"Mari Lwyd 1927" celebrates the winter traditions in 1927
"Mari Lwyd 1927" takes place in December of 1927, and features characters from a number of other books, including
Facets of the Bench (which takes place earlier the same year).
This was an extremely collaborative effort!
Kelda Sproston's art focuses on the Mari Lwyd in her many forms. You can find her art on
Bluesky,
Instagram,
Etsy, and
Patreon.
And the poetry is thanks to Elise Matthesen, a long-time friend of mine. Her most common form of art is making jewellery, which you can find on
Elise's Etsy shop.
Read on for more details about who's involved.
Every December, people in Wales (or who love this tradition) share the tradition of the Mari Lwyd, who goes from home to home engaging in a poetry battle and in search of toast and cheese.
In December 2023, Kiya (friend, editor, and source of many ideas for extras) sent me a message that said: “Today in important questions: is there a Mari Lwyd society in Trellech?” It took a year to get this together and bring it out at the right moment.
While I was working on it, a friend generously offered to commission some of art Kelda's art to go with it. I adore the end result, with the Mari surrounded by growing plants, moonflowers, and dancing underneath the moon.
On December 20th, the Mari Lwyd begins a procession through some key locations in
Trellech. There are seven stops in this, the most formal of these trips (there are others, later in the month, through the Guilds and other shops and spaces). Tonight, she stops at:
1. The Courts, where
Griffin Pelson answers her challenge.
2.
Kate Lefton greets the Mari on behalf of the
Guard.
3. The Mari finds the
Penelopes terribly confusing, despite
Elizabeth Mason being easy-going about it.
4. On Club Row, the Mari pauses by
The Field, the Horse House club. Of course, Horse House -
Golshan Soltani,
Seth Wain, and
Dilly Wain here - know how to welcome a horse properly.
5. As the Mari continues down the streets past the shops,
Cassie and
Thomas Benton have made things ready.
6. Of course, it would be a mistake to avoid the
Temple of Healing. This year, it's
Rhoe Belisama's turn to see to the Mari's needs.
7. The final official stop of the night involves the representatives of the
Council. This year,
Cyrus Smythe-Clive,
Mabyn Teague, and
Alexander Landry rise to the challenge.
