Bucharest Holds Romania's Biggest Martisor Market, Attracting 200 Sellers and 15,000+ Visitors

BTA correspondent Martina Gancheva

The martisor market at the National Museum of the Romanian Peasant in Bucharest, May 1, 2024 (BTA Photo)

Bucharest,

01.03.2024 12:26

(BTA)

Bucharest held Romania's biggest martisor market on the eve of March 1, which is traditionally celebrated as the onset of spring. 200 participants from all parts of the country brought hand-made martisor - traditional white-and-red amulets, to the market in the National Museum of the Romanian Peasant. Tens of thousands came to admire and buy martisor.

"The sellers have various day jobs. Among them are students, architects, artists, engineers. They use wool, cotton, leather, glass, metal, resin, paper, stone," Lila Passima, who heads the Education Department of the Peasant Museum, told BTA.

Archeological studies show that the martisor tradition dates back to the age of the Dacians, who wore them as amulets. They used river pebbles which they painted red and white, and put on string to wear them on their necks. They were used as symbols of fertility and beauty. Over time, the stringed pebbles were replaced by red-and-white string.

The Romanian tradition is very much similar to the martenitsa custom in Bulgaria.

Romanian people exchange martisors on March 1 and wear them until the end of the month. Lila Passima says that they have evolved into a kind of an accessory worn by girls and women. Men and boys don't wear martisor, with the only exception being the region of Bucovina and Moldova.

/NF/