Ritual Animal Disguise: A Historical and Geographical Study of Animal Disguise in the British Isles - Cawte, E.C.

Clean, tight, umarked; previous owner's stamp on ffep; otherwise very minimal wear; Dressing as an animal is an ancient tradition, condemned as pagan by early Christian writers; it has been recorded in Britain since the 14th century, when a man carried a frame, made to represent a horse. This book reviews the historical hobby-horse, and the pageants and plays in which they appeared. It indexes the geographical records, describes each one, and seeks to clarify the relationship between them. Some foreign customs are also reviewed. The hobby-horse was associated the Morris dance only in the 15th and 16th centuries, though it was reintroduced in the 19th for historical pageants. Recent animals have had different construction, and have appeared either as the central performer, or attached to some other custom.
Very Good in Very Good dust jacket
Hardcover
D.S.Brewer Ltd/Rowman and Littlefield for the Folklore Society
1978
Ipswich, Great Britain