If you have ever had Russian friends, or walked into a Russian store, you have probably seen these wooden dolls. They can be painted in many different ways; some are very funny and look like a set of politicians, the Santa Clause family, or even superheroes.
Each of these stacking dolls, but the very tiniest last one, splits in half at the mid section and reveal a smaller doll inside.
This set is one of mine. There are 9 of them and they represent a more modern version of a family, where you can notice the man to be a main largest figure.
But in the original set of Matriarchies, you'll find only female dolls: matrons, since Matryoshka has a Latin root , that means ''mother''. The nesting dolls symbolize motherhood: from the oldest ''babushka''/grandmother who basically started the family to the youngest baby who is protected and cared by all older family members. A mother gives birth to her baby, and her baby gives birth to her kids, and so on, like never ending circle of life... keeping the family strong and large through generations.
Here is a pictures of a traditional set,
from WikipediA ➡️ ➡️ ➡️
Any family starts with a woman who eventually becomes the oldest: babushka and continues through generations from mother to daughter, representing importance of motherhood and fertility.
This blog is inspired by Endre Barath and you can find his post here:) Thank you Endre for your question. I truly appreciate this opportunity to write about a subject that is close to my heritage!
Some of my clients have the nesting dolls and they look beautiful in any home.
Here is a fun fact to know about Matriarchies:
''The largest set of Russian dolls is a 51-piece set hand-painted by Youlia Bereznitskaia (Russia). The largest measures 1 ft 9.25 in (53.97 cm) in height, the smallest 0.125 in (0.31 cm) in height. The set was completed on 25 April 2003. When all 51 pieces are lined up together touching, they measure 11 ft 2.25 in length.'' ~ from Guinness World Records.
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