#maypole

[wallflowerstudio]

The Maypole, by Louis Wain, ca 1905

[celesse]

Welcome Spring 🌼🐰🌼

[dionysianivy]

𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐞

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What is Beltane?

Beltane is a fire festival celebrated on the night of April 30th into May 1st in the Northern Hemisphere, and around October 31st into November 1st in the Southern Hemisphere. It marks the midpoint between the spring equinox and the summer solstice, honoring fertility, passion, and the sacred union between the divine feminine and masculine. Traditionally, it signals the beginning of the light half of the year, a time of growth, abundance, warmth, and blooming life. Beltane celebrates freedom, love, lust, creativity, and the return of life to the natural world, bringing with it new, flourishing beginnings. May 1st is a day of joy and play. After a harsh winter, it becomes a celebration of renewal, of aliveness, and of nature’s wild rebirth.

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The History of Beltane

The name Beltane comes from Old Irish Beltene, meaning "bright fire" or "The fires of Bel". Some people link it to the Celtic god Belenus, a solar and healing deity, while others have drawn comparisons to Baal, a fertility god, though that idea is debated and not widely accepted.

Historically, Beltane was celebrated in Celtic regions, most notably Ireland and Scotland, as a pastoral festival. Bonfires were lit on hilltops, and cattle were driven between two of them to protect them from disease and ensure fertility. People would jump over the flames, not just for luck, but as a way to connect with sacred fire and invoke fertility, health, and courage for the coming summer season.

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Beltane and the Fairy Realm

Beltane is a liminal time, one of the two key points in the year (along with Samhain) when the veil between our world and the Otherworld grows thin. While Samhain leans into the realm of spirits and ancestors, Beltane belongs to the fae.

It is said that on the eve of Beltane, the Fair Folk wander freely, drawn to laughter, music, and offerings left with care. In many old traditions, people avoided disturbing fairy mounds or sacred groves during this time, choosing instead to leave gifts like milk, honey, or sweet bread beneath hawthorn trees. These offerings were meant to honor the fae, invite blessings, and protect against mischief.

Wearing a crown of bluebells on Beltane Eve is said to help one see the faeries, as bluebells are sacred to them. A ring of blooming bluebells is also believed to be a favorite gathering spot for garden faeries.

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Beltane and the Hawthorn Tree

Few trees are more sacred to Beltane than the hawthorn. Often called the “fairy tree” in Irish and Scottish folklore, it is said to guard the entrances to the Otherworld. Blooming right around May 1st, its soft white-pink blossoms carry the energy of protection, love, and the unseen.

In Celtic tradition, hawthorn trees were deeply respected as portals to the realm of the fae. During Beltane, it was common to tie ribbons or small offerings to the branches while making heartfelt wishes, not demands, but gentle hopes whispered like prayers. Damaging or cutting a hawthorn tree, especially during this sacred time, was believed to bring terrible luck or stir the wrath of the Fair Folk.

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The Sacred Fire

Fire is the central symbol of Beltane. The festival’s original name literally refers to Bel’s fires, honoring the sun and invoking purification and fertility.

Traditionally, two large bonfires were lit at Beltane, and people, along with their animals, would walk, dance, or even leap between them for blessings, healing, and protection. In some regions, ashes from the sacred fire were scattered over fields to encourage fertility. Couples, especially newlyweds, often passed hand-in-hand through the smoke as a symbol of unity and renewal.

The fire wasn’t just a ritual, it was a living spirit. Lighting it the old way, through friction rather than matches or lighters, was seen as a sacred act, calling upon the raw elemental force of nature itself.

Even today, many Beltane celebrations honor this ancient custom through bonfires, candle magic, and fire rituals. You don’t need a blaze on a hilltop, even a single flame, lit with intention, can carry the sacred spark of Beltane into your home and heart. :D

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The Maypole

The maypole is one of the most central symbols of modern Beltane celebrations. Though it has roots in English May Day traditions, it’s been beautifully woven into Beltane for its rich symbolism of life, fertility, and union.

The tall, phallic pole rising from the earth represents the God, masculine energy, vitality, and the spark of creation. The colorful ribbons and flowers spiraling around it, often held by dancers weaving in circles, represent the Goddess, the womb, fertility, and abundant life. Together, they form a sacred spiral: a dance of harmony between the masculine and feminine, of earth and sky, movement and stillness.

As dancers move around the maypole, their steps create a living mandala, a spell in motion, tied with laughter and bright ribbons.

The dance itself is a celebration of harmony between forces, of weaving ourselves back into the rhythm of the land.

