ABSTRACT
Affixing material culture onto and around trees and bushes – creating folk assemblages often called “rag trees” or “clutie trees,” but here termed “dressed trees” – has a longstanding pedigree in Britain. In the nineteenth century, such dressed trees were often found in conjunction with wells and were associated with healing practices, a function that has declined in relevance with the growing accessibility of modern medicines. Far from disappearing altogether, however, dressed trees have proliferated in various parts of Britain from the 1990s onwards, gaining new functions, value, and meanings both for local and visiting communities. Focusing on southern England as a regional case study, this chapter explores the contemporary folk custom in its various forms: dressed trees at prehistoric ceremonial sites, as memorials for the dead, as “prayer trees” in Anglican churchyards, as places for playful behaviour, and as tourist attractions in both museum and urban environments. In doing so it highlights the complexities of this spreading tradition and the way in which people have adapted it to changing historical realities, namely the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
