The Metaphysics of the North

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Naglimozero Artova Hermitage

All that remains of the Naglimozero Artova Men’s Hermitage in the taiga wilderness of Kenozerye—founded in the remote 17th century by a former streltsy soldier named Timofey—is the solitary cell of its last monk and a ...

Naglimozero Artova Hermitage

Naglimozero Artova Hermitage

The Ruins of the Agua Church Amid January Mists

In the breath of the mountains. A touch of the northern south—or the southern north.

The Ruins of the Agua Church Amid January Mists

руины кавказ атмосфера горы

The Ruins of the Agua Church Amid January Mists

Inversion in Russian Folk Magic: Turning the Sacred Into the Profane

The Latin term inversion (from inversio, “turning upside down; reversal”) aptly conveys the concept—negation or turning meaning on its head, a symbolic “black magic” technique aimed at causing harm or casting curses. T...

Inversion in Russian Folk Magic: Turning the Sacred Into the Profane

заброшка руины инверсия порча брошенная церковь народные верования church Abandoned ruins

Inversion in Russian Folk Magic: Turning the Sacred Into the Profane

How to Create a Demon Helper—or a Russian Peasant Homunculus

It is said that when the wind blows, and a hen’s tail fans upward, something strange may occur. In old folk belief, the devil—who often rides the whirlwind—might descend upon the hen and impregnate her. From this act, ...

How to Create a Demon Helper—or a Russian Peasant Homunculus

зима брошенная деревня водлозеро карелия заброшки обряды ритуалы dead village karelia ritual

How to Create a Demon Helper—or a Russian Peasant Homunculus

Forest Sacrifice: Traces of a Wild Hunt in the Karelian Woods

A small forest drama: this is where a young moose was devoured by hungry wolves. We found the remains here, in this quiet Karelian bog, not far from our home.

Forest Sacrifice: Traces of a Wild Hunt in the Karelian Woods

череп осень пейзаж лес лесной скелет Russian North

Forest Sacrifice: Traces of a Wild Hunt in the Karelian Woods

A Visitor from Beyond: Ghost Stories from Russian Folklore

"My husband wanted to go to the mill on Easter, and I told him: ‘Wait, don’t go on a holy day.’ At first he listened, but then he changed his mind. Came back and said, ‘I must be the only man left who obeys his wife,’ ...

A Visitor from Beyond: Ghost Stories from Russian Folklore

быличка русский север кладбище могилы кольский полуостров Териберка ледовитый океан Russian North Cemetery living dead death

A Visitor from Beyond: Ghost Stories from Russian Folklore

A Door to Another Dimension

Russian North northern peasant architecture

A Door to Another Dimension

Danilovsky Prison Castle – Journey into Russia’s Forgotten Past

There will be no pretentious philosophizing or pseudo-scientific posturing in this post—only photographs of the abandoned Danilovsky Prison Castle. Built in the mid-19th century and used as a prison until the 1980s, it...

Danilovsky Prison Castle – Journey into Russia’s Forgotten Past

заброшка старина заброшенное иные миры данилов Haunting ruins mystical travels Russian wilderness

Danilovsky Prison Castle – Journey into Russia’s Forgotten Past

From Vepsian Folklore: How to See the Dead

On the 40th day after death, when the traditional remembrance feast—sorochiny—is held, a separate place is set at the table for the departed: a chair, food, and a spoon.

From Vepsian Folklore: How to See the Dead

Живая старина былички северная деревня деревянная архитектура культ мертвых ancient funeral rites wooden sacred architecture

From Vepsian Folklore: How to See the Dead

The Pskov Collective Farm Woman — Late Soviet Macabre and the Mother Russia Icon

While roaming the boundless northern expanses, we recently stumbled upon a true masterpiece of Soviet macabre — a towering sculpture of a collective farm woman, forgotten in the snow-covered fields of the Pskov region....