Wish Tree
Encyclopedia
A wish tree is an individual tree, usually distinguished by species, position or appearance, which is used as an object of wishes and offerings. Such trees are identified as possessing a special religious or spiritual value. By tradition, believers make votive offerings in order to gain from that nature spirit, saint or goddess
fulfillment of a wish.
, Scotland
, a hawthorn
, which is a species traditionally linked with fertility. The trunk and branches are covered with hundreds of coins which have been driven through the bark and into the wood. The local tradition is that a wish will be granted for each of the coins so treated.
s, as they are known in Scotland and Ireland
, or "cloutie" or "cloughtie" in Cornwall
. Culloden has an example of a clootie well in the nearby woods.
where the Wassail Queen is lifted up into the boughs of the apple tree, where she places toast that has been soaked in Wassail from the Clayen Cup as a gift to the tree spirits to ensure good luck for the coming season's crop and to show them the fruits of what they created the previous year.
's exhibitions. Ono's Wish Tree, installed in the Sculpture Garden of the Museum of Modern Art
, New York
in July 2010, has become very popular, with contributions from all over the world.
Her Wish Tree for Washington, DC
is in the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
.
, visitors are asked to hang drawings or poems on the tree.
Goddess
A goddess is a female deity. In some cultures goddesses are associated with Earth, motherhood, love, and the household. In other cultures, goddesses also rule over war, death, and destruction as well as healing....
fulfillment of a wish.
Coin-only trees
One form of votive offering is the token offering of a coin. One such tree still stands near Ardmaddy House in ArgyllArgyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, a hawthorn
Common Hawthorn
Crataegus monogyna, known as common hawthorn or single-seeded hawthorn, is a species of hawthorn native to Europe, northwest Africa and western Asia. It has been introduced in many other parts of the world where it is an invasive weed...
, which is a species traditionally linked with fertility. The trunk and branches are covered with hundreds of coins which have been driven through the bark and into the wood. The local tradition is that a wish will be granted for each of the coins so treated.
- In the glen of the Aira Beck near Aira ForceAira ForceAira Force is a waterfall in the English Lake District, in the county of Cumbria. The word force is used in many parts of northern England as a synonym for waterfall it comes from the Old Norse language old Norse word fors....
is a wish tree formed from a large fallen tree trunk into which the many visitors hammer coins using stones from nearby. - On Isle MareeIsle MareeIsle Maree is an island in Loch Maree, Scotland.It has the remains of a chapel, graveyard, holy well, and holy tree on it, believed to be the 8th century hermitage of Saint Maol Rubha , who founded the monastery of Applecross in 672. The same island also contains ancient stands of oak and holly...
in Loch MareeLoch MareeLoch Maree is a loch in Wester Ross in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. At long and with a maximum width of , it is the fourth largest freshwater loch in Scotland; it is the largest north of Loch Ness. Its surface area is ....
, GairlochGairlochGairloch is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch on the northwest coast of Scotland. A popular tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a golf course, a small museum, several hotels, a community centre, a leisure centre with sports facilities, a local...
, in the HighlandsScottish HighlandsThe Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
is an oakOakAn oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
wish tree made famous by a visit in 1877 by Queen Victoria mentioned in her published diaries. The tree, and others surrounding it, are festooned with hammered-in coins. It is near the healing well of St. Maree, to which votive offerings were made, including the sacrifice of bulls, which continued up to the 18th century, according to records. - Near MountrathMountrathMountrath is a small town in County Laois, Ireland. Bypassed by the M7 motorway in 2010, the town lies on the R445 midway between Dublin and Limerick, exactly 96.5 km from both cities.In 2006 it had a population of 1,435...
, County LaoisCounty LaoisCounty Laois is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Midlands Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It was formerly known as Queen's County until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. The county's name was formerly spelt as Laoighis and Leix. Laois County Council...
, is a shapeless old wish tree in the form of a sycamoreSycamore MapleAcer pseudoplatanus, the sycamore maple, is a species of maple native to central Europe and southwestern Asia, from France east to Ukraine, and south in mountains to northern Spain, northern Turkey, and the Caucasus. It is not related to other trees called sycamore or plane tree in the Platanus...
tree called St. Fintan's Well. The original well was filled in, but the water re-appeared in the centre of the tree. Hundreds of Irish pennies have been beaten into the bark as good luck offerings. - The High ForceHigh ForceHigh Force is a waterfall on the River Tees, near Middleton-in-Teesdale, Teesdale, County Durham, England. The waterfall is within the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and European Geopark....
Waterfall has a coin wish tree in the grounds of the waterfall. - Many public houses, such as the Punch Bowl in AskhamAskham, CumbriaAskham is a village and civil parish in the Eden District of Cumbria, England. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 360. It is situated in the eastern edge of the Lake District National Park, about south of Penrith...
