Lajkonik

thumb|Lajkonik fete 2025, Senatorska street, Kraków The Lajkonik is one of the unofficial symbols of the city of Kraków, Poland. It is represented as a bearded man resembling a Tatar in a characteristic pointed hat, dressed in Mongol attire, with a wooden horse around his waist (hobby horse). It is the subject of the Lajkonik Festival () that takes place each year on the first Thursday after the religious holiday of Corpus Christi.

==Origin== thumb|250x250px|Lajkonik fete 2025, Rodła boulevard by Vistula river The origin of the Lajkonik is uncertain, but there are some common stories associated with its popularity. Some think that it originated in pre-Christian times when it was believed that in the spring the horse brought good luck and high crop yields.