Theme of the week: Russian folk toy. Traditional toys of the Slavs A toy in the history of a Russian person

Story about toys for children

Children about the history of toys

Toy as an attribute of childhood

Introduction 2

1. History of Russian folk toys 3

2. Symbolism and image of a folk toy 6

3. The influence of Russian folk toys on the formation of a child's personality 11

Conclusion 16

List of used literature 17

Introduction

Despite several years of forced westernization, our minds still retain images, colors, lines that connect with the initiatory beginning that goes back to the prehistoric "primordial time", which determines the soul and destiny of our people. On the external, visible plane, this beginning appears through the artifacts of the ancient "cult worldview" that have survived to this day, in which our ancestors put their vision of the universe and with the help of which they sought to influence the world themselves, transform it in accordance with their ethical and aesthetic ideals. . A special, inexpressible sense of the reality of the bright, sunny beginning of the highest beauty and harmony present in the world, giving Russians the right to some kind of eschatological hope "at the end of time", has been preserved in a traditional Russian toy that bears the imprint of millennia and the message of the ancient faith. In the archaic lines, pointing to immemorial antiquity, decorating the images of magical animals, birds and trees, the message of the "forerunners" of the ancient Slavs, Etruscan and Crete-Mycenaean cultures is also felt. Looking at the modern "traditional toys" created in Kargopol and Dymkovo, Gorodetsk and Bogorodsk, you involuntarily feel the energy and mysterious magical aura of ancient pagan cults. The foregoing determines the relevance of the work.

The purpose of the abstract is to characterize the Russian folk toy as a special kind of Russian folk art.

Study the literature on the topic;

Consider the history of Russian folk toys;

Describe the symbolism and image of folk toys;

Determine the influence of folk toys on the formation of a child's personality.

1. History of Russian folk toys

What are toys? The answer to this question seems obvious. Although in reality it is not. Ozhegov's dictionary gives the following definition: "A thing that serves for the game." On the pages explanatory dictionary Living Great Russian language Dahl, we find a definition that is already more interesting and more correct: "a toy is a little thing made for fun, for play or fun, especially for children." The key word in this definition is "especially". Because toys belonged and, even now, belong equally to the world of children and the world of adults.

At least a few thousand years ago, a special magical geometry of cult "toys" crystallized and has remained unchanged since then, in which the proportions of objects are transformed towards spatial expansion both in the horizontal and vertical directions. This especially applies to toy "horses" associated with the ancient Scythian, and then Slavic rituals of sun worship. The horse in the Aryan mytho-symbolic space was directly associated with the solar deity, and the movement of the sun across the sky was likened to a horse run. The horse stood in the main sanctuary of the ancient Slavs - the temple of Svyatovit on the island of Ruyan, waiting for the arrival of his invisible heavenly rider. The temple of Perun was also decorated with figures of horses in those days when Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich put him at the head of the pagan pantheon. The Sun-Horse has become an archetypal plot for miniature amulets and talismans, both for toy "wheelchair horses" and for clay "skates"-whistles.

Around the "cult toys" was also concentrated the ancient custom of releasing birds from the cages, which were supposed to become messengers of people to their ancestors staying in Iria. Released birds "flew to paradise", and their clay copies reminded of the messengers who went on a long journey, served as their magical "twins". According to legend, among the clay whistle birds there were also unusual, magical birds that reproduced unusual, "otherworldly" melodies...

Birds flew every winter to Iriy, as the Slavs called the hidden paradise located at the end of the world, where the souls of their ancestors lived. And therefore, in the religious tradition of the ancient Slavs, "clay birds" also served as a magical tool for communicating with the "souls of ancestors", which, from the point of view of the ancient Slavic worldview, did not "completely" leave our world, but remained in it, invisibly present and in their degree " reality" differed little from living people.

"Cult" toys, going back to immemorial Scythian antiquity, were preserved among the people even after the baptism of Russia, because their metaphysical essence, their mysterious meaning, basically, did not contradict the Christian revelation that came to our land. It is not accidental, but, on the contrary, it is deeply symbolic that the only "Toy Museum" in the world is located in Sergiev Posad, next to the Trinity-Sergius Lavra.

