| Ancient Folk Lore |
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| Birth | Marriage | Death | Moon | Days | Months |
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Marriage - stories from ancient folkloreMarriage Service and Wedding DayMarriage Service and Wedding Day - omensIn the South of England it is regarded as unlucky for a bride about to go to the church to look in the glass after she is completely dressed. Hence, very great care is taken to put on a glove or some article after the last lingering and reluctant look has been taken in the mirror. In Yorskshire, when the bride alights from her carriage at her father's door, a plate covered with morsels of bride-cake was flung from a window of the second storey upon the heads of the crowd congregated in the street below; the divination consisting in observing the fate which attends its downfall. If it reach the ground in safety, without being broken, the omen is a most unfavourable one. If, on the other hand, the plate be shattered in pieces (and the more the better), the auspices are looked upon as most happy. This is still practised today, in a version where the bride and groom will each try and smash a plate. There are variations on this theme, in Northumberland, where on the bride's entry of her father's house after the marriage, she is met at the door, a veil thrown over her head, and a quantity of cake pitched over her. In Scotland we find a similar practice observed. The mother or nearest female relative of the bridegroom attends at his house to receive the newly-married pair. She is expected to meet them at the door with a currant bun in her hands, which she breaks over the head of the bride before entering the house. It is considered very unlucky should the currant bun be broken by mistake over the head of any person but that of the bride. It is another Yorkshire belief, and by no means a pleasant one, that whoever goes to sleep first on the marriage night, will be sure to die first; this, they say, is as true as Scripture. |
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this website has been put together from a series
of old texts that i came across, while researching fairies and the
world of fae in folklore, i thought there was enough here to share with
other people on these other topics. these pages are meant as an introduction
or a bit of fun reading, for those interested in delving deeper, |