Coming Soon: Tethered Narratives by Kamila Waleszkiewicz & Mandana Eizadi | 2–20 Dec 2026 | Rockingham Arts Centre
Slavic ritual dolls are part of a diverse folk tradition found across Eastern Europe. While often associated today with the East Slavic motanka tradition of Ukraine, Belarus, and parts of western Russia, related forms of handmade rag dolls also existed across several eastern and southeastern regions of Poland, including Lublin, Podlasie, and the Świętokrzyskie region. Although these regional traditions share common cultural roots, each developed its own local meanings, materials, and customs over many centuries.
In early modern Poland, simple handmade dolls and puppets were known as łątki, an Old Polish term recorded in written sources during the 16th and 17th centuries. Derived from a word for a wooden rod, the term originally referred to carved wooden figures or theatrical puppets created for entertainment. While affluent families enjoyed these structured wooden pieces, poorer city-dwellers and rural peasants simultaneously crafted basic human forms out of scraps of cloth, straw, and thread, laying the foundation for what would be called a lalka (standard Polish term for "doll"), by the late 17th century.
Henryk Oskar Kolberg was a Polish ethnographer, folklorist, and composer active in Partitioned Poland who, in his monumental 19th-century multi-volume work Lud (The People), documented anthropomorphic figures using historical terms such as lalki (dolls), kukły or kukiełki (puppets/effigies), and baby (women), detailing them as childhood playthings, matrimonial metaphors, or ritual performance props.
Subsequent Polish ethnographic records, particularly from the Lublin region, document the domestic creation of small, anthropomorphic figures crafted inside the home without complex tools to serve as physical decoys in traditional medicine magic. To cure an infant's persistent crying or spiritual ailment known as płaczki, healers would bundle nine cloth dolls into three groups of three, sometimes alongside a larger mother doll called a matla, and cast them away at crossroads to absorb the illness.
Similarly, minor variations of these intimate folk practices included wrapping hasty, miniature red cloth dolls to draw the "evil eye" away from a cradle, using nine small flax or hemp fiber nodules to burn away skin ailments, and rolling bits of bread or clay into tiny figures to ritually intercept a curse before destroying them in the hearth fire.
In Poland protective and symbolic folk practices were commonly expressed mostly through paper cuttings (wycinanki), decorative straw ornaments (pająki), and richly embroidered ritual textiles all carried symbolic meanings connected with prosperity, protection, fertility, and the rhythms of family and community life.
The dolls I create are loosely inspired by the traditional Slavic motanka doll. I make them in the traditional way, without using sharp tools and with good intentions, but with a touch of modern flair if the doll calls for it.
Before crafting any traditional Slavic motanka (spool doll), the maker must adhere to a strict set of ritual taboos. These rules dictate not only how the doll is constructed, but establish the metaphysical boundaries of its magic:
The Taboo of Needles: Traditional motankas are made entirely without sewing, needles, or scissors. Materials must be torn by hand and bound with thread or string.
Why: In Slavic folklore, needling or puncturing a doll is strictly reserved for harmful black magic designed to inflict pain or death. For protective white magic, needles are banned so as not to "prick one’s fate" (ukłuć losu). Using fabrics from the znoszone (worn) clothes of loved ones is encouraged, as it allows the doll to inherit their protective life energy.
The Faceless Void: A traditional motanka never has facial features or eyes. Sometimes, the blank space of the face is wrapped with a highly precise, multicolored thread-cross.
Why: A doll with eyes and features is believed to gain an individual soul and self-awareness. If a doll has its own personality, it might choose to act on its own desires rather than serve human intentions. Furthermore, an eyed doll could bind the soul of the person playing with or making it, attracting illness or death. The thread-cross represents the protective power of the sun.
The Rhythms of Winding: The spooling process must be completed in a single, uninterrupted sitting while keeping positive thoughts in mind. The thread must always be wound clockwise.
Why: Winding clockwise aligns the doll's energy with the natural rotation of the sun and life. Completing it in one go ensures the focused "intention" (intencja) is sealed within the doll without energetic leaks. Dolls are spooled according to the lunar cycle, but never on Fridays or Sundays, which are sacred to the goddess Mokosh; working on these days is seen as a severe insult to her. Wiesz
1. Ziarnuszka (The Grain Woman)
The Role: Acts as a talisman of abundance, wealth, prosperity, fertility, and a successful harvest.
How She is Made: This is a "soft" frame-free doll. A fabric roll is tightly bound at one end and pulled inside out to form a pouch. The pouch is stuffed with grain or peas, bound shut at the top, and a thread is tied tightly to define the neck. Her skirt is tied directly at the neck, and she is dressed sumptuously with multiple aprons (zapaski), ribbons, lace, and a married woman's headscarf. A tiny bag with a coin or extra seed is tied to her hands.
