Maslenitsa is one of the most cheerful holidays of the year, widely celebrated throughout Russia. It reflects age-old traditions, carefully preserved and handed down from generation to generation.  It is a week-long festival with round dances, songs, dances and games, dedicated to saying goodbye to winter and welcoming spring. Maslenitsa celebrations in 2026 are beginning on February 16 and finishing on Sunday 22 with the Forgiveness Sunday. Each day of Maslenitsa week has a special name and its own festive traditions.  The dates of the Maslenitsa week change every year. This is due to the peculiarities of celebrating the main Orthodox Christian holiday, Easter.

With the spread of Christianity, Maslenitsa began to be celebrated during the last week before Great Lent, which is also called Cheesefare Week.

Nowadays, Maslenitsa is celebrated as the beginning of spring. Despite the deep spiritual meaning of Maslenitsa week, the vast majority of people are familiar with it precisely because of its folk customs. As priests remind us, these customs have no connection to Christianity. The main Maslenitsa ritual is also associated with paganism. On the last day of the festivities, an effigy of winter is burned. Throughout the week, people dance and sing around it.

Another ancient tradition has been preserved – baking pancakes. It is believed that pancakes symbolize the sun. Maslenitsa and maslenka (butter bowl) are connected not only by their common root, but also by the very essence of the holiday. The etymology of both words goes back to butter, which in Russia was a symbol of prosperity and the spring sun. Maslenitsa is a time for ‘appeasing’ nature before Lent, when meat is already forbidden, but dairy products are still allowed. In this context, the butter bowl becomes the main item on the table: it was used to serve the butter that was generously spread on the pancakes to make them goldish and ‘rich’.

In the popular consciousness – a butter bowl is not just a piece of tableware, but a symbol of abundance and hospitality, essential attributes of the Maslenitsa week. There is a direct logical connection: for Maslenitsa to be successful, the butter bowl should not be empty. The shiny sides of a butter bowl on the festive table echoed the greasy, shiny pancakes, symbolizing the transition from the cold, barren winter to the generous warmth of spring.

On Maslenitsa, a butter bowl is the centerpiece of a bountiful table. It can be made in the traditional style or in the modern minimalist style. The main thing – is a generous serving, symbolizing abundance.

On the cover: Butter serving bowl in the form of wooden bucket with detachable lid with cast horse shaped grip. A. Kordes workshop, Imperial Glass factory. Russian Empire, Saint-Petersburg. 1854