Wood
Maramures is the area where you can see the art of wood work. Homes are trimmed in elaborately carved wood, wooden gates and even fences are carved with complicated patterns. Historically, in this area, a family’s status in the community was displayed through the gate – the more elaborate the gate, the more important the family. Hand-carved decorations in complex patterns hold meanings beyond the purely decorative. Trees of life, twisted rope motifs, moons, stars, flowers and wolves’ teeth to ward off evil spirits are all associated with myths and superstitions. They show up in furniture, spoons, ladles, walking sticks, keepsake chests and other decorative objects, sometimes embellished with paint. Wooden flutes are also elaborately carved. Most prized are the multi-piped pan flutes, which are now very rare, as few artisans know how to make them and even fewer know how to play them.
In the “Merry Cemetery” of Sapanta,” bordering Ukraine, carved wooden crosses are painted in the traditional Voronet blue (named after the Voronet painted monastery), and embellished with fanciful borders, images of the deceased and often anecdotes of their lives.
