1 march, 2005 - 31 august, 2005

Botsi: "Wolf" Mask from the Dagestan village Shaytli
(The World of an Object)

    Most Oriental calendars say winter begins December 22 and ends March 22. In some Dagestan villages, the midwinter festival begins on February 5. This festival is especially vivid and interesting to experience in the mountain village of Shaytli, where it is called "Igbi". Shaytli is one of the villages of an ethnic group in Western Dagestan, known since ancient times by the name "Didoi" (though they call themselves "Tsezi", which means "Eagles").

    The most important heroes of the Igbi Festival are the Botsi (wolves). Young men wear special costumes and masks for these roles. The mask, shown here, is part of the Botsi costume. In the traditions of many Eurasian peoples, the wolf not only embodies bravery and masculinity, but it is also regarded as the guardian of first sprouts of spring. This is why Botsi appear in the Igbi Festival. Here they bode well for abundant harvests in the coming year. During the festival, Botsi chase off mysterious creatures, called Khvidili, which descend from the mountain every year on this day. This chase aims to increase nature's fertility, since the source of the Khvidili cult is the deity of vegetation.

    Another important source of the Igbi Festival is men's secret societies. This social institution was well known among the peoples of different continents, had important links in the socialization of adolescents and direct connections to ancient cults. Peoples of the Caucasus also developed men's secret societies. The Igbi Festival, which the present residents of Shaytli still celebrate, is one of the last echoes of that ancient institution.

    The Scythians, Ancient Germans and several other peoples regarded warriors, members of this brotherhood, as capable to transform into wolves. To represent and perform as wolves they put on the corresponding masks and costumes. In the Caucasus the members of the men's secret societies also regarded the wolves as their patron-protectors and believed that they, themselves, could transform into the animal. This explains the prevalence of the lupine image in the Igbi Festival. The fact that the outer features of the Botsi do not quite make one recall a wolf does not change the situation: both the participants and the audience knows who's who.