Stiltwalking

Stiltwalkers have existed in many countries for thousands of years.
Stilts were used for walking across marshes, bogs and flood plains, or walking across rivers, either tidal or enlarged by heavy rain.

Stilts are two lengths of wood with footholds and straps, that are attached to the legs, doubling the height of the user.
The stiltwalker must move continuously to remain in balance.

In Ancient Greece they were known as ‘Kolobathristes’. In Greek: ‘kolon: limb’ and ‘bathron: pedestal’. A storage jar, dating from c.525 BCE, shows a chorus of stiltwalkers depicting five men on stilts.
In Ancient China, according to the fifth century BCE writer Lie Yukou, a stiltwalker called Lanzi performed before Yuangong, the King of Song. Lanzi appears to have been an acrobat who ran, jumped and juggled whilst on his stilts.
Also in Ancient China, the town of Yingkou has been flooded every year by the river Liao, and the population has used stilts to move through the flood waters for thousands of years.
In Ancient Rome, ‘Grallae’ were street dancers on stilts who performed at festivals. ‘Grallator’ was a walker on stilts.
In India, stilts have been used to move around the flooded plains during the Monsoon Season.
In Mesoamerica, The Ancient Maya used stiltwalkers during religious ceremonies.
In Belgium, the stiltwalkers of Namur have been entertaining Kings and Emperors since 1411 CE. Their act consists of fighting by jostling or pushing to unbalance the other stiltwalker.
In France, Landes in the Gascony Region has had shepherds who moved their herds through the soggy marshes using stilts, since the 1800’s.

Today stilts are used around the world, mostly for entertainment, but also in building work such as thatching roves and for building drywalls.
Stilts are also used in agriculture for collecting fruit from trees in California, USA, and by Hop farmers in Kent, England.