Moulid_0008

Two women sit in front of a swing where children play, in Al-Batiniya, Cairo, on the eve of Fatimah’s moulid. Swings are an ancient feature of all local moulids in Egypt. According to the myth, Bacchus — the Roman god of wine — was angry at the grape farmers because of their failure to plant one year. When they asked for his forgiveness after the land was barren, he requested that they perform dances to cheer him up, so he could forgive them. The swing was part of this performance. There are many drawings on such swings from popular culture, such as mermaids or Jonah and the whale.