Bear. This strong animal was always the symbol of health and strenght. Only 15 years ago, you still could find live bears in some Balkan countries. Usually Roma people kept them and shoved them for money. Now this is forbidden and just masks remained. Mystical pagan characters appear in streets of European towns and villages, especially at the end of winter when spring is about to come and people need somebody who would chase the winter away. Wearing a mask is a part of identity in many communities. They preserve traditions and mysterious characters inherited from their fathers and grandfather
Bear. This strong animal was always the symbol of health and strenght. Only 15 years ago, you still could find live bears in some Balkan countries. Usually Roma people kept them and shoved them for money. Now this is forbidden and just masks remained. Mystical pagan characters appear in streets of European towns and villages, especially at the end of winter when spring is about to come and people need somebody who would chase the winter away. Wearing a mask is a part of identity in many communities. They preserve traditions and mysterious characters inherited from their fathers and grandfathers. Each has his or her own task. The traditions vary from village to village and are incredibly diverse. In Ptuj, Slovenia, each year before Shrove Wednesday, masked characters from several European countries meet to celebrate and to show rich cultural traditions. For Ptuj and surrounding villages, Kurent is the most characteristic mask. It is symbol of pagan Slavic god of hedonism.
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Keywords: bear, carnival, character, costume, culture, europe, mask, masked, masks, mystical, pagan, ptuj, shrovetide, slovenia, tradition
