Known simply as Princess Misha of Saudi Arabia, little else is publicly known about the life of this young member of the royal Saudi family. But the tragic circumstances of her death became a widely-known scandal that was immortalized in the 1980 documentary film "Death of a Princess".
Misha was executed on the orders of her grandfather to preserve the family honor because she ran off to elope with her lover whom was considered to be an unsuitable husband for her. The young princess had fallen in love with a common man outside of the royal family and had been told that her marriage was arranged that would bind her to a much older man whom she had never met. Understandably distraught, Misha attempted to fake her own death by planting evidence to suggest she had drowned in the sea, and then disguised herself as a man in order to make her way out of the country.
After marrying in secret, she and her husband were arrested as they attempted to board a plane to leave Saudi Arabia. While the religious court and even the King himself refused to condemn the princess on the grounds that she had married her lover and therefore the law regarding adultery had not been broken, Misha's grandfather was adamant about restoring the honor that he believed she had tarnished.
In 1977, the young princess, along with her husband, were dragged to the traditional execution location where Misha was shot. Her husband was then beheaded by men in her grandfather's employ.
ABOUT THE DOLL
Princess Misha is a reworked vinyl doll that stands 14" tall and has hand-painted features. Her eyes are whitened in a death stare and rimmed with tears that streak down her cheek. A single bullet hole is visible in her temple. She is dressed in a simple powder blue satin dress covered by the traditional abaya and veiled headdress made with black velvet and semi-opaque veil fabric and is modestly adorned with pearl beads.
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