After the baptism of Russia by St. Vladimir, many customs and rituals associated with ancient, pagan "toys" were organically woven into the Orthodox religious and cultural context. So, one of the favorite children's toys of the "pre-Christian time" - a birch bark boat, which was launched along the stream along the first water, began to symbolize the navigation of the "ship of salvation" - the Church on the "waters" of the vain "circle of life".

At the same time, the traditional Russian toy, even in the most immemorial times, was not forced out of the sphere of everyday life, was not rigidly alienated into the sacred dimension.

This deeply corresponded to the worldview of a Russian person, one foot standing on the ground, and the other somewhere far away in the sky. In the toy, despite its "familiarity", lurked the beginning of a supernatural plan that has a huge "magic charge" that transforms reality. It is no coincidence, for example, that anthropomorphic toys have never been “drawn” with faces, fearing that a toy with a face will begin to come to life and live its own life, which could push the universe towards chaos, upset the unsteady world balance. In addition, traditional toys were deprived of some deliberate edification, which distinguishes remakes that have recently entered Russian everyday life. So, thanks to the efforts of the “children of the Arbat”, who sold “Russian souvenirs” to foreigners in the 80s, the matryoshka became almost a “symbol of Russia” in the eyes of the whole world, does not belong to the number of traditional Russian toys.

The first samples of "matryoshka" appeared in the "Children's Education" workshop only at the end of the 19th century, in 1893 or 1895. Their authors were toy craftsmen Zvezdochkin, Belov and Konovalov, who probably used as a prototype a Japanese toy imported at that time in Russia, inside which detachable inset figurines of Buddhist bodhisattvas were kept. It is most likely that the Japanese "cult" doll led domestic craftsmen to the idea of ​​making a toy of a similar design. As for Russian traditional toys, among them there was not even a hint of the matryoshka doll, which has become a "talk of the town" today. Therefore, the matryoshka is devoid of the sacred underlying basis, so frightening to Western lovers of "Russian souvenirs" in Kargopol or Dymkovo toys, it can be "calmly" and "fearlessly" held in any hands.

There are stories of folk craftsmen about how a specially painted clay horse, sold to foreign tourists eager for the exotic, literally "hit" foreigners on the hands, as if with an electric current. But the rounded, ear-to-ears smiling nesting doll was absolutely safe. It is not surprising that today it is this remake toy that has become associated in the West with "mysterious Russia."

2. Symbolism and image of a folk toy

An example of a ritual object of children's play is traditional Russian dolls made of wood and straw, which do not have a drawing of a face. These dolls became childish when the symbolic meaning of ancient beliefs was simplified, when the Great Goddess, standing beyond good and evil, was feared to be portrayed with facial features that could cause harm when using her image. Almost all the most ancient images that have come down to us (of the Mother Goddess - "Neolithic Venus") do not have a face.

Separately, it is necessary to point out the symbolism of the horse in the Russian toy. A number of representations were associated with the image of a horse. First of all, the solar gods were correlated with the horse, as well as ideas about the reincarnation of the human soul after death. The connection between ideas about the rebirth of the soul and the sun was based on the fact that the sun spends part of the day in the Earthly world, and the night period - in the Underworld. Therefore, the soul of a person, having spent some time in the Underworld, was reborn for life on earth. Such a representation was associated with the symbolism of two horses or one two-headed horse. The toy "day - night" should also be attributed to such symbolism. Note that a double ridge can often be seen on the roof of a Russian traditional hut. Such an image is a kind of wish for immortality to the owners.

All kinds of rocking horses and swings are associated with the symbolism of the sun. In the songs of the southern Slavs, the motif of the spring swing of a girl on a swing correlated with her sacred marriage with the sun, which should bring her good luck in marriage in the future. Joint swinging on a swing of a young man and a girl was also considered as a wish for their happiness. Rocking horses and the image of horses in general, were supposed to bring good luck and the blessing of the sun for the child.

In the toy, various rattles and balls were some model of the World Tree, primarily its crown - the Heavenly World. At the same time, the traditional folk toy had a kind of child-blessing character. An egg model also belonged to toys of this type, since according to the oldest cosmogonic ideas, the world was born from an egg.

