194 SZLACHTA
And there was the girl who believed in dragons:
When news arrived from Hungary that dragons were still alive
And flying around, a certain young maid did contrive
To believe it. She told her friends how the terrible beasts
Had the heads of cats, and the lengthy necks of geese.
A lad explained: 'I've heard much stranger things.
There are plenty of dragons not far from here. They don't have wings:
But their knobs are very cat-like, and goose-like their necks;
They wear baggy trousers which hang down like sacks,
With a groat in each pocket; and they only lie low
And are content, when capped with a sprinkling of snow.'^42
Dancing was generally acknowledged as one of the Polish graces. In contrast
to the jovial romps of the peasantry, where the dancers leap high in the air, the
favourite dance of the nobility was undoubtedly the polonez (Polonaise), or as
it was originally known until exported abroad, the 'Great Dance'. It was danced
in a circle, unhurriedly, and with an easy lilting step and demanded precise
attention to the rhythm and tempo. Some foreigners, thinking it lacked passion,
likened it to a 'strolling conversation', but on closer acquaintance were much
impressed by its subtlety and elegance. 'Je n'ai vu jamais rien de plus grave, de
plus doux, ni de plus respectueux,' recorded the Frenchman, Laboureur, in
1645.
The szlachta were inordinately fond of ceremony for ceremony's sake. They
were specially addicted to processions, where they could dress up in their finery
and strut in peacock-displays of their wealth and quality. In 1583, for example,
a 'maskarada' was held in the city square of Cracow to mark the marriage of Jan
Zamoyski and Gryzelda Bathory. It depicted the victory of the bride's royal
father over Ivan the Terrible:
The procession began when Mikolaj Wolski, the Crown Swordbearer, rode out from the
courtyard of the inn 'Pod Baranami'. He and his escort were dressed in Moorish costume.
An huge elephant ambled along in the retinue, showering rockets and fireworks from the
tower which it carried on its back.
Behind that, Mikolaj Zebrzydowski emerged on a carriage pulled by children repre-
senting the hours - twelve in black representing the Night, and twelve in white the Day.
They had clocks on their heads, and stars on their backs. A grey-bearded Saturn also rode
on the carriage, grasping a scythe. Another figure with a clock on his head in personation
of Time, walked behind, and after him a couple more representing the Sun and Moon.
Next the third float appeared, led by Stanislaw Minski, driving an azure carriage con-
veyed on four spheres. This contraption was covered by a 'cloud', masterfully made from
a cotton sheet, and drawn by three eagles. It emitted terrifying claps of thunder from all
sides, and was surmounted by Jove clutching his flash of lightning. Fortunately, when
real fire broke out in the cloud, the 'Thunder-bearer' was able to jump clear, and the fire
was extinguished.
After Jove marched a company of knights on foot, dressed in ancient costume.
Preceded by resplendent trumpeters, and each accompanied by his personal squire, with
banners unfurled, they followed their captains under a mobile triumphal arch.