The Alasitas Fair (or Feria de la Alasita) is a festival celebrated throughout the Bolivian altiplano, but especially in La Paz, at the end of January. The festival honours the Ekeko, the Aymara god of abundance. It has ancient origins - the Aymara people would perform rituals and offer miniatures to their gods to ask for abundant crops. The tradition has grown over time and miniatures of a whole range of items are now available, the idea being that the full sized version will be received during the coming year. The festival traditionally starts on January 24th when the streets of La Paz fill with stalls selling miniatures. Believers have their purchases blessed by shamans, and around midday on January 24th by Catholic priests in and / or outside the city's churches as well. Markets continue selling miniatures (the festival has generated an entire craft industry dedicated to their production) and other handicrafts for a few weeks afterwards. The festival was added to UNESCO's List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on 6th December 2017. A similar but smaller festival is held in Puno, Peru at the start of May.