Dolls Panki Pomorie. They are descendants of ancient wooden idols. Northern craftsmen cut them down with an ax, but, having become toys, these roughly crafted figures did not completely lose their magical power. They contain memories of the power of the gods, who were worshiped by many generations of the inhabitants of these places. They believed that even these little wooden men could be possessed by spirits.

Mokhoviki, who come from the dense forests of the Vyatka lands, almost do not try to pretend to be toys. From moss, cones, bark created them. And their character matches the nature of their native land. Gloomy, like thickets of forests. Not toys - the spirits of the trees that gave them life. Only at first glance they look like people whose touch gave form to their bodies.

But not only gloomy forest men keep the memory of ancient beliefs and traditions. Who does not know the Dymkovo toy? Figures of people, birds, animals molded from clay, dressed in bright colors and gilding. Now they are just a popular souvenir, but once everything was very different.

In the 19th century, they were prepared in the Dymkovskaya Sloboda, near Vyatka, for the holiday of seeing off winter. It was called in those places "Whistle", "Whistle-dance" and the first Dymkovo toys were whistles. All winter the women of the surrounding villages sculpted them. So, even having become a funny toy, they still retained a connection with their pagan roots. After all, once clay figurines were totems and pagan idols.

Rattles, sharks, rattles until the beginning of the 20th century, in addition to the entertainment purpose, also served to call good spirits or protective angels to the child. Using the basic principle of magic, connected everywhere with the principle of similarity, expressed in the fact that the model or image in a certain sense replaces the original, a rattle or ball depicting the Heavenly World, in the hands of a child should have protected the child from dark forces. They seemed to connect him with the forces of good. It should be noted that in the Russian traditional toy there are no images of negative characters, since it was believed that such images could bring evil to the child, in other words, connect the child with the original images.

In the Pinega conspiracy it is said that the toy entices the ailment. Various whistles served the same purpose. Whistles often depicted one or another animal, in addition, the image of animals was a traditional theme of Russian folk toys. In the Tula region, beliefs are recorded that by whistling into a clay whistle and saying "Let the damage pass to the one who sent it," a person recovers, and the one who sent it will get sick. Depending on the disease, one or another whistle was used. At the usual time, they stood in front of the window, "not letting in" illness and evil to the child.

An ancient rite associated with a toy whistle and dedicated to the expulsion of evil forces and the attraction of good ones was recorded at the beginning of the 19th century in Vyatka. This holiday was called "Whistle" or "Whistle-dance". In early spring, children and adults whistled into zoomorphic clay whistles for several days, danced and had fun.

The use of such toys should be controlled by parents and teachers, who, as a rule, do not pay attention to the impact of such toys on the child's psyche. When using traditional and any other toys, one should take into account the impact of the image of a particular character on the child's psyche, especially modern toys that often have aggressive content.

In addition, one should pay attention to the level and vibrational characteristics of the sound of various whistles, which was not chosen by chance. The impact of the sound of a traditional whistle on the psyche is more therapeutic than entertaining. With excessive use of such a toy by a child, the consequences of the impact of this sound on the mental state and health of the child can be unpredictable. This does not mean that you should be afraid of using whistles. Most of them were and are purely entertaining. We are talking only about traditional magical tools, most often having a zoomorphic appearance, as well as some other toys, for example, Gorodetsky horses and horsemen, the purpose of which was to educate a certain level of aggressiveness in boys, since the symbolism of the horseman correlated with a warrior, later with George the Victorious. The very level and characteristics of the sound were selected to initiate precisely these qualities. There was a selection of sound in whistles not immediately, but gradually, over many years. Through observations and generalizations, certain sound combinations were found, one way or another acting on the human psyche. It was believed that in other cases, such combinations of sound could lead to death. Let us recall the famous epic about Ilya Muromets and the Nightingale the Robber, where travelers died from whistling, screaming, and hissing, in other words, a certain sound effect.

