The spiral weaving technology from the Vitebsk region has been recognized as a historical and cultural value
Spiral weaving is one of the most ancient types of weaving. This technique has been known to almost all agricultural peoples of Europe since the Neolithic era. It was also widespread in the territory of Belarus. For example, in the Vitebsk region in the early 20th century, the technique was widely represented in the villages of the Gorodok and Braslav districts, where masters used it to create household items: containers for storing food and clothing, furniture, beehives, shoes, rugs, and window curtains. "The main carriers of this technology in the 1980s-1990s were Adam Kravchuk from Vitebsk, Petr Karenik and Mikhail Cherkas from Braslav. Modern masters are also interested in it, many of whom are researching their regions and reconstructing found artifacts of spiral straw weaving," the folk art center noted.
The tradition of spiral weaving in the Vitebsk region is being revived by a community of masters in almost unchanged form in the Braslav, Verkhnedvinsk, Gorodok districts, and Vitebsk. To popularize this technology and folk crafts, clubs for spiral weaving for children and adults are also operating in the cultural and historical complex "Golden Ring of the City of Vitebsk 'Dvina'," the Gorodok House of Crafts and Folklore, and the Braslav Museum of Traditional Culture.
"This element of intangible heritage vividly characterizes the historical and ethnographic landscape of these regions of the Vitebsk region. It is valuable to local residents for its content and character, and it corresponds to their everyday perceptions," the folk art center emphasized.
The State List of Intangible Historical and Cultural Values of Belarus includes 13 elements of the Vitebsk region, existing and practiced in the Braslav, Gorodok, Glubokoe, Dubrovno, Dokshitsy, Lepel, Miory, Polotsk, Postavy, Sharkovshchina districts, and Vitebsk.