String marionettes are carved wooden figures controlled from above by strings attached to a hand-held wooden control bar. A typical marionette has anywhere from five to twenty strings, each controlling a specific movement — head, shoulders, elbows, wrists, knees, ankles. Making a good marionette is difficult: the balance of the figure must be exactly right, or the movements look wooden.
Traditional marionettes are carved from linden or other soft, stable wood, then painted, costumed, and jointed with fabric or leather at the neck, shoulders, elbows, hips and knees. Marionette theatre is one of the oldest continuous theatrical forms in the world. Named puppet-makers and named companies pass the craft — both making and performing — from generation to generation.
Explore this craft by country
Each country page describes how this tradition is practised there — its own names, materials, workshops and living makers.