Silk scarf "Maiden Mountains (Amazonia)"

Flowers, butterflies, Pasqueflowers on the border of snows and thaws, forget-me-nots and thistle on a precipice under a high sky... Within these shimmers lies the "enchantment" of a hallowed land, a tale of the entire universe and of one sacred place — the Zhiguli Mountains.

Until the mid-20th century, they were called Zheguli — after the reflections of the signal fires of river-farers and outlaws. Or perhaps other fires that burned during the solstices. But since the 15th century, maps and scrolls have guarded another name — the "Devyi Gory" (Maiden Mountains / Mons Virgineus).

Whether it is because the mountain slopes part as tenderly as a maiden, letting the Volga in. Or because it was here that the arrows of warrior-maidens, the legendary Amazons, once rang — on ancient maps, these lands were indeed called "Amazonia."

Another thing is possible: it is only one step from the "Devyi" (Maiden) to the "Divyi" mountains. Div is a mysterious spirit of nature, circling the peaks in the guise of a bird. Where there is a marvel (divo), there is a miracle, the ancient "kudo" (wonder-worker and sorcerer, a Teratological Style in its original sense: wondrous, alive).