Weaving Wheat:
Traditions of Fertility and Faith by Beverly Schrandt homes with straw and sleeping on that instead. Later, as the days started to lengthen, they believed that the spirits were pleased with them and so had brought back the sun. This tradition of scattering straw dates to the time when all buildings and homes had earthen floors. The straw also served to keep the family warmer as they slept on it. Even after homes had wooden floors, the custom continued. With the advent of Christianity, this tradition was interpreted to mean that Christ was born on straw and thus all man should be equal. The straw was then swept up, with the heads or This straw mobile, called an uro, was made from the Christmas straw and hung above the table to ensure that there would be a bountiful harvest the next year and that there would not be a shortage of bread in the house before the next autumn. The meaning of the mobile’s parts were meant to evoke the sparkling, life-giving rays of sunshine, just when the days of the year are the shortest and the darkest. This uro was made by William Jacobsen, Shell Rock, Iowa, who learned the craft as a child in Denmark. 1981.010.001—Museum purchase.
Beadless golden wheat isn’t just for the holidays. Courtesy of the artist.
Leave it to the folks who brought the world the julebukk (Christmas goat) and Norwegian meatballs to give us an artistic heritage that takes advantage of one of Norway’s agricultural crops. Traditional hvetevefting (wheat weaving) isn’t just a December craft; you’ll find wedding knots displayed next to holiday ornaments and wall hangings everywhere Scandinavian crafts are produced. Just like in many other countries, the weaving done in Norway has its own history and uniqueness. Norwegians have among their Christmas customs some that can be traced back to the paganism of their Viking forefathers. Even Jul as a name for the holiday, dates back to pre-Christian times. Historians agree that the pagan Jul was a feast for promoting the fertility of the land, thus ensuring next year’s good harvest. It also seemed to honor the dead. To many of us this may seem like a strange combination. In the northern hemisphere, from mid-September to mid-December, the days grow shorter until the arrival of the winter solstice, around December 22. This is the shortest day of the year, when the sun is the furthest from the equator. In Norway these days can be very short indeed, and the long periods of darkness reinforced belief in ghosts and spirits. People left food and drink for the Yule ghosts who roamed the countryside around the time of the winter solstice. They even gave up their beds to them, covering the floors of their Vol. 12, No. 1 2014
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