The Greater Philadelphia Area
PHOENIXVILLE, PA — the 13th Annual Phoenixville Firebird Festival was held on December 3, 2016. The entire town joins in the celebration with over 20 bands playing throughout the business district. What musicians were not playing inside could be found on the streets and marching in the parade. A drum brigade, firebird dancers and a marching band led the procession from town to the fire location. There a two-story tall wooden bird was set ablaze.
December 8th, 3:30 – 8:00pm
Phoenixville, PA — Every year in downtown Phoenixville they build a giant wooden bird and then set it on fire. The belly of the bird is filled with local artisans pottery creations. As the bird burns, the belly becomes a kiln.
The Phoenix holds an exalted place in the myths of many of the great world cultures.
The Egyptians called it the Bennu and depicted it as a heron with brilliant plumage and a feathered crest on its head. The Greeks called it by the name we use today; Phoenix, which means red, the color most associated with fire and with the sun, and described it as resembling something between an eagle and a peacock. Both the Egyptians and the Greeks believed that this fabulous bird lived in Heilopolis, The City of the Sun, and that at the end of its very long life – 500 to 1500 years – it builds its own pyre from incense and precious woods and is consumed in sacred fire. Out of the ashes springs the new phoenix thus symbolizing resurrection and renewal.
