A thousand mountainside fires encircled the German town of Pottenstein Wednesday, creating a Lord of the Rings-like scene.
The incredible sight marked the festival of Ewige Anbetung (Eternal Adoration), celebrating the arrival of the Three Wise Men in Bethlehem, and typically the end of the Christmas period.
Locals and tourists lit the beacon fires as darkness fell and temperatures plummeted.
With the fires burning and embers crackling around them in the hills, people paraded through the town’s streets in a celebration of prayer and song.
The festival is thought to have begun in 1905, while a similar event is also held each year in neighboring Gößweinstein on December 26. The latter dates back to the 18th century.