Malachite Box

Pavel Petrovich Bazhov (1879-1950) was born in the Urals in the factory settlement of Sysert, in the family of a mining master. He spent his childhood among prospectors and craftsmen extracting and processing malachite and mica. After graduating from a theological seminary, he taught Russian language in Yekaterinburg, traveled extensively in the Urals, and collected folk tales, legends, and stories. This material was used to create the famous Bazhov's tales, works in which truth and fiction are intricately intertwined. "Malachite Box" is one of the most famous tales by P. Bazhov. It is a story of the coming of age of a little girl, the daughter of a well-known prospector and craftsman, and her transformation into a proud and independent beauty, who is under the protection of the Mistress of the Copper Mountain.