"Christmas Eve, and twelve of the clock. 'Now they are all on their knees,' an elder said as we sat in a flock by the embers in hearthside ease."
In old country belief the cattle knelt in their stalls at midnight on Christmas Eve, and the poem remembers hearing it as a child by the fire. Hardy wrote The Oxen in 1915, in the middle of the war, and it's about wanting to believe again: if someone asked him to come and see, he would go "hoping it might be so." All four verses sit above a watercolour barn lit by a lantern, with the cattle bedded down in the straw and a star in the frosted window.
Printed on premium lustre paper with a professional finish, and carefully packaged to arrive in perfect condition.
Choose from five sizes, unframed or in a sleek black frame.
Perfect for:
Christmas Eve traditions
Thomas Hardy and poetry lovers
Farmhouse and country kitchens
Thoughtful Christmas gifts
Questions are always welcome at georgia@bookquotedecor.com
