Leonard Bentley
Christmas
A Raphael Tuck Oilette in the Christmas Postcard series and first issued for Christmas 1906. It shows boatmen delivering Holly to a paddle steamer in fairly rough weather. The tradition of dressing a ship with Holly is an old tradition, Holly represented everlasting life and was used to ward off evil spirits. In the Christian era Holly was seen to represent the crown of thorns and the red berries drops of Christ's blood. I don't know if the tradition survives today as regards ships but it was common in the 19th Century. Here is a link to a painting of HMS Victory by William Edward Atkins, dressed overall in holly whilst she was a floating accommodation ship at Portsmouth during the late 19th Century.
www.mutualart.com/Artwork/HMS-Victory-as-a-Accommodation-...
Christmas
A Raphael Tuck Oilette in the Christmas Postcard series and first issued for Christmas 1906. It shows boatmen delivering Holly to a paddle steamer in fairly rough weather. The tradition of dressing a ship with Holly is an old tradition, Holly represented everlasting life and was used to ward off evil spirits. In the Christian era Holly was seen to represent the crown of thorns and the red berries drops of Christ's blood. I don't know if the tradition survives today as regards ships but it was common in the 19th Century. Here is a link to a painting of HMS Victory by William Edward Atkins, dressed overall in holly whilst she was a floating accommodation ship at Portsmouth during the late 19th Century.
www.mutualart.com/Artwork/HMS-Victory-as-a-Accommodation-...