Beast from the East blankets Europe in snow - pictures

Tourists take pictures of the ancient Colosseum during a snowstorm in Rome

A man walks his dog and pulls his child along in a sledge in the falling snow in the village of Brenchley, in south-east England

A man shovels snow outside a tavern in Hortiatis, around 25 miles north of Thessaloniki, as the Siberian cold front hits northern and central Greece 

A dusting of snow on the Bismarck monument in the centre of Hamburg, Germany

Children play on sledges outside Rochester Castle, Rochester 

A member of the Pope's Swiss Guard stands watch in the snow at St Peter's Square 

A family enjoys the snow at the frozen Lac Vert near Soultzeren, eastern France PATRICK HERTZOG/AFP/Getty Images

Snow covers the sand around a statue at Antony Gormley's art installation Another Place, at Crosby Beach, near Liverpool

A woman with a child walks dogs during a heavy snowfall in Sofia, Bulgaria

A thick blanket of snow lies over vehicles at a used car dealer in Rehna, northern Germany