Stations of the sun
Subtitle: a history of the ritual year in Britain
By: Ronald Hutton.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 1996
Place of publication: Oxford; New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 542
Subjects: Festivals -- Great Britain; Holidays -- Great Britain; Folklore -- Great Britain; Popular culture -- Great Britain; Great Britain -- Social life and customs
Description: From the twelve days of Christmas to the spring traditions of Valentine, Shrovetide, and Easter eggs, through May Day revels and Midsummer fires, and on to the waning of the year, Harvest Home and Hallowe'en, Ronald Hutton takes us on a fascinating journey through the ritual year in Britain. His comprehensive study covers all the British Isles and the whole sweep of history from the earliest written records to the present day.

Great and lesser, ancient and modern, Christian and pagan, all rituals are treated with the same attention. The result is a colourful and absorbing history in which Ronald Hutton challenges many common assumptions about the customs of the past and the festivals of the present, debunking many myths, and illuminates the history of the calendar we live by.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 428-518) and index.