It should be noted that almost every folk toy, and behind them the factory one, carries a certain symbolism. This symbolism has a very specific effect on the psyche of the child. It is well known, which is confirmed in a number of psychological studies, that a person mentally reacts in various ways to various geometric shapes (works by V. K. Shabelnikov), colors (Lusher), forms and their combinations. In other words, when giving a child this or that toy, it is necessary to know whether the psychofunctional code embedded in it corresponds to the age and emotional state of the child, as well as to his other psychophysical characteristics. For example, the use of a toy painted black and red (in a certain proportion) can cause psychological trauma to the most excitable children. This color has traditionally been used to represent the dead and the afterlife. Even 20-30 thousand years ago, it was customary to cover burial grounds and burials with red ocher all over the world, as evidenced by archaeological excavations. In a sense, dolls and other objects that have a similar "bloody" coloring are archetypal. Such a symbolism is indicated by such a famous scientist as Golan in his book "Myth and Symbol".

The influence of archetypes on the human psyche, primarily on the unstable child psyche, was pointed out in numerous works by the German philosopher and psychologist Jung. It is characteristic that already in our time, Japanese psychologists conducted a study that in order for a person to talk less on the phone, the phone booth should be covered with red paint from the inside. The use of the red banner as a symbol by the Bolsheviks is also far from accidental. Red color sometimes causes unmotivated aggression and an underlying desire for death. In this regard, it is characteristic and archetypal that during bullfighting in Spain and Latin America, it is the red flag that is used to irritate the bull.

Another example of the effect of color is blue. It is traditionally associated with heavenly symbolism, goodness and tranquility. Note that in a number of psychological trainings for inner calm, it is recommended to imagine a blue sky.

In addition, a number of geometric symbols, as indicated in the works of V.K. Shabelnikov and his school, according to the principle of its impact on the human psyche, it has a pronounced sexual character. For example, a wavy line is an attribute of a toy for a girl: traditionally, such a pattern was used exclusively in women's clothing and was a kind of amulet. The thunder sign - "six-petal flower" - is a purely male attribute, which is also indicated by ethnological data. The use of toys with gender symbols can lead to a violation of the mental balance of the child, and as a result, to a violation of the development of his personality.

3. The influence of Russian folk toys on the formation of a child's personality

The traditional toy at all times has had an important and, in many ways, decisive influence on the formation of the personality, the soul of a Russian child. In this context, it is worth recalling one historical example, and I will say a few words about the "game of spillikins", the true meaning of which is known today only by a few medieval historians. This game was quite popular in Russian traditional families back in the 30s and 40s of our century. Having its own "practical task" - teaching children to be patient, to be able to concentrate, the game at the same time broadcast a complex system of metaphysical guidelines, gave an idea of ​​the complexity and deep interconnection of all processes occurring in the universe.

A handful of evenly trimmed straws with a straw hook was called "spillikins"; the idea of ​​the game was that the players gradually pulled out the straws, trying not to touch the whole pile with which the straws were poured. If the heap still crumbled, then the next attempt was made by another player. Thus, the child got an idea of ​​how difficult it is to change something in each individual case without destroying the entire complex system of world relationships.

As for the system of influence of a traditional toy on the mind of a child, it was just as thoughtful and multifaceted as the toy just described, influencing all levels of sensations - tactile, visual, sound. Of particular importance was the material from which the toys were made. For example, it is known that a rag doll, in contrast to a plastic one, removes the psychological barrier between the child and the "world of big things", fosters an affectionate, non-fearful attitude towards the world. On the other hand, toy "whistles", also designed to drive away evil spirits and demons from the child, were also the first "musical instruments" that the child encountered. And considering the figurative and symbolic system of the ancient Slavs, in relation to toys, we can recall that many clay figurines depicting animals are literally strewn with clay or made images of birds. For example, a dog, a deer or a lynx, strewn with "bird" signs, meant that the subject of the image, "copying" in the toy was not some "random animal", but its original image, the image of the Primal Animal. All of them were rooted in the magical world of fairy tales, which for centuries served as a kind of "schoolmaster to Christ" for the Russian child. It is no coincidence that St. Sergius of Radonezh often made "consolation" clay toys for children who, along with adults, came to the monastery he founded. And until now, at the heart of traditional toys, which are made by craftsmen from the villages located near Sergiev Posad, you can see the outline of the Cross.