Why: The grain represents physical sustenance and agricultural preservation. She is dressed with "sumptuousness" (przepych) to magnetically attract wealth to the home. Historically, she was made in September after the harvest. She guarded the household through the winter, and in the spring, she was taken apart so her preserved grains could be sown back into the earth to magically guarantee a successful new crop.
2. Bieregini (The Protector / Bereginya)
The Role: Brings protection, good fortune, and fertility; represents the ultimate matriarch, hostess, and the Great Mother Goddess.
How She is Made: A "pole" doll (lalka słupkowa). Her internal spine is a wooden rod, traditionally carved from a birch branch. This rod is wrapped in fabric and bound with string to form the torso. A soft fabric pouch is stuffed and tied to the top for the head. Crucially, she must be spooled with large, prominent breasts made of stuffed fabric pouches tied to her chest. She is dressed in a blouse, skirt, apron, belt, and married headscarf. A coin is hidden inside her head.
Why: Birch is considered a sacred female tree. The large breasts symbolize direct protection, maternal nourishment, and the competence of a successful household mother. The apron and belt represent order, self-discipline, and dignity. The coin attracts financial stability to the home.
3. Podróżniczka (The Traveler / Podorozhnitsa)
The Role: A protective amulet designed to shield travelers from danger on the road, ensure they do not lose their way, and guarantee their safe return home.
How She is Made: A small doll whose arms are formed of a rolled fabric strip with a knot tied directly in the middle. A small traveler's pouch (węzełek) is tied to her hands. Inside this pouch, the maker places a coin, a red thread, and either soil from directly in front of the home or hearth ashes. She is dressed in traditional layers: a shirt, skirt, apron, protective belt, and headscarves.
Why: The coin ensures the traveler will always have enough money to buy bread on their journey. The red thread symbolizes an energetic umbilical cord connecting them to their household, preventing them from wandering down a "bad path". The home soil or hearth ash preserves a literal piece of the homeland for those leaving permanently. In modern therapeutic settings, the emotional assembly of her pouch serves as a powerful projection tool for processing the grief, hope, and transitions of migration.
4. Mokosz (Praskiewa Piątek / Paraskeva)
The Role: Patron of women's traditional crafts (spinning, weaving, sewing, embroidery). She serves as an direct protector of pregnant women and helps those trying to conceive.
How She is Made: Built on a "cross" construction using two perpendicular wooden sticks. Breasts and skirts are bound directly to the frame. Unlike almost all other motankas who must wear headscarves, Mokosz must have her hair loose and flowing (rozpuszczone włosy). Multiple ribbons are tied to her hands, which must include at least one red ribbon and one blue ribbon.
Why: The loose hair symbolizes untamed feminine power and fertility. The red ribbon represents life, protection, and the physical umbilical cord; the blue ribbon represents a sacred link to the heavens and ancestral spirits. Tying ribbons to her arms allows women to physically tie their private intentions and prayers into the doll.
5. Spirydon (The Sun-Bearer / Spiridon)
The Role: Inspires fundamental life breakthroughs, courage to change, agency, and turning points.
How He is Made: A male doll made by rolling a thick tube of fabric, wrapping it tightly with string, and folding it in half to form the legs. Torso, arms, and head are tied to the top. He is dressed in a kaftan, belt, hat, and beard. The construction must be exceptionally rigid and stable so he can stand completely upright on his own. In his hands, he holds a wire and wood wheel wrapped in colorful yarn.
Why: The wheel is a sun disk representing the victory of solar light over darkness, typically crafted during the winter solstice. His standing stability represents personal strength and self-sufficiency.
6. Kuwadka (Kuvadka)
The Role: The standard doll of luck and blessing. Historically, she was hung over cradles as a guardian and used to ease childbirth.
How She is Made: The simplest of all motankas. A square of fabric (approx. 30x30 cm) is rolled and folded in half. A smaller piece is rolled and tied at both ends to represent the arms. The arm roll is tied horizontally across the folded roll to form a Latin cross shape. The top portion forms the head, and clothing is tied on over the frame.
Why: Her cross structure provides immediate, easily made spiritual alignment and protection.
7. Dziesięciorączka (Ten-armed) & Filipowna (Filipovka)
The Role: Helpers designed to protect the maker from exhaustion and support women in successfully executing their household duties.
How They are Made: Built using the Kuwadka method but with multiple pairs of arms (ten arms for Dziesięciorączka; six or eight for Filipowna) tied sequentially down the body roll. Dziesięciorączka wears a long maiden's braid (warkocz), while Filipowna wears a married woman's headscarf (chustka).
