Babooshka Russian Dolls

Russian dolls are a wonderful analogy as a reflection of Russian culture itself. Russian people, loving their motherland with all their heart, and admiring its beauty were not only singing songs about its beauty from ancient times, but also were making simple items for their everyday life decorated in a bright and lively painting which made their favourite nature tunes alive.

These items become pieces of true art, they are of a beautiful shape, comfortable to use and skilfully crafted. Khokhloma is one of them. There lives a legend in the villages of Nizhniy Novgorod region how khokhloma cam to the land of Volga and where it took its flame colours from.

The story says that in older times there lived in Moscow an artist of icons. A Tzar appreciated his work a lot and paid him very well. The artist loved his craft but he also loved freedom, so he secretly left the mansion of the Tzar and escaped to the dense Kerzhhen forests.

He made himself a peasants hut and went on doing his crafts. He was dreaming about an art that could become dear to everyone, just like simple Russian song and so that the beauty of his native Russia was expressed in it. This is how the first khokhloma cups appeared which were painted in lush flowers and slim twigs.

The fame of this glorious artist spread everywhere. People where come from all over to admire his art. Many of those people were making peasants huts for themselves and settling in the neighbourhood.