Novgorod Region celebrates Saviors festival

On August 21, residents of the Novgorod Region attended the first Spasy (Saviors) regional festival at the Vitoslavitsy Open Air Museum of Wooden Architecture and Folk Art.

The festival celebrates three traditional Russian folk holidays: Savior of the Honey Feast Day, Savior of the Apple Feast Day and Savior of the Nut Feast Day (folk names for the Feasts of the Procession of the Cross, the Transfiguration, and the Translation of the Holy Mandylion, respectively).

The Saviors are associated with seasonal harvests, the preservation of the vital forces and the accumulation of knowledge. During the festivities, therefore, in addition to watching the reaping ceremonies on the field, participants could take part in the activities as well.

A participant demonstrates her weaving skills to a young girl during the Saviors regional festival at the Vitoslavitsy Open Air Museum of Wooden Architecture and Folk Art in the Novgorod Region.

Visitors of the festival and members of folk groups held khorovods - traditional circle dances -- and took part in various types of entertainment and traditional games.

A folk ensemble performs during the Saviors regional festival at the Vitoslavitsy Open Air Museum of Wooden Architecture and Folk Art in the Novgorod Region.

Fortune telling using apples and peas was especially popular at the festival.

Handicraft enthusiasts had the opportunity to try their hand at loom weaving and cooking traditional Novgorod cereals and thick soup.

Participants of the Saviors festival were greeted by a samovar and mini-pretzel-like snacks.

The Vitoslavitsy Open Air Museum of Wooden Architecture and Folk Art near the city of Veliky Novgorod regularly hosts folk festivals and large-scale festivities which recreate the atmosphere of pre-revolutionary Russia.

The Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Mother of God at the Vitoslavitsy Open Air Museum.

Geese roam free around the grounds of the Vitoslavitsy Open Air Museum of Wooden Architecture and Folk Art during the Saviors regional festival in the Novgorod Region.

A boy feeds goats during the Saviors regional festival celebrated at the Vitoslavitsy Open Air Museum of Wooden Architecture and Folk Art in the Novgorod Region.