Almost in every peasant house there was a cradle - a small wooden or wicker bed allowing to rock the baby. The most common were hanging cradles which were attached to one of the ceiling beams. In addition the hanging cradle could be portable - it could easily be removed from the hook and taken with you to the field.
Hanging from the ceiling was not accidental: warm air accumulated in the upper part of the room. Our ancestors also believed that in a suspended cradle the child was under the “guard” of the heavenly forces. Many beliefs were associated with the cradles. For example it was impossible to swing an empty cradle so as not to incur illness and other misfortunes on the baby. Baby cots have never been made from aspen. It was believed that the devil force is "friends" with this tree.
The cradle presented in the museum exposition was made in the 1930-1940s by Milenti Ustinovich a resident of the village of Balai, Vitebsk region.
