the tale of vasilisa the brave

“Baba Yaga” by Viktor Vasnetsov
“Baba Yaga” by Viktor Vasnetsov

A little background information to go along  with the next fairy tale birdhouse…

Baba Yaga or Baba Roga … is a haggish or witchlike character in Slavic folklore. She flies around on a giant pestle, kidnaps (and presumably eats) small children, and lives in a hut that stands on chicken legs. In most Slavic folk tales, she is portrayed as an antagonist; however, some characters in other mythological folk stories have been known to seek her out for her wisdom, and she has been known on rare occasions to offer guidance to lost souls.
~ Wikipedia

#41. “Where in the World Is Baba Yaga?” by Dylan & Ted Gaffney, based on The Tale of Vasilisa the Brave. Notice how the artists interpret the hut standing on chicken legs. This birdhouse was the one capturing the most attention from museum visitors, who lingered and took many pictures from every possible angle. But I finally managed to get some pictures without other people in them!

10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut
10.26.11 ~ Old Lyme, Connecticut

16 thoughts on “the tale of vasilisa the brave”

    1. It’s such a grisly scene it made me wonder – it seemed as if everyone was riveted. I never knew this fairy tale, which is why I did a little research. 🙂

  1. Hi. I always loved the story of Baba Yaga and the tree with the legs. A practical solution to sea-level rise!! Among all the bones, I like the homey touch of the butter churn! Jane

    1. That is a bit of a contrast, a butter churn among the bones. I didn’t quite know what to make of the scene – going to have to find a version of Baba Yaga to read on my own!

    1. Baba Yaga does sound like a character one would not be so wild about, although I wonder if she was somehow misunderstood…

  2. Cool, I do know about Baba Yaga! For some reason I had looked her up!

    Great piece of art work/bird house! Great detail, thank you for recording this with your photos!

    1. Happy you enjoyed this, Jeff. I wonder why I never was read this fairy tale when I was little. Perhaps my parents thought it was too scary for me. 🙂

  3. Hi,
    Thank you for all the nice comments! The “butter churn” was suppose to be her mortar and pestle -which in the fairy tale she would fly around in (instead of a broom). Thank you for the great pictures. I never took any myself, so I appreciate them. “Baba Yaga” in this version, (and for the theme at the museum’s bird house-fairy tale), was made into a bird, but she was actually a (wise) old crone.

    1. You’re welcome, Dylan, and thank you for the clarification about the mortar and pestle and their purpose! And about the identity of the old crone. From the number of people who were taking pictures that day I bet there are plenty of them floating around. I hope to be featuring your Water Pearl Palace from this year on my blog soon – you are very creative! I hope you took some pictures of it for yourself this time around. 🙂

  4. Thanks for posting this Barbara and sorry it took a full year to find it?!
    And thanks for taking the time to see Water Pearl Palace! I had fun making it. I’m already looking forward to next years theme-what ever it may be!!

    1. You’re welcome, Dylan, it was my pleasure! That’s one thing I love about blogging, the post stays up on the internet indefinitely which allows more people to discover it and hopefully appreciate it. I’m also curious about next year’s theme and am looking forward to seeing what you will be creating then!

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