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Beltane x Handfasting

Beltane is also a favored time for handfasting, a traditional pagan betrothal or wedding ritual where a couple’s hands are bound together with ribbons, cords, or braided threads to symbolize their union. In ancient times, a handfasting ceremony could last for a year and a day, after which the couple had the choice to stay together or part ways. Today, many modern pagans choose Beltane as a powerful and romantic time to make such commitments, drawn to the fertile energy of the season. Handfastings are often held outdoors, in nature, near fire, under blooming trees, or surrounded by loved ones in sacred space. The vows exchanged during these rituals can be traditional or deeply personal, as the magic of the ceremony lies in the heart connection and the intention to walk beside each other, bound by love and commitment.

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Magic Correspondences

Planets: Venus

Season: Midpoint between spring and summer

Element: Fire

Time of the Day: Noon

Tarot Cards: The Strength, The Lovers, The Sun, Three of Cups

Colors: Green, Red, Pink, Yellow, Purple, White, Sky Blue, All Pastel Colors

Herbs: Mint, Rosemary, Thyme, Ivy, Nettle, Sage, Basil, Juniper, Clover, Mugwort

Fruits: Strawberries, Blueberries, Raspberries, Bananas, Lemon, Cherries

Vegetables: Cucumbers, Carrots, Garlic, Lettuce, New Potatoes

Crystals: Emerald, Bloodstone, Rose Quartz, Carnelian, Red Jasper, Green Aventurine, Moonstone, Fire Agate

Runes: Kenaz, Wunjo, Ingwaz

Trees: Hawthorn, Elder, Willow, Birch

Goddesses: Artemis, Diana, Brigid, Aphrodite, Flora, Gaia, Hera, Astarte, Venus, Juno, Freyja, Epona, Bastet

Gods: Pan, Cernunnos, Belenus, Dionysus, The Green Man, Bacchus, Priapus, Faunus, Eros, Ra

Dragons: Sairys, Fafnir

Flowers: Lilac, Bluebells, Daisy, Lilies, Foxglove, Lily of the Valley, Marigold, Tulips, Violets, Primrose, Peony, Poppy, Honeysuckle

Animals: Frogs, Swans, Cows, Deer, Squirrels, Sheep, Ducks, Cats, Bees, Rabbits, Swallows, Leopards, Lynx, Hares

Magical Powers: Love, Sex, Fertility, Protection, Cleansing, Transformation

Symbols: Maypole, Ribbons, Phallus, Bonfire, Flowers, Faeries, Sex, Floral Crowns, Frogs, Celtic Knots

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Activities to do:

🌸 Make flower-shaped biscuits

🌸 Do candle magick

🌸 Find a local hawthorn tree and make a wish to the faeries

🌸 Wear flowers in your clothes, hair, or as bracelets

🌸 Leave offerings for faeries, as this is the season when they’re most present, you can leave them honey, milk, or biscuits

🌸 Go out for a walk in nature and feel the arrival of summer

🌸 Make a fire in the yard and dance around it (only in safe circumstances, of course); if you don’t have resources, you can light candles in your room (again, be careful)

🌸 Eat anything with oats, as it’s associated with Beltane, such as oatmeal, oatcakes, or other oat-based foods

🌸 Do a tarot or rune reading in the morning of Beltane

🌸 Take care of the trees in your yard or nearby by watering them

🌸 Honor all deities associated with fertility

🌸 Practice faerie magick

🌸 On the morning of Beltane, open your windows or door to warmly welcome the energy of the sabbat.

🌸 Make a Beltane magick jar

🌸 Water your flowers

🌸 Listen to music and dance :D

🌸 Celebrate life, fertility, love, and union

🌸 Take care of your garden, plant seeds, clean dried leaves, and prepare for summer

🌸 Make special Beltane treats

🌸 Casting your circles with oats around this time of year is also a good idea, as oats are a traditional Beltane grain for good luck

🌸 Have a picnic with your loved ones, or organize a gathering with food and grilling

🌸 Honor your ancestors

🌸 Place decorations in your garden

🌸 Plant a tree with any intention you want and take care of it

🌸 Draw runes and specific symbols on paper and burn them

🌸 Do self-love activities

🌸 Practice sex or love magick

🌸 Look for hawthorns in your area and honor them with water and offerings for faeries

🌸 Make a maypole

🌸 Collect flowers

🌸 On the morning of May 1st, wash your face with May Dew or natural spring water

🌸 Connect with the fire element

🌸 Read about the fair folk

🌸 Have a bonfire with your loved ones

🌸 Place ribbons or colored thread in trees with intentions for each, you can use color magick to attract what you need in your life right now (pink for love,

🌸 Meditate

🌸 Make flower crowns and wreaths

🌸 Perform spells for fertility, purification, and love

🌸 As this is a day of love, if you are of an appropriate age, comfortable, being sexually active is part of the celebration

🌸 Buy seeds and plant them in your garden, welcoming the growth of new life

🌸 Create a Beltane altar

🌸 If you don't have a maypole you can dance around your favorite tree <3

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Food and Drinks:

Oats in all forms (oatmeal, oat cookies, oat bread, oatcakes, bannock), strawberries, blueberries, honey, whipped cream with oats, strawberry biscuits, oat and honey bread, blackberry pie, lavender cake, cheese (including Swiss), seasonal potato dishes, fresh fruit salads, tomato and cucumber salads, dairy or plant-based milks, vanilla-flavoured foods, ice cream, grilled food, BBQ, spicy dishes to honor the fire element, May Day wine, white wine, regular wine (with a strawberry placed at the bottom of the glass if you wish), tarts with cheese, mayonnaise.

