - Matryoshka

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Let's talk about Symbols of Russia - Matryoshka.

In the 1890s, an artistic movement called "Russian Style" arose in Russia. His followers showed great interest in Russian culture and were committed to the revival of traditional folk art in Russia.

The first sketches of matryoshka were developed by the professional artist Sergei Malyutin (1859-1937), who actively worked in the "Russian style". The Japanese Daruma doll served as a prototype. The master designed a matryoshka as a peasant woman in a colorful scarf. The first Russian wooden doll, carved from Malyutin's sketches, was made by Sergiev Posad's best toy maker named Zvezdochkin and was made of 8 pieces.

Why is the doll called Matryoshka? In the period before the revolution in 1917, the name Matryona (diminutive Matryosha) was a popular female given name in the Russian province and was associated with the mother of a large family with good health and a female figure.

In modern Russia, this Russian wooden doll is a symbol of motherhood and fertility.

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