For as long as people have been growing wheat, they have created designs with stalks and heads of the grain. In England, where grain is known as corn, these figures are called Corn Dollies.
These ancient designs symbolize the spirit of the Corn. The wheat was thought to house a living Spirit, which must be cared for over the winter. The last wheat of the field was harvested with the chant, "Well cut, well shocked, well saved from the ground!" This last shock of Wheat was woven into a design to house the Spirits, and hung in the families' homes for the winter.
The following Spring, the design was broken up, and its grain was planted first, returning the wheat Spirit to the soil.
From the beginning, Corn Dollies have symbolized all the hopes and desires embodied in the human experience.
The most ancient designs are simple, reflecting the basic hopes of the early peoples: a successful harvest; plentiful food for the winter. Later designs speak of hopes for the Good Life: Love, prosperity, safety at Home and in Travel, protection for loved ones. Many designs were were then made to fill a particular need: Horseshoes, Scales, Musical Instruments, tokens of Love. Over the centuries, each country and Shire has developed characteristic designs, each with its own symbolic meaning.
These ancient designs symbolize the spirit of the Corn. The wheat was thought to house a living Spirit, which must be cared for over the winter. The last wheat of the field was harvested with the chant, "Well cut, well shocked, well saved from the ground!" This last shock of Wheat was woven into a design to house the Spirits, and hung in the families' homes for the winter.