Castle structure symbolizing virus burned at festival

(14 Mar 2021) A giant castle symbolizing the coronavirus was burned at an end-of-winter festival in Russia's Kaluga region on Saturday. Wooden effigies are traditionally burned in Russia for the holiday of Maslenitsa, a pre-Christian holiday that symbolizes the beginning of spring and the week before Lent. The castle in Nikolo-Lenivets, an art park in the woods some 220 kilometers from Moscow, was made from wood and stood 24 meters tall before being burned. The creator of the monument, artist Nikolai Polissky, said he was inspired to create the structure as a symbol of the coronavirus that the burning would destroy. “We can compare it (the coronavirus) to an evil wizard or cannibal, so we decided to build him a castle or kind of palace, to finally do away with him by burning it,“ he told The Associated Press. The holiday also featured traditional Russian pancakes called blini and games and dances. “I feel like I'm lost in a movie, I feel emotions that are as hot as this fire,“ said visitor Dasha Belyavtseva. Find out more about AP Archive: Twitter: Facebook: Google : APArchive​ Tumblr: ​​ Instagram: You can license this story through AP Archive: