The матрёшка dolls have been around in Russia since 1890 when the first one was carved in New Moscow. The dolls are hollow inside and they decrease in size, as one fits into the previous one. The largest doll is usually a woman in a сарафан (saran), or a traditional russian peasant dress. The smallest doll is usually a baby, and it isn’t hollow.

I have several of these dolls lying around the house for no specific reason, because no one ever plays with them. However I do remember one time I put on a puppet show for my parents and their friends during one of my parents big russian parties. During the puppet show I took a set of these dolls and began opening them saying this i Katherine the Great, and she’s going to have a baby. This is katherine the second…etc. My parents found this hilarious although I’m still not sure why.