Fool tree
A fool's tree is a tall conifer that is set up in a central place in the town, especially in the Swabian-Alemannic carnival, as a symbol of rule for fools. The branches of the tree, which is often around 30 m high, have been sawn off to the top, the bark has been peeled. The crown is usually decorated with colorful ribbons. Sometimes a wreath is also attached to the tree, from which children can get presents by climbing up the trunk.
Appointments
The fool's tree is set up in most places on the fat Thursday .
It is finally removed on the night from Shrove Tuesday to Ash Wednesday or the following week. The removal of the fool's tree is done differently depending on the custom. In some places the wood is auctioned for a good cause. In Stockach , the fool's tree stands until the 4th Laetare Lent Sunday and is felled at 5 a.m. in the morning.
Put up
Many carnival strongholds erect the fool's tree by hand according to an old tradition. The carpenter's guilds of the respective cities are partly responsible for setting up the fool's tree. Often times, a carpentry group also belongs to the groups of the local fools' guild .
history
As for history, fools and scholars alike argue, and there are different theories:
- Forerunners of the fool's tree were used by butchers in the carnival dance in the 15th century.
- The fool's tree as the family tree of all fools was born in the 15th century as the successor to block pulling when moving.
- In the late Middle Ages, the fool's tree may have been set up as a modification of the biblical tree of the knowledge of good and bad in Paradise.
- The fool's tree could have developed from the custom of the maypole and symbolizes the strength and power of the foolish people.
literature
- From the fool's tree in Säckingen. Its root, its trunk and its branches . Guild of fools, Säckingen 1976.
- Werner Mezger : Swabian-Alemannic Carnival . Theiss, Stuttgart 2015, ISBN 978-3-8062-2947-9 , on fool trees in particular p. 130 f.
- Werner Mezger: Fool's idea and Carnival custom: Studies on the survival of the Middle Ages in European festival culture , Konstanz 1989, pp. 339–357.
