The Holly and the Ivy » Red-berried holly and black-fruited ivy

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Red-berried holly and black-fruited ivy

Medieval holly and ivy carols provide evidence of a ceremonial contest between the red-berried holly, signifying the masculine principle associated with the return of light and life, and the black-fruited ivy, representing the dark feminine principle associated with winter. Ivy only flowers and fruits in its mature, arboreal form. The foliage is transformed in the process.

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