Stepan’s Remembrance

The film opens with miner Stepan working in a copper mine when he encounters the green-eyed Mistress of the Copper Mountain, known as the Malachite Lady. She appreciates his bravery despite his disrespectful attitude, and she orders him to deliver a message to the bailiff. The Mistress promises to marry Stepan if he successfully relays her words.

Stepan delivers the Mistress’s message to the enraged bailiff Severyan Nazarovich, which leads to Stepan being flogged, imprisoned in a mine, and fed only dog food. The Mistress of the Copper Mountain intervenes, visiting him to comfort and release him from his harsh punishment.

The Malachite Lady shows Stepan her treasures and the image of his daughter, which surprises him as he is not yet married or has a daughter. She reveals her real name as Kseniya and reaffirms her desire for him, promising to marry him but warning him never to think of her.

Stepan marries Nastya, despite still having visions of the Mistress. She promises to help him resolve his troubles with the bailiff and gives him a malachite casket filled with jewelry as a wedding present. He continues to be watched over by the Mistress from afar.

Stepan and Nastya have children, including a daughter Tanyushka and a son Melesha. Stepan often visits the copper mine, sometimes accompanied by Tanyushka, and is haunted by visions of the Mistress and her servants, small lizards.

One day, overwhelmed by his visions, Stepan shoots himself in the chest but survives. After this event, he no longer communicates with the Malachite Lady, indicating a break in their mystical connection.

Years pass, and Stepan becomes older, with his close relationship with his daughter Tanyushka growing. She is beautiful and has a fascination with lizards and gemstones, echoing her mother’s mystical connection.

Stepan dreams of seeing the malachite room at the imperial palace. He asks his wife to wear the jewels from the Malachite Casket, but Tanyushka wears them herself, claiming they keep her warm as if by a fire.

After Stepan’s death, Vasily Turchaninov, a young mine owner’s son, falls in love with Tanyushka and seeks her mother’s permission to marry her. Tanyushka agrees to marry him only if he shows her the malachite room at the imperial palace, testing his love.

Tanyushka confesses her true feelings for Vasily but believes his love might not last. She deliberately rejects him, leaning against the malachite wall at the palace, and then returns home, displaying her pride and resolve.