, near PenrithPenrith, CumbriaPenrith was an urban district between 1894 and 1974, when it was merged into Eden District.The authority's area was coterminous with the civil parish of Penrith although when the council was abolished Penrith became an unparished area....
in CumbriaCumbriaCumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, have old beams with splits in them into which coins are forced for luck.
Clootie wells
The practice of tying pieces of cloth to a wish tree is often directly associated with nearby clootie wellClootie well
Clootie wells are places of pilgrimage in Celtic areas. They are wells or springs, almost always with a tree growing beside them, where strips of cloth or rags have been left, usually tied to the branches of the tree as part of a healing ritual...
s, as they are known in Scotland and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, or "cloutie" or "cloughtie" in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
. Culloden has an example of a clootie well in the nearby woods.
- MadronMadronMadron is a civil parish and village in west Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is a large rural parish on the Penwith peninsula north of Penzance.Madron village is situated approximately two miles northwest of Penzance town centre....
Well (SW446 328) is a cloutie well in Cornwall with the same practice of tying cloth; as the cloth rots, the ailment is believed to disappear. SancreedSancreedSancreed is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is situated approximately three miles from Penzance....
(SW446 328) and Alisia Wells (SW393 251) are other Cornish cloughtie wells where this ritual is carried out.
Alcohol
There are parallels here with wassailingWassailing
The tradition of Wassailing falls into two distinct categories: The House-Visiting wassail and the Orchard-Visiting wassail. House-Visiting wassail, very much similar to caroling, is the practice of people going door-to-door singing Christmas carols...
where the Wassail Queen is lifted up into the boughs of the apple tree, where she places toast that has been soaked in Wassail from the Clayen Cup as a gift to the tree spirits to ensure good luck for the coming season's crop and to show them the fruits of what they created the previous year.
Other offerings
- The Lam Tsuen Wishing TreesLam Tsuen Wishing TreesThe Lam Tsuen Wishing Trees is one of the popular shrines in Hong Kong. They are located near the Tin Hau Temple in Fong Ma Po Village, in Lam Tsuen. The temple was built around 1768 or 1771, during the reign of Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty .The two banyan trees are frequented by tourists and the...
are located in Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
near the Tin Hau Temple in Lam Tsu. Two banyan trees are frequented by tourists and the locals during the Lunar New Year. Previously, they burnt joss sticks, wrote their wishes on joss paper tied to an orange, and then threw them up to hang in these trees, believing that if the paper successfully hung onto one of the tree branches, their wishes would come true. - In GlasgowGlasgowGlasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
's Hidden Garden at Pollockshields and at the Kagyu Samye Ling Monastery in Scotland, a number of trees have been planted onto which people can tie white labels, on which they have written their wishes. - Eglinton CastleEglinton CastleEglinton Castle was a large Gothic castellated mansion in Kilwinning, North Ayrshire, Scotland.-The castle :The ancient seat of the Earls of Eglinton, it is located just south of the town of Kilwinning...
estate, now Eglinton Country ParkEglinton Country ParkEglinton Country Park is located in the grounds of the old Eglinton Castle estate, Kilwinning, North Ayrshire, Scotland . Eglinton Park is situated in the parish of Kilwinning, part of the former district of Cunninghame, and covers an area of 400 hectares...
, has had a wish tree for many years, a yew on an island in the Lugton Water, now left high and dry due to the weirWeirA weir is a small overflow dam used to alter the flow characteristics of a river or stream. In most cases weirs take the form of a barrier across the river that causes water to pool behind the structure , but allows water to flow over the top...
giving way. - The Christmas treeChristmas treeThe Christmas tree is a decorated evergreen coniferous tree, real or artificial, and a tradition associated with the celebration of Christmas. The tradition of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas started in Livonia and Germany in the 16th century...
is often quoted as being a paganPaganismPaganism is a blanket term, typically used to refer to non-Abrahamic, indigenous polytheistic religious traditions....
symbol connected with tree worshipTree worshipTree worship refers to the tendency of many societies throughout history to worship or otherwise mythologize trees. Trees have played an important role in many of the world's mythologies and religions, and have been given deep and sacred meanings throughout the ages...
, clearly linked with good luck achieved through offerings (decoration) to and venerationVenerationVeneration , or veneration of saints, is a special act of honoring a saint: an angel, or a dead person who has been identified by a church committee as singular in the traditions of the religion. It is practiced by the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic, and Eastern Catholic Churches...
of special trees. - A number of wish trees have been set up to make a wish for the environment, such as at the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National ParkLoch Lomond and the Trossachs National ParkLoch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park is a national park in Scotland centred on Loch Lomond, and includes several ranges of hills, the Trossachs being the most famous...
Centre at BallochBalloch, West DunbartonshireBalloch is a small town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, at the foot of Loch Lomond. The name comes from the Gaelic for "the pass".Balloch is at the north end of the Vale of Leven, straddling the River Leven itself. It connects to the larger town of Alexandria and to the smaller village of...
in Scotland. People make their wish for and pledge to help the environment and tie the wish label to the tree. - The sacred well of Saint TanewThenevaTeneu Sant is a legendary 6th/7th century Scottish saint. She is the reputed mother of Saint Kentigern and is largely known through his hagiography. This related that she was the daughter of King Lleuddun of Gododdin, an ancient kingdom located in Lothian...