Why: The multiple arms physically represent multi-tasking and household productivity. The hair configurations distinguish between young, unmarried maidens (braid) and mature wives (headscarf).
8. Koza (The Goat)
The Role: A seasonal talisman bringing happiness, vital energy, playfulness, fertility, and strength.
How She is Made: Typically built as a pole doll but fitted with horns, ears, and a beard. She is dressed in bright, radosny (joyful) clothing and always has a metal bell tied to her body.
Why: Historically spooled around Christmas (the winter solstice). The horns represent solar rays, lightning, and raw libido. The colorful clothes and ringing bell are meant to actively stimulate positive energy and wake the sleeping earth for the coming spring.
9. Ptak-Radość (The Bird of Joy)
The Role: Made in spring to attract happiness and seasonal abundance.
How She is Made: A pole doll with breasts. Her headscarf is tied with a protruding point (dziubek) mimicking a beak over her forehead. The scarf drapes down her shoulders to represent wings. Six tiny bird figures are spooled from fabric scraps and tied to her arms.
Why: The physical beak and wing drapes establish her connection to the bird kingdom. The six tiny birds represent the return of migratory birds bringing spring.
10. Spiralna Motanka (The Ancestral Spiral)
The Role: Represents the goddess Mokosh and ancestral protection. Used in modern workshops to heal family lineages and generational wounds.
How She is Made: A broom-like figure made of strands of cloth joined together with a clearly defined head and a body resembling a bundle of twigs. Crucially, fabrics from different family members are integrated into her body.
Why: By physically weaving fabrics belonging to different living family members into the ancestral "spiral," the maker symbolically binds, addresses, and heals family relationships.
11. Nerazlučniki (The Inseparables)
The Role: Given as a wedding gift to newlyweds to ensure lifelong unity, marriage stability, and quick offspring.
How They are Made: A double doll consisting of a bride and a groom. Crucially, they share a single, continuous wooden rod or rolled fabric piece as their arm [371, Fig 5].
Why: The single, shared arm physically symbolizes that they must walk through life hand-in-hand, unable to be separated.
12. Paschalna Golubka (The Easter Dove)
The Role: Brings protective health and love into the household during the Easter season.
How She is Made: Crafted using intensely bright red fabrics and hung directly beneath the icons in the household's sacred corner.
Why: Red is the ultimate Slavic color of life-giving protection, blood, and health.
13. Rusalka (The Field Offering)
The Role: A seasonal agricultural doll crafted around Pentecost (when fields are in bloom) to secure crop fertility.
How She is Made: Spooled using predominantly green fabrics and decorated with freshly gathered herbs, grains, and flowers. At the end of the evening ritual, she is either burned, drowned in a bonfire, or left to disintegrate in a field of blooming rye.
Why: Green is the color of youth, nature, and rebirth. Leaving or destroying her in the fields acts as a symbolic vegetative offering to ensure a successful crop yield.
14. Marzanna
The Role: A powerful, human-sized symbolic representation of winter, freezing cold, darkness, and death.
How She is Made: Hand-built on a sturdy wooden cross-frame formed by tying two heavy sticks at a right angle. Her body is sculpted using thick layers of straw, dressed in scraps of colorful folk clothing, or old rags, and decorated with bright ribbons and beads.
Why: The deliberate cross-construction is engineered specifically to balance and support the massive weight of the straw effigy as the community carries her in a loud, ritualistic procession through the village. To formally close the seasonal cycle, the doll is set on fire and drowned in a flowing body of water. This public, symbolic destruction completely purges the community's accumulated stagnant, "dead" energy from the harsh winter months, forcing the cold season to retreat so the earth can wake up to spring and rebirth.
15. Płaczki & Maruda-Dolls (The Wailers)
The Role: Absorbers of negative energy and spiritual decoys used to stop infants from crying and relieve sleeplessness.
How They are Made: Handcrafted quickly inside the home without the use of complex or sharp tools, utilizing simple materials like paper, wood, wood shavings, or twisted rags.
Why: In regional Slavic demonology and traditional medicine magic—particularly recorded in Polish ethnographic accounts from the Lublin region, unrelenting infant crying was believed to be caused by marudas or płaczki (tormenting crying demons). To break the spell, mothers or local healers would construct these physical decoys to absorb the malicious focus of the spirits so the infant could sleep in peace. They were frequently placed directly inside or near the cradle, or thrown onto the roofs of houses. In more elaborate regional rituals, healers would bundle nine cloth dolls together into three distinct groups of three, frequently accompanied by a larger mother doll known as a matla, and carry them away from the home to be cast onto crossroads or where fence lines met, ensuring the illness and the demons were completely thrown away and left behind.