Krakow Lajkonik
The Kraków Lajkonik forms - alongside the Kraków Christmas crib - an important part of Kraków's folklore .
The origin
The city of Krakow was besieged by the Mongols in 1241 and 1257 . These events two Krakow's traditions are connected, " Hejnał " which abruptly interrupted bugle call from the tower of Krakow's St. Mary's Church , and "Lajkonik", the figure of a mace armed Tatar rider .
Lajkonik
Cracow's Lajkonik festival is celebrated annually on the 8th day after the feast of Corpus Christi . The figure of the Lajkonik, a Tatar rider who carries a horse figure with a mace in hand and dances around from the Norbertan monastery to the market square, was created in the 17th or 18th century. The abbess of the monastery, who watched the festival from the window, was the first to pay a ransom. The Lajkonik was accompanied by folk musicians.
For more than a hundred years, the Lajkonik has been wearing a costume designed by Stanisław Wyspiański .
