Ratiboř

"Winter, winter, get away or I'll take the whip to you.
I'll drag you away by the armpits, behind the mountains, behind the forests.
When I come back, I'll take off my winter coat."

The welcoming of spring falls on the fifth Sunday of Lent, called "Death Sunday" or "Death Sunday. It is an old custom dating back to ancient pagan times, symbolizing the expulsion of winter from the village. On this day, people would bring out a straw figure dressed in women's clothes, which was worn by the girls at the head of the procession. This figure is known by many names, such as Mařena, Morena, Marzana, Smrt, Smrtka or Smrtholka. It is brought out to the singing of songs and then thrown into the water or into a ditch, burned or buried in the ground.

We reintroduced this custom in 2015 and it is now traditionally part of the Ratiboř Spring Show. This year we have prepared a new band called "Winter pull away", but we will present it next year.