Kurpie Folk Region

Kurpie is the forest country north of Ostroleka, historically poor and isolated - the people lived by beekeeping, tar burning, amber digging and hunting rather than by farming good land - and the isolation preserved a distinct culture. The costume uses amber beads, found locally in the sands, and heavy embroidery; the women's headdress is a stiff embroidered band. The cut-out tradition here differs from Lowicz: leluje, tall symmetrical tree-of-life forms cut from single sheets. Houses hung pajaki, chandeliers made from straw, paper and coloured wafer, at Christmas and weddings, and these are still made. Kadzidlo and Myszyniec hold the main events, including a Palm Sunday competition for tall decorated palms that can reach several metres. Regional museums at Kadzidlo and the open-air museum at Nowogrod, one of the oldest skansens in Poland, hold the collections.

What to look for

• Amber-set costume - beads dug from local sand, with heavy embroidery.
• Leluje cut-outs - tall tree-of-life forms cut from a single sheet.
• Straw and wafer chandeliers - pajaki hung from ceilings at feasts.
• Palm Sunday palms - decorated poles several metres tall, judged in competition.

When to go

Palm Sunday, or May to September. A day.

Good to know

This is a scattered rural region rather than a single site - a car helps a great deal. Museums keep short hours and close on Mondays. Living tradition is concentrated on festival days.

Nearby

Nowogrod skansen is north-east; Ostroleka is south.