TheFinal Sheaf

Posted on August 1, 2014 by ladyoftheabyss

The Final Sheaf

By Patti Wigington, About.com

In many societies, the cutting of the final sheaf ofgrain was indeed cause for celebration. People celebrated by making corn dolls,which represented the spirit of the grain. Sometimes these dolls werefull-sized, made of the last stalks of corn to be harvested, and decorated withribbons, streamers and even articles of clothing. Ivy was a symbol of rebirth,and so it wasn’t uncommon to dress the corn doll with a headdress of ivy.

In some rural areas, the corn doll was kept in a place ofhonor at a farmhouse in the village, until it was time to make one thefollowing year. At that time, the old one was ceremonially burned.

The creation of corn dolls was just one of many customssurrounding the final sheaf of the grain harvest. In Ireland, the final sheafwas gathered with great ceremony, celebrating the living things that might beliving within it. If you think about it, that makes sense — a cornfield is aperfect nesting place for small animals, such as rabbits, mice, birds, orfrogs. As the reapers harvested the crop, the animals within fled, until therewas only one sheaf left. Since the animal was more often than not a small, veryfrightened hare, the phrase “putting the hare out of the corn” came to mean theend of the reaping.

In some parts of the British Isles, young maidens wereinvited to cut down the final sheaf. The one who was able to do so in a singlestroke of the scythe was guaranteed to be married within the year — probablybecause she had just proved herself as an able and strong farmwife. In otherareas, it was believed that the person to cut the final sheaf would have goodluck for a year, but in other place, it was a sign of ill fortune to come.

An odd tradition in some areas was the use of the finalsheaf to find the corpse of a drowning victim. The sheaf was placed in thewater with a lit candle upon it, near where the person was believed to havefallen in. The sheaf drifted, and it was believed that it would come to restwhere the body was submerged. It was thought that only the final sheaf had themagical ability to find these lost souls.

Regardless of how it was used, the cutting of the finalsheaf meant that the grain harvest was over. Now bread baking could begin, andfood stored away for the coming winter months.