In Charlton-on-Otmoor church, England, UK, a cross covered in box branches known as the 'May Garland' stands on the rood screen throughout the year.
In the church of Charlton-on-Otmoor, England, UK, a cross covered in box branches stands on the rood screen throughout the year. Known as the May Garland, the greenery is renewed & dressed with flowers each May Day & for the dedication festival on 19 September. The box cross is described as anthropomorphic with a female waist & dress, & seen by some as a Christianized form of a pagan goddess such as Flora. The rood screen dates from c 1500. Before the Reformation the cross used to be carried over Ot Moor to be blessed by the Prioress of Studley Priory. At the Reformation the statues of St John & the Virgin flanking the central cross (rood) were replaced by large hooped garlands of flowers surmounted by crosses. In Discovering English Customs & Traditions (1969), Margaret Gascoigne writes: "At 9 on May Day or on the nearest school day the children walk from the school to the church carrying a long garland decorated with leaves and flowers. Each child also makes and brings a small cross decorated with flowers; before they enter church they sing the May Garland song. In church the garland is hung on the screen, there is a short service and the two best crosses are hung over the church door to be left until they fade. Before they return to school the children dance in the streets outside the church. Before 1963 the children used to carry their small crosses from house to house singing a little song and asking for pennies."
Size: 3548px × 4953px
Location: St Mary the Virgin's Church, Charlton-on-Otmoor, Oxfordshire, England, UK
Photo credit: © Mick Sharp / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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