– or St EnochSt EnochSt Enoch may refer to:* Enoch the Patriarch in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible* Saint Enoch, a patron saint of Glasgow, mother of Kentigern* St Enoch Centre - a shopping centre in Glasgow, Scotland...
– in Glasgow was much visited for cures and the old tree beside it was covered in small bits of tin-iron nailed to it by pilgrims. The offerings were shaped as eyes, feet, hands, ears, etc. depending on the cure hoped for. The saint was mother to Saint MungoSaint MungoSaint Mungo is the commonly used name for Saint Kentigern . He was the late 6th century apostle of the Brythonic Kingdom of Strathclyde in modern Scotland, and patron saint and founder of the city of Glasgow.-Name:In Wales and England, this saint is known by his birth and baptismal name Kentigern...
.
Other cultural traditions
- In Hindu mythologyHindu mythologyHindu religious literature is the large body of traditional narratives related to Hinduism, notably as contained in Sanskrit literature, such as the Sanskrit epics and the Puranas. As such, it is a subset of Nepali and Indian culture...
, the banyanBanyanA banyan is a fig that starts its life as an epiphyte when its seeds germinate in the cracks and crevices on a host tree...
tree is also called kalpavrikshaKalpavrikshaKalpavriksha , also known as kalpataru, kalpadruma and kalpapādapa, is a mythological, wish-fulfilling divine tree said to fulfill all desires. It was mentioned in Sanskrit literature from the earliest sources onwards...
, meaning "wish- fulfilling tree", as it represents eternal life because of its seemingly ever-expanding branches. - Ashen tree, ashen tree, / Pray buy these warts of me was a rhyme one had to sing whilst sticking a pin first into one's warts and then into the tree.
- The Wishing Tree or Kissing Tree was made at ChristmasChristmasChristmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
or Yuletide before pine trees were introduced by Prince Albert in 1840. An evergreen bough was hung with apples, sweetmeats, and candles and decked with ribbons representing wishes. - At the summit of the Fereneze Braes in NeilstonNeilstonNeilston is a village and parish in East Renfrewshire set in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies in the Levern Valley, southwest of Barrhead, south of Paisley, and south-southwest of Renfrew, at the southwestern fringe of the Greater Glasgow conurbation...
, Renfrewshire, Scotland, there was an old hawthorn, well known locally as "The Kissing Tree". The story goes that if a young man could drive a nail fully into the thorn tree with a single blow, then he would be entitled to "ae fond kiss" on the spot from his sweetheart. Success in the task was considered proof of his suitability as a good suitor for the young lady. The original tree fell in around 1860, but in 1910, a replacement was said to exist. Driving a nail into the tree may link the custom with that of driving coins into trees as noted above. - In parts of YorkshireYorkshireYorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, a tree with two spreading branches which also formed a bowerBowerBower may refer to:* a folly built by the Bowerbird to attract mates; see wiktionary:bower.* a dwelling or lean-to shelter, also known as an arbor* an anchor carried at the bow of a ship* Bower Manuscript, a Sanskrit manuscript...
over the point of branching, was known as a Wish Tree by children who would climb onto the junction and make a wish. - Charles DarwinCharles DarwinCharles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
encountered a tree in ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
called Walleechu, which was regarded by the local inhabitants as a god. The tree was festooned with offerings such as cigars, food, water, cloth, etc., hung from the branches by bright strips of coloured thread.
Yoko Ono
Since the 1990s the Wish Tree has played a significant part in many of Yoko OnoYoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
's exhibitions. Ono's Wish Tree, installed in the Sculpture Garden of the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in July 2010, has become very popular, with contributions from all over the world.
Her Wish Tree for Washington, DC
Wish Tree for Washington, DC
Wish Tree for Washington, DC is a public art work by Yoko Ono.As a part of her "Imagine Peace" project, it was installed in the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden on April 2, 2007, during the 2007 National Cherry Blossom Festival....
is in the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is an art museum beside the National Mall, in Washington, D.C., the United States. The museum was initially endowed during the 1960s with the permanent art collection of Joseph H. Hirshhorn. It was designed by architect Gordon Bunshaft and is part of the...
.
Immagine & Poesia
An outgrowth of Ono's Wish Tree is the Art & Poetry Tree, an installation by Lidia Chiarelli. During art exhibitions organized by IMMAGINE&POESIAIMMAGINE&POESIA
__notoc__IMAGE&POETRY is an international artistic literary movement, founded at Alfa Teatro, Torino, Italy in 2007. The main ideas of the movement have been written in their manifesto consisting of 10 points...
, visitors are asked to hang drawings or poems on the tree.