Pancake Week (Maslenitsa) is currently underway in Russia, marking the end of winter and the beginning of spring, as well as serving as a prelude to Great Lent — a seven-week fast ahead of Orthodox Easter.
© Sputnik / Viktor Tolochko / Go to the mediabankA girl swings on swings during Maslenitsa celebration at the Belarussian State Museum of Folk Architecture and Culture.
A girl swings on swings during Maslenitsa celebration at the Belarussian State Museum of Folk Architecture and Culture.
© Sputnik / Viktor Tolochko / Go to the mediabankMembers of a folk ensemble burn a straw effigy during Maslenitsa celebration at the Belarussian State Museum of Folk Architecture and Culture.
Members of a folk ensemble burn a straw effigy during Maslenitsa celebration at the Belarussian State Museum of Folk Architecture and Culture.
© Sputnik / Alexander Kryazhev / Go to the mediabankMaslenitsa festivities at the Cathedral of Transfiguration square in Berdsk, Novosibirsk Region.
Maslenitsa festivities at the Cathedral of Transfiguration square in Berdsk, Novosibirsk Region.
© Sputnik / Vladimir Trefilov / Go to the mediabankThe Novitsya folk ethnic theater celebrates the beginning of Maslenitsa at the Malye Korely Wooden Architecture Museum in Russia's Arkhangelsk Region.
The Novitsya folk ethnic theater celebrates the beginning of Maslenitsa at the Malye Korely Wooden Architecture Museum in Russia's Arkhangelsk Region.
© Sputnik / Maksim Bogodvid / Go to the mediabankPerformers at the Shirokaya Maslenitsa 2016 festival in Kazan, Russia.
Performers at the Shirokaya Maslenitsa 2016 festival in Kazan, Russia.
© Sputnik / Maksim Bogodvid / Go to the mediabankYoung people eat pancakes at the Shirokaya Maslenitsa 2016 festival in Kazan, Russia.
Young people eat pancakes at the Shirokaya Maslenitsa 2016 festival in Kazan, Russia.
© AP Photo / Mikhail ChikinA young man tries to climb atop a pole to get some souvenirs during Maslenitsa celebrations in Suzdal, about 124 miles east of Moscow.
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© AP Photo / Mikhail Chikin
A young man tries to climb atop a pole to get some souvenirs during Maslenitsa celebrations in Suzdal, about 124 miles east of Moscow.
© Sputnik / Alexander Kryazhev / Go to the mediabankMaslenitsa festivities at the Cathedral of Transfiguration square in Berdsk, Novosibirsk Region.
Maslenitsa festivities at the Cathedral of Transfiguration square in Berdsk, Novosibirsk Region.
© Sputnik / Maksim Bogodvid / Go to the mediabankA fire show at the Shirokaya Maslenitsa 2016 festival in Kazan, Russia.
A fire show at the Shirokaya Maslenitsa 2016 festival in Kazan, Russia.
© Sputnik / Alexander Kryazhev / Go to the mediabankMaslenitsa festivities at the Cathedral of Transfiguration square in Berdsk, Novosibirsk Region.
Maslenitsa festivities at the Cathedral of Transfiguration square in Berdsk, Novosibirsk Region.
© Sputnik / Maksim Bogodvid / Go to the mediabankArtists at the Shirokaya Maslenitsa 2016 festival in Kazan.
Artists at the Shirokaya Maslenitsa 2016 festival in Kazan.
© Sputnik / Alexander Kryazhev / Go to the mediabankMaslenitsa festivities at the Cathedral of Transfiguration square in Berdsk, Novosibirsk Region.
Maslenitsa festivities at the Cathedral of Transfiguration square in Berdsk, Novosibirsk Region.
© Sputnik / Vladimir Trefilov / Go to the mediabankChildren ride on a merry-go-round at the opening of the Pancake Week at the Malye Korely Wooden Architecture Museum in Russia's Arkhangelsk Region.
Children ride on a merry-go-round at the opening of the Pancake Week at the Malye Korely Wooden Architecture Museum in Russia's Arkhangelsk Region.
© Sputnik / Vladimir Trefilov / Go to the mediabankThe Novitsya folk ethnic theater celebrates the beginning of Maslenitsa at the Malye Korely Wooden Architecture Museum in Russia's Arkhangelsk Region.
The Novitsya folk ethnic theater celebrates the beginning of Maslenitsa at the Malye Korely Wooden Architecture Museum in Russia's Arkhangelsk Region.
© Sputnik / Vladimir Trefilov / Go to the mediabankA girl rides on an ice slide during Maslenitsa celebration at the Malye Korely Wooden Architecture Museum in Russia's Arkhangelsk Region.
A girl rides on an ice slide during Maslenitsa celebration at the Malye Korely Wooden Architecture Museum in Russia's Arkhangelsk Region.
© Sputnik / Viktor Tolochko / Go to the mediabankRevelers sing and dance around a burning straw effigy during Maslenitsa celebration at the Belarussian State Museum of Folk Architecture and Culture.
Revelers sing and dance around a burning straw effigy during Maslenitsa celebration at the Belarussian State Museum of Folk Architecture and Culture.