Post-war hungry provincial childhood was warmed by the warmth of market days and fairs. People flocked from the surrounding villages and villages: to buy and sell a horse, agricultural implements, calico, living creatures or food. horse harness, satin ribbons in tails, the smell of horses and hay; sparkling, crisp snow; a riot of colors; a cheerful hubbub of people, birds, animals, and toys, toys ... Wooden and clay, straw and rag, birch bark and vines - they whistled, crackled, rustled and thumped. A real sunny holiday of folk ingenuity, folk art.

Made from natural materials, the toy from the first days of life introduces the child to nature and fosters a creative attitude towards the world. But this is not only an object for admiration, admiration and fun. The toy introduces the kid to the world of abstract mathematical images, representations.

The basis of the system of mathematical knowledge and the prelude of arithmetic are the concepts: set, element of the set, union of sets, addition. The child is attracted not only by many objects proper, but also by many sounds, movements, shapes, shades of color, rhythms of patterns, and so on.

The first age toys that introduce the baby to the world of sounds and forms are rattles: a mature poppy head or a pod of peas are the patriarchs of rattles. Fabulous clay hollow rattle dolls are made simply: ceramic balls or pebbles are put inside the two halves, and the seam is smoothed. When listening to a rattle, the baby makes one movement and many intense noises.

Graceful, proportional and harmonious, the Dymkovo toy made it possible to form the concept of a multitude. Ladies, water carriers, hussars, ducks, skates were placed in front of the child on a table, board, tray, bench or chest of drawers according to a certain principle: these are ducks, these are birds, these are fishes, these are pots, and these are dishes. The Dymkovo toy was echoed by: clay horses, deer, ibexes, magic birds, the shores of Kostroma; jugs, pots, washstands, cups made of black-polished Pokrovsk clay; whistles from Kozhli, Filionovo, Ukhta; Kargopol clay cats, dogs, bears, ladies, pots, bowls; Kargopol roes made from salty dough, Primorye roes made from rye; Arkhangelsk gingerbread in the form of figurines of fish and animals; Ryazan "larks" and Kursk "waders", etc.

The ingenious toy of Bogorodsk is “blacksmiths hitting the anvil with a hammer”, “pecking chickens”, etc. Moving one stick relative to the other, the baby makes rhythmic movements. The toy anticipates the formation of the child's counting activity. Such toys include butterflies flapping their wings on wheels, a rocking horse and a saber (waving it), a sawdust ball on a long elastic band. The ball, in addition, provides sensory perception of the form, and the folded wings of the butterfly form ideas about the beauty of symmetrical forms and their combination, coincidence when superimposed.

Little by little, day by day, the child learns to count clay and wooden figurines of ducks, skates, young ladies, water-carriers, pots and cups... He measures water in circles, salt in pinches, flour in handfuls, oil in spoons... Compares sets according to the number of elements; combining sets, recalculates the elements of the union - this is how the concept of "addition of numbers" is formed. All arithmetic kindergarten mastered on the multitude of toys made by grandfather, father or folk craftsman: put as many ducks as there are cockerels; add another duck; how many ducks are there now? How many toys are there? How many more ducks than cockerels, etc.

Modern education of younger schoolchildren in an incomprehensible way slows down the formation of counting and computational skills when moving through a dozen. Meanwhile, the grandmother, about to make jam, adapted the children to trimming the tails of blackcurrants. When a glass of peeled berries was sent to a basin for jam, one berry was placed on a specially allocated place on the table. So grandmother offered an in-depth understanding of the unit. One berry at the expense replaced a glass of berries. The further principle of counting in tens, hundreds, thousands was easily perceived. The game "toy soldiers" served the same idea of ​​number systems. Arranging them, the boy could gradually get acquainted with the units of military formations of different times and peoples.

