Covid-themed candles sold in Greece for Orthodox Easter

An employee holding candles that resemble Covid-19 test kits and vaccination syringes, at a store in Athens, Greece, on April 19, 2022. Photo: AP

Inside Greece’s Orthodox churches, candles are a symbol of faith and simplicity, slender and traditionally made of beeswax, and placed in large candleholders filled with sand.

Outside, buyers are looking for a wow-factor to go with Easter gifts: They are sold with dolls, watches and karaoke microphones, or fashioned using dyes and moulds in eye-catching designs that include beer bottles, smartphones and action heroes.