Matreshka dolls

by Atsushi
(Ibaraki)

Of the things famous in Russia, I got interested in matreshka dolls. The name of matreshka comes from a Russian woman's name. It is divided up and down in the portion of the body, and a small doll is contained inside.

This is repeated several times. It is a cylindrical structure and does not have hands. It is nested six-fold or more in many cases.

It is an original thing that a female image is drawn on each doll. However, patterns such as the President or an animal are also drawn. It has spread to various kinds.

Although I thought that the history of matreshka was long and traditional, that was not right. In fact, there is a history of matreshka for only 100 or so years. Therefore, it is not necessarily a "traditional" handicraft article from ancient times.

A craftsman of Russia sent his own new work to the Paris Expo in 1900. Then, the novel design became a great success and it spread. Therefore, the Paris Expo in 1900 is the origin. Therefore, nobody knows what kind of meaning that matreshka has. Thus, there are many mysteries about matreshka dolls.