A favorite Shrovetide entertainment in the north was tobogganing on specially ornamented sleds down steep hills or artificial slopes made of wood and packed with snow and ice. This was not just fun, it was a ritual of courtship. In villages on the Northern Dvina, men made special sleds with carved or brightly painted designs of rayed suns and geometric patterns, for their daughters or intended brides. In parts of Yaroslavl' Province women slid down hills on their distaffs to encourage a good crop of flax. Tobogganing was an obligatory ritual for those newly married or married for one year. People believed that sledding would magically make a woman fertile, and thus contribute to the rebirth of the earth. Frequently depicted on distaffs and lubki, often with identifying inscriptions, the sleigh ride was a major social activity between Epiphany and the Maslenitsa week.

Alison Hilton