These days, the State Unitary Enterprise of Bashkir Arts and Crafts "Agidel" (Ufa) is completing the production of matryoshkas in the Bashkir national costume for the Folkloriada. The souvenir products will include 2000 hand-painted traditional toys, most of which are decorated in the most recognizable image – the dress of the Dema Bashkirs. There are also matryoshkas that represent epic heroes - batyrs. The Demsky complex can be recognized by so called elyan, a type of Bashkir national long-sleeved top clothing, heavily decorated with coins, braid and galoon.
On the kashmau (headdress), there is a symbol of the Ural Mountains, a series of triangles or rhombuses, embroidered with beads. The idea of creating matryoshkas in national Bashkir costumes did not come by chance. As one of the most recognizable symbols of Russia, this detachable wooden doll carries a symbolic meaning that reflects the aesthetic ideals and spiritual world of people, as well as a cultural and educational function. The employees of Agidel went on expeditions to the districts, clarified information from ethnographers, and turned to scientific works. "Matryoshka dolls are a clear example of the fact that the Bashkir national dress is not of just one standard, it can be different. They are conditionally divided into seven complexes. And in order to create such matryoshkas, we had to visit many districts, " says ethnodesigner Mira Davletova. Reference: Ethnographers conditionally distinguish seven local costume complexes of the Bashkirs, based on the established ethnographic groups. These are the south-eastern, south-western (Demsky), Samara-Irgiz, central (Inzer), north-western, north-eastern and eastern (Trans-Ural) complexes. The sketches were developed taking into account the possibilities of lacquer painting in mass production: without small details, with attention to the featuring elements. So, for the Kurgan Bashkirs, an abundance of embroidery on the dress and headdress is characteristic. Also, a distinctive feature for each region is the diversity of bibs (yaga, hakal, selter, muyynsa, etc.). In a matryoshka, which represents the north-west, you can see such an interesting detail as hasite, a breastplate tied over a shoulder, and uka izeu.