The last sheaf, designated as the Old Woman, is often distinguished
from the other sheaves by its size and weight. Thus in some villages
of West Prussia the Old Woman is made twice as long and thick as a
common sheaf, and a stone is fastened in the middle of it. Sometimes
it is made so heavy that a man can barely lift it. At Alt-Pillau, in
Samland, eight or nine sheaves are often tied together to make the
Old Woman, and the man who sets it up grumbles at its weight. At
Itzgrund, in Saxe-Coburg, the last sheaf, called the Old Woman, is
made large with the express intention of thereby securing a good
crop next year. Thus the custom of making the last sheaf unusually
large or heavy is a charm, working by sympathetic magic, to ensure a
large and heavy crop at the following harvest.
In Scotland, when the last corn was cut after Hallowmas, the female
figure made out of it was sometimes called the Carlin or Carline,
that is, the Old Woman. But if cut before Hallowmas, it was called
the Maiden; if cut after sunset, it was called the Witch, being
supposed to bring bad luck.
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