How can the Pskov hinterland attract tourists?
To immerse yourself in the world of paganism, you don't have to go far from home. It is enough to go on a trip to Dedovichsky and Dnovsky districts.
Did you know that you cannot take a tree that has grown at a crossroads to log a new house? Then the inhabitants of the house are in danger of misfortune. But the brownie must be transported in a worn bast shoe, after having poured ash from the oven there. The first to enter the new house is to let the chicken, rooster or cat, then in this home the owners will definitely be happy. They talk about traditions and beliefs in the peasant life room, which is located in the building of the Dedovichi library.
A study tour to Dedovichi and Dno for journalists and tour operators was organized by the tourism development department of the Committee for Culture of the Pskov region. These tourist routes became winners of the regional competition for the best tourist product "Attract a tourist".
Antique irons, spinning wheels, a loom, towels and dishes - all these objects in a room that looks more like a museum create the necessary flavor.
And although this interactive program is designed for children, adults are also curious to learn how to use a vrubel - a special ironing device, or listen to what an eight-handed doll is for. The hostesses did such amulets so that they could do everything around the house.
A little later, we are given the opportunity to learn more about amulet dolls. And even make one of them with your own hands.
A ball of cotton, wrapped in a white cloth, is the head of a future doll. The wooden stick is her hands. We take one more bright piece and put on a skirt for the "semi-finished product", then the doll gets an apron and a handkerchief. Some fifteen minutes - and the amulet is ready! A master class on making dolls is part of the program. It’s just a pity that you will have to part with the creation of your own hands, and even so barbarously - by drowning the doll in the river! Nothing can be done, so the rite commands. We were in Dedovichi on July 6, the day of Agrafena Kupalnitsa. Kupavka is a one-day doll. Red ribbons are specially tied to her hands, remembering at this moment all the bad things in life. It is believed that by throwing a doll into the water, a person will get rid of his problems and sorrows. Our ancestors believed in the cleansing power of water, why not follow their example.
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And such beauty had to be drowned
If you come here on another day, most likely you will take your amulet doll home.
You can also attend a master class at the local craftswoman Nadezhda Nelyubina, but her work cannot be reproduced as quickly as a talisman doll. It takes practice and skill. Nadezhda Dmitrievna herself has been training for seventeen years. She is the only craftsman in the Pskov region who weaves reed bells. Also in her arsenal are vases, hats, boxes and many other herb products. All the acquaintances of Nadezhda Dmitrievna have long ago solved the problem of gifts for their loved ones.
“At the end of the 90s it was hard with work, the exchange offered to master a new profession,” Nadezhda Nelyubina tells her story. - I went to learn weaving in Porkhov.
I got carried away, I liked it, and they began to pay money for the work.
On retirement, Nadezhda Dmitrievna did not give up her hobby.
“I have a lucrative job,” she laughs. - It's just hard with the grass. Thanks to my son, he helps to collect.
One person knows how to weave such bells in the Pskov region
FOR ADULTS ONLY
There is the village of Iskra 5 kilometers from Dno. Guests are offered to look at the wild mysterious park. It was defeated in the 19th century by the local landowner Nikolai Spiridonov. The entire park, unfortunately, has not survived, much was destroyed by a hurricane in 1997. But in the park there are trees that do not grow in the Dnovsky district, the landowner brought them and planted them specially to decorate his brainchild. Thanks to his efforts, Siberian pines, fir and thuja grow here. But they are not the main attraction of the park. The locals talk about ghosts seriously. Allegedly, once in the park a girl hanged herself from unrequited love, and now otherworldly voices are heard there. And there is a legend and prettier. According to legend, a church once stood on the site of the park. When the basurmanes tried to enter it, it fell into the ground, and at this place a holy spring gushed out. The source has not survived,but the steep cliff is quite real. In this place, in 2006, local residents erected a wooden cross in memory of all innocent victims. And if this wooden cross is completely man-made, then no one can say where the image of the cross on the bark of trees growing in this place came from. Scientists who were presented with the image shrug their shoulders.
This stone heals infertility
Another couple of kilometers from Iskra is the village of Dubrovo, in the past it was called Maryina Dubrava. The village stands at the top of a ravine, at the highest point in the area. And at the foot of the hill is a huge boulder. If you look closely, you can see the image of a snake's head on it. Old residents of the village say that stone snakes have been protecting the village since pre-Christian times.
Local summer resident Natalya Andreychik also believes in the power of amulets. In 2013, she was restoring her summer cottage, suddenly a head of a stone mushroom appeared from under the ground. The stone mushroom was completely dug up and left in the garden. The hostess is sure that this is an ancient phallic symbol left by the ancestors. Its man-made origin was also confirmed by the famous Pskov archaeologist Anatoly Alexandrov, who came to look at the unusual stone.
“If you sit on this stone, it will heal from infertility,” says Natalya Andreychik. - I was convinced of this many times. They come to me specially to sit on a pebble.
Don't believe me? You can come and see for yourself.
Natalya Andreychik assures that a brownie lives at her house
BTW
Both in Dedovichi and in Dno there are modern hotels where you can comfortably settle in, and catering points where you will be served delicious food.
A number of historical sources confirm that there were especially many worshipers of the lizard cult in the north-west of Ancient Rus, in the Pskov and Novgorod lands. During excavations in Novgorod, a gusli of the 12th century was found, the left side of which was made in the form of a part of the torso and head of a lizard.
The website of the Dedovichi Library has all the information about programs and excursions.
Natalia Baranova
