Udătoriul from Surdesti Romania

Each year, on the second day of Easter, Surdesti Village celebrates Udătoriul, which means the first man that starts to plow.

The whole village gathers in front of the church to find out who is the most hardworking from the men.

After a complex ceremonial, preserved from old times, Udatoriul is chosen.

After this ritual of purifying and fertility of the land, people  manifest their joy with traditional dances.

The whole spectacle takes place in front of a wooden church, the highest of its kind in Europe.

      The center of this extraordinary universe is the wood civilization developed from a prohibition: in the thirteen century, the Hungarian Catholic aristocrats have forbidden the usage of rock in church constructions.

      This is how the Gothic style from Maramures was born.     The Gothic style is reflected in the painted churches and in the monumental gates decorated with specific motifs: sun, tree of life, the girdle.

Webibliography:

Udătoriul de la Şurdeşti.  Mihai Tămaş, primul gospodar ieşit la arat (galerie foto)