Alan Brody identified three types of mummer plays that survived into the 20th century in England. Tiddy felt confident that Shakespeare made use of material he had witnessed in Mummer plays when writing the deer-killing scenes. The Celtic religious tradition included the god named Cernunnos, sometimes portrayed as a stag, who is born at the winter solstice and dies at the summer solstice. Plate 34a from Roman de Fauvel , an illuminated manuscript produced in Paris during 1316. It is a satirical work that includes text, music and images.
Drummers provide the rhythm for the singing.
Two men push hand carts containing children or fools. The animal masks include lions, bears, and goats. The six women in the windows are clearly frowning at the mummers. Plate 36b from Roman de Fauvel shows a donkey headed mummer approaching a woman in her bed. The mummers play drums, fiddle, bells, cymbals, and one bangs of a metal cooking pot.