Other traditional folk toys also have their mathematical purpose. The world-famous nesting dolls model, from the point of view of the latest science, the transformation of similarity. In kindergarten, nesting dolls, like pyramids with many rings, help to distinguish elements of sets by size and build serial rows. "Vanka-Vstanka" and "Roly-Poly" give an idea of ​​sustainability. Wooden cubes with fragments of drawings on the faces introduced not only the spatial form and its characteristics. From fragments of the drawing, as from subsets, the child made up a set - a common drawing (animal, cup). Toys and products of folk crafts and crafts formed ideas about number, geometric shape, series, taught to navigate on a plane (when a child places a toy trifle on a table) and in space (when he shoots an arrow from a bow). The development of the concept of a series is served by the folk crafts of Kargopol and Yelets. It was here that the craftswomen "stripped and threw" pearls, embroidered with beads. When embroidering with a cross, counting stitch and a set, knowledge was also used geometric shapes and their elements, which ensured the ornamental diversity of the folk costume. Patterns of women's folk costume also consist only of geometric shapes - rectangles and squares. Ural and Kuban rag dolls-spins are made from shreds of square, round, rectangular shapes. The geometric form was studied by folk weaving, leather, blacksmith crafts, manufacturers of products from straw, hemp, bast. Considering a folk toy as a means of shaping the mathematical development of a child, one involuntarily comes to the conclusion that the education of children began much earlier than is commonly thought. There was no training system, there was (and could not be) the definition of number and arithmetic as a scientific mathematical basis, but the skill of counting, measuring and computing activities was formed, moreover, in the game. And if a methodist (mother, father, grandfather, grandmother, nanny) happened to be nearby, by the grace of God, a system of education appeared.

Conclusion

Completing the work, we can conclude that the Russian folk toy is a special kind of folk art. A folk toy, like a toy in general, is a traditional, necessary element of the educational process. Through the game and the toy, the child learns the world, his socialization in society takes place.

Toys made of clay and wood, made of straw and birch bark, made of dough or beads... Toys-amulets and toys, nursery rhymes, shearers and goats, spillikins and whistles... Dymkovo and Kargopol, Arkhangelsk and Filimonovo. All these are Russian folk toys, warmed by the warmth of human hands, colorfully painted by craftsmen and craftsmen, giving people love and kindness for a long time. And, unfortunately, completely unfairly forgotten by our children. Meanwhile, a folk toy is not only a cultural heritage, a museum exhibit or a souvenir for interior decoration. Laconic in form, but so expressive and understandable to any child, even today it can not only surprise and delight the baby, but also successfully cope with this teaching even the most serious sciences.

Bibliography

Alexandrova N.S. Russian Folk Toys as an Ethnopedagogical Phenomenon (based on preschool education): dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences. - M., 2000. - 356 p.

Kondakova N.I. Filimonovo toy // New toy. - 1996. - No. 8. - P. 48-49.

Makamchuk V.M. From the history of Russian toys: Grade 5 // Literature at school. - 1996. - No. 3. - P. 138-140.

Perevezentseva T.G. Russian folk toy. Catalog in Russian, English, French, German, Spanish. - M.: Vneshtorgizdat, 1990. - 48 p.

Romanovsky S.T. Praise of a horse // New toy. - 1995. - No. 7. - P.48-49

Rybakov B.A. The paganism of the ancient Slavs. - M.: Nauka, 1994. - S.68-75.

Slavic Antiquities: Ethnolinguistic Dictionary. T.2. / Under the general editorship of N.I. Tolstoy. - M .: International Relations, 1999. - P. 378-379.

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Today, goods from China have flooded almost the entire market, and children no longer know if there are any other toys besides foreign ones. Exist! And they need to be told about it.

About toys

It should be noted that toys important element in the life of every child. After all, thanks to them, the child understands the world, studies human relations and ways of communication. Therefore, it is very important to provide your little one with the right toys that will bring up in him a worthy citizen of his state.

Russian folk toys have never been particularly diverse, but they have always been of high quality and made with soul. The first and probably the most important toy in the life of every child was a doll. It was made most often from improvised materials, and by its nature it was faceless and without sexual characteristics. This was necessary so that the child could develop, including fantasy and using the same toy in different amusements. The doll itself was made of rags, filled with straw, logs (column) or cereals (krupenichka). Dolls could also be simpler (kuvadki), created from only matter, with the correct interlacing of which it was possible to distinguish the head, hands and dress of the doll. For the smallest, newborn children, there were also Russian folk toys. However, they were more like amulets than material for games. A diaper was always placed in the cradle for the baby - a small doll, which was supposed to protect the baby from evil forces and unclean looks. A primordially Russian doll is also considered a Muscovite - a mother with six children tied to a belt, which symbolizes the family hearth.

