THE GREEN MAN
The mysterious Green Man is the subject of many theories. Although widely believed to be of Pagan origin, the Green Man frequently appears in the architecture of many Christian religious buildings from Chapels to Cathedrals. The Green Man is the spirit of the forest, King of the May, Jack 'o' the Green, the bringer of new life or, less romantically, possibly just an ancient remnant of tree worship. He appears in legends from many countries, In Egypt he may have been Osiris who was depicted in green, in Greek mythology he was Dionysus who was represented as a figure with branches eminating from his head, he is said to be the origin of Father Christmas, and the basis of the tale of Herne the Hunter the mysterious watcher of the forest, which is reputed to have originated in the late 1300's. The Green Man is also most likely the origin of the Robin Hood tales. According to Norse mythology Odin sacrificed himself on the Tree of Knowledge in order to gain the secrets of wisdom and creation from the severed head of Mimir, a nature God who was forever kept alive on herbs and spring water - could this be the origin of the Green Man? In other Nordic tales he is Thor protector of both gods and man. Whatever his real origin, he can be found throughout the world as an enigmatic face smiling, grimacing, frowning or simply staring from his mantle of green.

My fascination with the Green Man started when I discovered a large wall plaque for sale at a Christmas market. The character in the face was so warm and friendly I got the 'I must have that' feeling while we continued shopping and simply had to go back to the stall. I got a bit of a shock when what I thought was a 12" diameter plaster plaque turned out to be made of cement, was uncomfortably heavy and worse still the car was parked about a mile away! He is positioned (on a heavy duty hook) overlooking the back garden and is there to protect and give fertility to our garden. So far he has done very well and I have since collected several smaller examples.LINKS