Schwellköpfe

The Schwellköpfe ("swollen heads") are characteristic for the Carnival of Mainz (the Rose Monday procession). The huge papier-mâché heads have been worn during the carnival parade since 1927 and show satirical representations of citizens. 

The first copies were built made of gypsum and paper by Ludwig Lipp, a Mainz sculptor. Today they are mainly made from styropor. The heads weigh about 25 kg. With a walking distance of seven kilometres, this is an exhausting task for the bearers. There are similar figures in the Carnival of Nice.

Picturesource: User Kandschwar, www.wikipedia.org CC BY-SA 3.0