Russian folk toys were made by craftsmen only from natural materials. Therefore, in addition to having different fillings, wooden toys were also widespread. Almost everything that was possible was made of wood. These are various rattles and animals for the smallest; tools, weapons and soldiers for boys; and everything you need for girls. Wooden Toys were strong, served for a long time and were often passed from one child to another, because families in Russian villages have always been large and large.

Russian folk toys were also made from clay. Most often these were various kinds whistles, which not only entertained children, but also had some magical property. It was believed that the sounds that such a toy makes drive away evil and attract good spirits, designed to protect children from misfortunes and all that is bad. Usually such toys were kept by the window, simultaneously protecting the whole house from evil forces.

Matryoshka

Another well-known Russian folk toy is the nesting doll. It is worth noting that there are still many myths and legends about the time and method of its origin, and despite the fact that, most likely, the prototype of the matryoshka was brought from Japan, it is still considered a Russian folk toy, and almost everyone knows about it. world. What is its feature? It consists of wood, and inside it has a cavity in which smaller and smaller toys are placed one on one. That's the whole trick! It is worth noting that in a child such toys perfectly develop fingers. And also this is our story. Therefore, every kid should have Russian folk toys in his collection, pictures with their image, or at least an idea of ​​what it is.

Matryoshka is perhaps the most famous Russian toy. What is the secret of her popularity? Where is her home? And how did it happen that a wooden painted doll became a unique cultural phenomenon? Matryoshka appeared in the mid-90s of the XIX century, between 1893 and 1896. And it cost from 6 to 8 rubles apiece. Over the years, its price has fallen to 35 kopecks, which indicates the beginning of the mass commercial production of the toy. Surprisingly, at first the matryoshka was not as popular as it is now. She stood in a row of many similar products of the "Russian style". At the origins of the creation of the first matryoshka was the Mamontov family. The brother of the philanthropist Savva Ivanovich Mamontov - Anatoly Ivanovich Mamontov and his wife Marina Alexandrovna - kept a workshop in Moscow with a store " child education”, where a new toy appeared.
And in 1900, the matryoshka was already waiting for success. Marina Alexandrovna was awarded a bronze medal at the World Exhibition in Paris for toys, among which was a matryoshka.
Unfortunately, the exact name of the creator of the first matryoshka has sunk into oblivion. There is no written evidence. Some researchers call the creator of the matryoshka V.P. Zvezdochkin. The turner himself spoke about the creation of the toy as follows: “... I once saw a“ suitable chock ”in a magazine and tried to carve a semblance of a human figure myself. A.I. Mamontov demanded new and new samples. The carved figurine at first had a ridiculous appearance, as if it resembled a nun and was “deaf”, that is, it did not open. According to Zvezdochkin, it was he who gave the toy its feminine shape and form. And Mamontov approved the idea with liners. But what served as the prototype for the “chock” itself for the matryoshka. There was no Japan here. Painted wooden toys - from the land of the rising sun - became the models used by the "mammoth" masters. Japanese "kokeishi" were detachable loose figurines depicting oriental sages. It is possible that kokeishi did indeed influence the idea of ​​the matryoshka. But its formation took place already on the basis of Russian art and on the basis of folk crafts. There is also a Russian version of the birth of "chocks" for matryoshka. At the end of the 19th century, the fashion was Easter eggs created by well-known artists. Even special meetings of the Artistic Council in the Handicraft Museum were dedicated to them. Actually, the principle of a prefabricated egg with 3-5 inserts could form the basis of a nesting doll. And “painted eggs with the face of the Mother of God or Christ could well suggest the pictorial design of the wooden female figurine-mother. It was the "mother" in the toy that determined its name. In the village woman's name Matryona with the root "mat" was the most common. Kindness and parental affection radiated from him. But who exactly named the toy by this name is already impossible to say. In 1910, the word "matryoshka" was still put in quotation marks - as unusual for a city dweller. But very soon the word became a household word. It lives its own life and is not even translated into other languages. Name and form new toy determined the style of its design. The famous artist, architect and graphic artist Sergei Vasilyevich Malyutin is called the author of the painting of the first matryoshka. This has not been documented so far. But, according to art historians, the artistic style of Malyutin, who was fond of folklore and Russian antiquity, is clearly guessed.
Thanks to the bright painting, the matryoshka overnight became a souvenir toy and a hallmark of the country. Mamontov's workshop could no longer cope with orders from abroad. The store was bought by S.T.Morozov and built its branch in Sergiev Posad. Already in 1911, 21 names of matryoshkas are listed here. What can we say about the present tense. Matryoshka can be found everywhere. True, only the form remained from the old times.

