Burning of the Clavie
It’s New Year again!
Festivals are fascinating in that they are steeped in the culture and traditions passed down from generation to generation. The Burning of the Claivie (a large wooden barrel filled with tar and wood shavings) is an ancient fire festival that dates back to Pictish times but it has also been associated with the Celtic, Viking and Druid fire festivals of ancient times. The Clavie was ceremoniously burned in many North East of Scotland fishing villages centuries ago but was outlawed in 1704 by the then strict Presbyterian establishment because it was considered idolatrous and heathenish.
Somehow the people of Burghead kept the tradition going. This sleepy fishing village lies on the shores of the Moray Firth on the North East of Scotland. They celebrate Hogmanay with the burning of the Clavie on the night of January the 11th; the original date of Hogmanay before the Julian calendar was abandoned in 1660 for the Gregorian calendar. Defiant to the calendar changes, and perhaps one wonders to the 1704 law as well, the locals decided to enjoy the best of both worlds and celebrate New Year twice!
The Calvie is affixed to a strong wooden post by a specially forged nail called the Clavis (latin) which is reused each year. Once the Clavie is lit, the flaming barrel is carried around the town by 10 or so local men, usually fishermen known as the Clavie Crew. They proceed in a clockwise direction around the town’s fortification with a large crowd in tow. The Clavie Crew stop now and again at the homes of local dignitaries and present them with smouldering embers deemed to be good luck tokens for the New Year. Being a traditional fishing village they used to carry the Clavie around every fishing boat in the harbour but somehow this part of the ceremony has died out.
The Clavie is carried up to a stone alter on the Doorie Hill. It is then refilled, flaming the night sky like a beacon in the darkness of winter. The barrel eventually collapses and the blazing embers are dispersed all over the hillside where they are keenly collected by the local towns folk to kindle a New Year fire in their own homes - good luck tokens for themselves and for family and friends who have departed their home shores for distant lands.
Check out this website to see a picture of the Clavie. There’s even a video for sale of the Burning of the Clavie.
HAPPY HOGMANAY BURGHEAD!