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[vintage-sweden]

Midsummer celebration, 1906, Sweden.

[georgeouthwaite]

Maypole

Digital painting

[bekkathyst]

Today’s one of my favorite days! My village puts up their Maibaum (maypole) today. I can’t wait to see it!

[caleod]

20-6-25

[besvikna-snusmumriken]

🇸🇪Gallery of Various Unique and Unusual Midsummer Pole Designs From Sweden🇸🇪

The most common generic midsummer pole design.

May/midsummer poles are often considered a typical Swedish symbol for how recognizable it looks. This decorated pole is sure common across Sweden and parts of Finland. However did you know there are also various other designs?

You will notice that I will mention different cardinal direction for the same provinces/Counties since many of them are large such as Småland (despite literally means "small land") and Västergötland.

Most of the photos and their sources comes from Sveriges hembygdsförbund.

To view the unusual Finnish midsummer poles, go HERE!🇫🇮

Lessebo, Småland, Southeastern Sweden

It looks like those bubble wands with multiple rings (especially the more advanced toys that spins when pushing a button). Source

Northern Bohuslän, Southwestern Sweden

Northern Bohuslän had a very unusual tradition to depict the midsummer pole as a woman by having a paper doll-head with a flower wreath on the top with chained eggshells as a necklace, seemingly called “Kajsa” (common Swedish female name). It has been described since the 1780s. Well that debunks that the pole is a male-centric symbol by male-centric Freudian perverts. They at least didn't put two wreaths to further emphasis on female fertility or motherhood on Kajsa like many cultures does to signal something being a woman. Kajsa just looks like she have what appears to be clutched hands (the old illustration) or mantle during a T-pose for asserting female dominance (on the photo). I don't know the motifs behind this one. She might be a personification of summer and nature in general. Old description describe Kajsa as a "proud lady". Seemingly no specific emphasis on maidenhood or innocence with Kajsa. I don't think it's an effigy where they burn it. Source

Update: I found illustration from the same guy that was a cover on an academic book about midsummer poles where Kajsa was dressed in white flowers stood nearby another pole looking like bearded man with a hat. I think it might represent a couple at a wedding or Swedes in Northern Bohuslän just like to personify poles with multiple figures but Kajsa was the one most popular out of all to survive. I bought this book today and waiting for it to arrive so I might find more info behind these strange Kajsa poles.

Southern Bohuslän, Southwestern Sweden

This midsummer pole looks more similar to the typical cross one. The drawing looks like the man is sitting there playing a violin.

Herrljunga, Västergötland, Southwest Sweden

Based on a description from 1896.

Västergötland, Western Sweden 1865

Polkagrisstång! [Swedish-styled candy cane pole!]. The ultimate lance for jousting!

Brevens bruk, Närke, Central Sweden

Source

Lindekullen, Östergötland, Central-Eastern Sweden

Nynäshamn, Södermanland, Eastern Sweden

Source

Sorunda, Södermanland, Central-Eastern Sweden

Based on a design described in 1944.

Malmköping, Södermanland, Central-Eastern Sweden

I live in the same province and have seen this one before in real life but mistook it as just a random decorative pole after midsummer. The area I live in uses the standard design however with the province's coats of arms on it which is a cool black griffin.

Close up on the pole. This one looks like it has easter eggs hanging from it like Christmas ornament! Source

Seglingsberg, Västmanland, Central Sweden.

This one has been documented since the 1800s. At the start of the 1900s this pole design was briefly discontinued until 1937 where this pole has been used since then.

Seglingsberg, Västmanland, Central Sweden.

It’s common for midsummer poles to have the municipal coat of arms on it like where I live if it’s a larger communal celebration. Although this doesn't look like Västmanland's coat of arms since it has three flames on it. This looks like two intercrossed hammers or other tools. The only coat of arms having something crossed are two crossed arrows in Dalarna's and Närke's coat of arms which is shown on the midsummer pole at Skansen (Stockholm) for some reason.

Nusnäs, Dalarna, Northwest Sweden

The most patriotically Swedish one! Let's appropriate it! The Dala horse is especially significant in Nusnäs.

