Women on Postcards | M Is for Matryoshka

Сергиев Посад or Sergiyev Posad is the Orthodox capital of Russia and the birthplace of the matryoshka dolls during the 1890s, which have become one of the symbols of the country. Matryoshka is a diminutive form of Matryosha (Матрёша), in turn an affectionate form of the Russian female first name Matryona (Матрёна)

The postcard was sent by Eduard (Russia), and included on the back two matching stamps: more matryoshka dolls, and the coat of arms of the city. 

 

The shape of the postmark is very curious!

[Women on Postcards 2026]

Unofficial Greetings from Russia

Since I know nobody almost nobody in Russia, and that country is not a common destination among my friends, these Russian postcards have been sent through the Postcrossing site.

This one belongs to a series that some postcrossers collect: Greetings from... by Postallove.  I have got some of them, too. However, on the back, something caught my attention. It reads: Greetings from Russia (unofficial). Photo by Franco [illegible]. And the web of a company: www.poststation.ru

I checked and... Yes: there are some differences with what must be the official postcard. Apart from the most obvious (the picture, the design of the bear and the matryoshka doll, the number of postcrossers...) there are more subtile differences (the map, the extension of the country, the Famous Russians section...).

All the matter seems curious to me.

This postcard illustrated a Russian proverb: Где любовь да совет, там и горя нет. As translated (?) on the back: 'Where is the are love and advice, there is no sorrow'.

Yekaterininsky Canal near the St Nicholas Cathedral in St. Petersburg, 1900s.

Russian Doll Letter

Rusian doll letter (or nesting envelopes) sent to Alan (the UK).

Beware of People Who Don't Believe in Mail

Russian Doll Letter

This is another David Solomon's idea (Because I Really Felt It). A Russian doll letter is a letter inside a letter inside a letter inside a letter... like this, for instance.