Corn Dollies

As many of you know, I am a doll collector with a large collection planning a museum, hence my blogs Dr. E's Doll Museum and Doll Museum. I will probaly copy this information there as well. I love the most unusual dolls best; corn dollies fit into that category. Many are not even of human shape; they are abstract, many circular or triangular, two geometric shapes associate with women's bodies. They play a role in the harvest festival, and often were kept in the home for one year, then burned, and a new doll was displayed. I first read about them in Volume D, "Dolls" of the 1956 World Book Encyclopedia. Among my other collections, I collect Volume D and other doll related volumes of old sets of encyclopedias Von Boehn, Laura Starr, Mary Hillier, and Leslie Gordon also write about them, and they are featured in books on crafts and Wicca. There is a book that comes up on Google images, too. Below is a history from a site in Wales that I was very impressed with. They also sell. Enjoy reading this timely and seasonal piece about a beloved craft.

A little bit of Folklore

SHORT HISTORY Corn dollies date back to pagan times. Straw symbols, such as corn dollies or the harvest maid have always been associated with the gathering in of the crops. They were made in the field from the last sheaf, and many different designs came about from various areas.

In the early part of the 19thC, English farmers in rural areas were carrying out ceremonies of which the original meaning was completely lost. Eg: the worship of the goddess of the corn. The art of making the corn dolly was handed down from father to son, and the whole ceremony ended with the triumphant return of the last load with the corn dolly held in the arms of the prettiest girl in the village. It was then hung up in the farmhouse until the following year. There are many variations of this story.

Corn dollies made from wheat, is what the peoples of the British Isles call “corn”, it has deep pagan symbolic roots. Corn dollies are given for many occasions. A rattle could be given for the birth of a child or for a naming ceremony (christening). There are many House Blessings which make a lovely gift at any time, especially for Weddings and people moving house. Corn dollies seem to be getting more popular with a different variety of uses, for eg: Wearing the dollies hanging on belts, or decorating a hat with, wearing them as necklaces or bracelets or brooches, you can easily modify them for your own personal use, Harpers & Queen used my dollies in a photo shoot. Country Homes & Garden displayed one of my dollies in their October 2006 issue. World of Interiors magazine May 2009 has one of my Harvest Mothers on display. The traditional corn dolly often called a `Nek` is one I recommend for fertility, all though all corn dollies are connected to fertility and our mother the earth. The Harvest Mother is very symbolic of Mother Earth and often used in pagan or wicca rituals. Scottish TV has used my corn dollies in childrens programmes. Diva Opera Company has used one of my dollies in their production of Eugene Onegin by Tchaikowsky. It was used in the scene where the peasants come in from Harvest and they present the dolly to the owner of the estate. If you go to Jamie Olivers restaurant Fifteen's Trattoria you should find a couple of my dollies hanging up amongst the dried chillies. A collection of my dollies were used for the London and Paris Fashion Show September 2009 for Designer Vivienne Westwood. best; corn dollies fit into that category. Many are not even of human shape; they are abstract, many circular or triangular, two geometric shapes associate with women's bodies. They play a role in the harvest festival, and often were kept in the home for one year, then burned, and a new doll was displayed. I first read about them in Volume D, "Dolls" of the 1956 World Book Encyclopedia. Among my other collections, I collect Volume D and other doll related volumes of old sets of encyclopedias Von Boehn, Laura Starr, Mary Hillier, and Leslie Gordon also write about them, and they are featured in books on crafts and Wicca. There is a book that comes up on Google images, too. Below is a history from a site in Wales that I was very impressed with. They also sell. Enjoy reading this timely and seasonal piece about a beloved craft.

Ode to my Red Gel Pen

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So much to write, so little time!

My mind is like a partially shattered jigsaw puzzle these days. Some pieces connect, most barely dangle by their hinges. The dangling chads have nothing over my thought processes. I have lots to write and post about my recent forays to the aquarium, and reading of Rachel Carson, Muir, Thoreau, Evelyn White, and others. I've pondered a lot the distinctions, if any, between scientists and naturalist, and have experienced the joy of delving enthusiastically into disciplines long admired, but no necessarily my own-- or are they? Microbiologists, scientists in general, seem to have a lot in common with miniaturists, that deliberate focus, painting on one inch pieces of ivory, as Jane Austen may have called it, living in the intense miniature worlds of Thoreau's ant wars. Ture miniaturists devoted to scale work under magnifying glasses and microscopes, too. There world is infintisemal, and the question becomes how do all those tiny parts fit into the whole. Reading Wordsworth, Whitman, looking outside, especially at waterways with new eyes. Then feeling uncontrollable rage at how my child with special needs is being treated by our own Dist. 41, my mother's place of employ nearly 40 years, my alma mater. Boycotting band and all activites by one "Maestro" Karlyn, because he can't seem to realize that Band is about music appreication, and tolerance, and love of music, not how many haf-a___d awards the director can stuff into his merit file. I wish upon his miserable children and himself the bad treatment my child is receiving at his hands, the after effects of his immature outbursts, his bad temper, the abusive us/them atmosphere he is creating in a group of children who should be learning harmony, musical and otherwise. Dist 41, RI/M, shame on you; you violate the ADA with each blast of your foul, collective, corporate breath! Enough; I think of little ways of saving water, of recycling, of picking up the litter others throw when I can, and I do it. I tell my kids to turn over old ads and used papers and use them as notepaper, something we did in school even in the 70s, with no one telling us to. One of the architechts behind the EPA died this week, and I hope to post the obit soon. We can take a lesson from him; the evironment is not a political issue; it is a life issue. He was a moderate republican and passionate environmentalist who brought about many reforms. Still watch cooking shows passionately, but no time for now to cook or develop recipes. I hope to do more by the holidays, for there is a certain peace and spirituality for me, a connectedness, in creating my mother's recipes, or making up my own. There is indeed peace in the kitchen, ad I often forget time and miseries when I'm there.

Memoir; Writing your Life Story: From Pro Blogger

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Barbara Kingsolver on Food nad eating Local

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle While I don't always agree with her politics, I find her a valuable and intriguing author. I've taught her in classes and mentioned her in my bibliography on dolls. I've watched her TV interviews and admired her poise, and had one moment of seren dipity when I wanted to read The Poisonwood Bible and the next hour, it turned up at a church rummage sale. Have not felt well at all; this is the time to turn to my books and my dolls, to things that I love and that nourish the soul. Enjoy: About Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life Since its release in May 2007, Animal Vegetable, Miracle has helped launch a modern transition in America’s attitudes toward food. In this lively account of a family’s locavore year on their farm in Southern Appalachia, Barbara Kingsolver and her coauthors unearth the secret lives of vegetables and the unexpected satisfactions of knowing their food producers — and sometimes their dinner — on a first-name basis. A Family Collaboration The family’s year long experience leads them through a season of planting, pulling weeds, expanding their kitchen skills, harvesting their own animals, joining the effort to save heritage crops from extinction, and learning the time-honored rural art of unloading excess zucchini. Barbara Kingsolver’s engaging narrative is enriched by husband Steven Hopp’s in-depth reports on the science and industry of food, and daughter Camille’s youthful perspective on cooking and food culture. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life makes a passionate case for putting the kitchen back at the center of family life, and diversified farms at the center of the American diet. http://animalvegetablemiracle.com/book.htm