Toys made by craftsmen were called "funny" that is, made for fun, for fun. These were “funny horses”, weapons, cows, deer, soldiers, wooden dolls “in full dress of the time”. But such dolls appeared 100-150 years ago. And much earlier, a birch log could become a doll, the white bark of which became the face of the doll. The girl tied a scarf to a pole doll, put on a skirt - and the fashionista doll is ready to go on a visit or to a fair.

From time immemorial, every nation has its own toys, which reflected the social structure, way of life, customs and customs, technical and artistic achievements. Toys among many peoples, despite their differences, are largely similar in design, shape, and decor. And this happened because toys were born in labor, and a famous master and a simple peasant studied with one great master - nature. And in a luxurious palace, and in a thatched hut, the child played. Only these toys were different. For some, a wooden chock wrapped in a rag served as a toy, for others, expensive, intricate, custom-made mechanical dolls.

In ancient Greece and Rome, dolls were made from a wide variety of materials: leather, wood, rags, clay, precious metals and ivory.

And the oldest dolls on earth were discovered during excavations in Egypt. Their age is more than 4 thousand years! They were carved from wooden planks and decorated with rectangular patterns depicting clothes. On the head - wigs-hairstyles made of clay or wooden beads.

So, a toy, a doll has a long history. Archaeologists at excavations find toys along with utensils and household items, which proves that the ancient masters understood the purpose of children's toys - to amuse a child, helping him to explore the world.

The earliest toys were primitive, generalized, they were reduced images of the surrounding things: toy tools, miniature dishes, rattles, whistles, horses, fish, birds, weapons - bows, swords, daggers, figures of people. And today these finds surprise us. What were they made from? From twigs, tree knots, fruits, flowers, breadcrumbs, straw, clay, that is, from what the generous surrounding nature gave. These toys did not last long, they quickly broke down and disappeared.

To make them more entertaining, our ancestors made them act: make simple movements, make sounds and noises - they painted them brightly and beautifully.
An important role was assigned to the doll, as a person saw himself in it. She was a symbol of procreation, and playing with dolls was strongly encouraged by adults. There was even a sign that if children play dolls a lot and diligently, then there will be profit and prosperity in the family, and if they carelessly treat their toys, there will be trouble. In the cradle of a child, they put a “guardian” doll, believing that it guards his peace and sleep.

The doll also participated in adult rituals. In the old days, at a wedding, she, smartly dressed, with a scarlet ribbon in her braid, decorated wedding table. Perhaps an echo of that tradition was the decoration of the car of the bride and groom with a doll in a wedding dress.

Symbolic dolls accompanied other peasant holidays and rituals. Shrovetide was escorted with a large straw doll, which was burned at the stake at the end of the holiday. By the feast of the Trinity, they made Semik and Semichikha from branches, planted them under a birch, danced round dances around them, and at the end of the ceremony they drowned them in the river.

Such toys can be seen in local history museums. But there is a unique toy museum in Sergiev Posad, the collection of which contains toys from the most ancient to modern ones. It is no coincidence that the museum arose right here, near Moscow, in Sergiev Posad. In pre-revolutionary Russia, it was one of the main centers for the production of toys. There were special craft workshops where masters of various professions worked: sculptors, carvers, painters, carpenters - after all, not one master, but several, began to make a toy.