Hundreds of people gathered in Gorky Park in Moscow to celebrate the pagan Maslenitsa festival, which marks the end winter. Traditionally scarecrows made of straw are burned on this occasion, but in Moscow organisers of the ceremony decided to set fire to a fake bear lair, which burned down to reveal a fake bear inside. This was intended to symbolize the animal’s awakening, as a bear is commonly used as an emblem to represent Russia.
Hundreds of people gathered in Gorky Park in Moscow to celebrate the pagan Maslenitsa festival, which marks the end winter. Traditionally scarecrows made of straw are burned on this occasion, but in Moscow organisers of the ceremony decided to set fire to a fake bear lair, which burned down to reveal a fake bear inside. This was intended to symbolize the animal’s awakening, as a bear is commonly used as an emblem to represent Russia.
