This will be my third and final post about the world’s largest Pysanka (Ukrainian Easter Egg) at Vegreville, Alberta, Canada.

The project was completed in 1975 and was visited by Queen Elizabeth and her family in 1978. As you can well imagine, this was a momentous occasion for a small prairie town.

The sculpture was designed at a time when computers were just beginning to be used for these types of projects. According to Wikipedia, the software created to guide the lasers which cut the Pysanka’s tiles was eventually purchased and used for the cutting of the exterior tiles of the Space Shuttle.

I was surprised to see the Pysanka moving when we were there, as I couldn’t recall seeing it move when we had passed it on previous trips to Alberta. In researching after this trip, I learned that the Pysanka is also a windmill! It’s movement is completely dictated by the wind.

Paul Sembaliuk, an Alberta native of Ukrainian heritage, designed the Pysanka and managed the construction project. He was definitely a gifted artist and visionary. I Googled his name this morning and read many interesting facts about this man’s life and contributions.

This pillar that stands near the visitor centre has different small Ukrainian murals and inscriptions on each side of it, but because the visitor centre was closed for the day, I didn’t get any information on it and Google has returned a great bit goose egg (couldn’t resist).

Also near the visitor centre is this stained glass tribute to the Ukrainian pioneers of the area. I was skunked on my research for this art work as well.

I know on our next trip, we’ll definitely arrive when the visitor centre is open so we can get information about other attractions in the park besides the Pysanka.

Photo Note: In post processing for these three photos, all I did was crop to optimum size for WordPress, then used Snapseed to tweak the white balance and use the curves tool to add a bit more contrast. I tried using perspective tools in the last photo, but I was standing too close for the original shot, so any attempt at straightening the stained glass frame resulted in too many elements being lost from the photo. I chose my feature photo because the goal in this shot was to show the relative size of the egg. An unplanned bonus was the framing of the egg by the trees.

“When you see validation for a life’s work and dedication, it’s a beautiful day.”

Mary Gauthier