On the Monday after Whitsun week the maidens of Kidlington, their thumbs tied behind them, chased a fat lamb, and the girl who caught it with her mouth became Lady of the Lamb. The lamb was killed and carried on a pole before her to the green with music and morris dances of men and of women. Next day it was served, partly baked, boiled and roasted, at the Lady’s feast.
The Lady of the Lamb at Kidlington
57 days after Easter · Kidlington, Oxfordshire
No longer kept
the maidens of the town, having their thumbs tied behind them, were permitted to run after it, and she who with her mouth took hold of the lamb was declared the Lady of the Lamb
From Strutt's Sports and Pastimes, 2nd ed., p. 316. Read the original
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