- Title: RUSSIA-VIKINGS St Petersburg festival offers a window into Viking past
- Date: 3rd June 2015
- Summary: PARTICIPANTS FROM NORWAY AND RUSSIA IMITATING VIKING RITUAL AND DANCING
- Embargoed: 18th June 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA2TY8PFWLBVAMFGYB35M5J79EW
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Russians and Norwegians crossed swords on the grounds of the 18th century Peter and Paul Fortress on the island in the heart of St. Petersburg.
A three-day long festival, called 'The legends of Norwegian Vikings' opened with a large-scale battle in which over 300 participants from more than forty best military history re-enactment clubs of Russia and CIS took part.
Norwegian participants arrived at the festival on board of a traditional 'dragon-ship' to the sound of bagpipes and flutes.
Terje Boe, who presented himself as the konung of north Norwegian Lofoten islands, touched the ground wearing fur mantle and a dagger on his belt. Before the fight, he told Reuters what make you a real Viking.
"You have to have a wife, you have to have a lot of children and a big family and you have to have some big viking ship, as a dragon ship," Boe said smiling.
Spectators cheered at the clank of metal against wooden shields, as the warriors showed off their skills. In spite of lots of pretty violent manoeuvres from both sides, the fight ended up with friendly hugs of the rivals.
Maksim Kats, the head of the 'Silver wolf' club at the festival, whose team borrowed the appearance from the militia of the 11th century Novgorod prince, Yaroslav the Wise, explained that such festivals helped him to learn more about Russia's history.
"It is the history of our country. During the time we were participating in history re-enactment, experimental archaeology, we managed to get to know it much deeper and find out a lot of new things," Kats said, adding that the preparation of the performance took a lot of effort.
"One day at the festival is a result of many days of offseason work. Our warriors certainly practice with weapon two times a week. They produce the majority of the equipment by themselves," he said.
Guests of the festival also could stroll across a reconstructed medieval Norse settlement and get acquainted with the life and culture of the Scandinavian people. They were able to try their hands at pottery and blacksmithing, buy furs and animal skulls or learn the basics of the swordsmanship and shield protection techniques.
It is the sixth time St. Petersburg authorities with the support of the Consulate General of the Kingdom of Norway organised the history re-enactment festival. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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