Gräv, Dalarna, Northwest Sweden

I know place names in Dalarna are weird (this one just means “dig” in English although I have heard far worse unfortunate place names in Sweden). This one has heart symbols on it as well as their coats of arms. I don't know if there's specific symbolism here or if it was just aesthetics but midsummer historically had various romantic and fertility connection akin to Valentine's day however the midsummer pole is ironically the exception of lack of clear historically documented fertility symbolism. This one resembles Skansen's variant of the typical cross-shaped one that attached the hearts and intercrossed arrows on it for some reason (alongside other shapes). Source

Siljansnäs, Dalarna, Northwest Sweden

Yeah, some places still raise poles in the middle of winter and still call it "maypoles" and "midsummer poles" (although "may" is a very old European word meaning to dress something in flowers). So it's not someone who forgot to take down this one from midsummer. Source

From left to right: Julstång from 1959 from Sweden, Tuomaanristi/Tomaskorset/Korpokorset from Finland

Various variants of Julkorset found in Sydösterbotten, Eastern Finland.

This winter maypole might be related to the obscured tradition of the Yule pole which is called Julstång, Julruska and Tomaskors in Sweden. It's said being more ancient than Midsummer pole. This tradition could have been a national symbol like the midsummer pole! It's a decorated twig that either looks like either a tiny Christmas tree, midsummer pole or a snowflake/star on a pole! It's so sad it fell out of fashion today with very few still preserving this tradition. Likely their decline were caused by Christmas trees became mainstream. It has a Finnish variant called Tomaskors, Korpokors and Tuomaanristi. Another variant is called Julkors(et), which means Yule cross, that exists in both Finland and Sweden, believed to scare away evil spirits. I have recently made a collection of these rare traditions and planning on making a post of it in December.

Skansen, Stockholm

Vintage poster titled "Skansen Stockholm Sweden - Midsommar" designed by Olle Ericson from 1940. Very typical vintage Swedish modernist poster. Source

Postcard estimated between 1955-1969 (I don't know why these specific dates). Source

Skansen continues using these midsummer poles where they just slaps the same random shapes on it like hearts, circles, intercrossed arrows (stealing Dalarna's and Närke's coats of arms!) and stars (some appears to be David's stars although might be coincidental). Although Skansen is an open-air museum showcasing various things from different regions from Sweden even if they are regional-specific. Dalarna tends to be that one specific isolated region getting appropriated the most for being the ones most distinct and niche. I don't think this variant is common elsewhere in Stockholm which uses the most common generic one. I did found unusual designs in Stockholm as well however I can't find them right now.

Update: I was lazy for not checking these star symbols. I'm really thankful that someone checked Folktrons ABC by Ebbe Schön and reblogged to point out that those are hexagrams and pentagrams. They were used in Swedish folk magic to ward off evil by carving them into wood and other everyday items and household tools.✡️

Swedish-Americans/American-Swedes in Florida

Well, no matter if Swedes got shipwrecked in Florida, they will always desperately craft a midsummer pole out of whatever plant they find for midsummer! Source

I found one photo of another midsummer pole from America in a typical cross design that was unusually really thick like a hedge but can't find it right now. Well, everything in America is thicker.

Various Historical Depictions of Other Midsummer Poles

Left: Jönköping, Småland, Central Sweden. Right: Skara, Västergötland, Western Sweden. Two of the earliest depictions of midsummer poles from 1600s. Full images HERE and HERE!

Various early depictions of variants. Source Usually, these horisontal parts are called "arms" and many has various sets of them.

Well you may have notice in this post that there was no single specific definitive symbolism behind the design of the common cross-like one, neither religious nor male-centric symbolism (F-off Freud!). Even if many has a literal rooster on top of them!

The common cross-shaped one is very likely becoming dominant because it's so simple and practical with only one sets of arms while still very recognizable distinct. It has plenty of variants and older ones resembles these regional ones. I think most of them are either structured to be aesthetically pleasing however most of them resembles trees a lot. I don't know if there was ancient pre-Christian origins with symbolizing world trees like Yggdrasil. I have been taught in school that vikings decorated and worshipped trees. The oldest recordings of a midsummer pole in Sweden was in 1600 and it's commonly believed that it was imported from Germany since their first recordings can be found in the 1200s. Although it was recorded since medieval throughout Europe, including Sweden, to hang wreaths on poles, very much like many of the regional armless examples above.

Also, why we are obsessed with wreaths in Europe could be because it's believed being healthy. I think maybe it's believed it's like putting plants indoor to get more oxygen as well as it smell fresh.

I was originally intended to include Finnish midsummer poles (which are even more diverse) however they were so many of them so I decided to post them in another post instead. I also intended to release this post on midsummer but I decided to do something else for that holiday.

So which ones are your favorite?

To view the unusual Finnish midsummer poles, go HERE!🇫🇮