Murderfest
Exactly what is says on the tin.
What started as a traditional slaughter of pigs in autumn, quickly got out of hands... and landed at many tables in equally as many delicious forms. Murderfest is a colloquial term for a traditional feast associated with killing one large animal and cooking every single bit of it that can be cooked. It usually involves the entire household and extended family or neighbours. In smaller villages and towns, this tradition keeps to individual farming households where the animal slaughtered is usually a pig, but when it comes to bigger towns and cities, including the capital, the feast is a public holiday associated with not only cooking and eating but also markets.
The reason for such a tradition is simple: the winter is coming and it is not a pleasant time as the food tends to be scarce and the snow heavy. Therefore the people wanted to prepare as best as they could by preparing a lot of nourishing food that can be stored for months such as sausages and other types of smoked meat, salted meat, etc.
In the capital city Taun, the Murderfest deserves a capital M. The celebrations tend to go nearly for an entire month. Various guilds choose a giant animal to represent them and their craft and put the entire thing on public display (usually on the Red Square in the newer part of the city). There can only be one of each animal slaughtered, so while the festivities usually start with a pig, there is also venison and other animals being killed on later days. None of those animals suffer, they are killed quickly and as cleanly as possible and it is part of the unspoken competition between the guilds, to use as many of the parts of the animals as possible, so nothing goes to waste. So while the main attraction is the processing of meat (and giving it out, usually to the members of the city government, to the poor through church, etc.), other trades will also show the public what they can do - from skin tanners to people who make cool things from antlers - there is a lot of different things going on and is definitely worth it to travel to the capital to see in on one's own eyes.
If you don't mind the blood.
Components and tools
- one GIANT edible beast
- k n i v e s
Comments
Author's Notes
On the English wikipedia, you can find the inspiration for this festival under "Pig Slaughter". But my article title is more accurate to the Czech name for it, I feel.