The Finest Flower Crowns of All Time

Couple of devices have excited such commentary, for and against, than the flower crown, so fashionable of late among the neo-hippie celebration crowd. In spite of detractors, these ornamental headpieces, whose history in mythology and art can be traced back to ancient civilizations, reveal no signs of fading from favor.



It's an appearance that has roots. In agrarian societies, tied to the land and the seasons, flower crowns had excellent symbolic meaning. Used for ceremonial and useful factors, they could show status and accomplishment (see Olympic olive wreaths). The language of flowersand herbs was widely known, with each carrying its own significance. ("There's rosemary, that's for remembering. Please keep in mind, love. And there are pansies, they're for thoughts," states Ophelia in Hamlet.) Full of significance, flower headdresses were woven into the social and sartorial customs of destinations as remote as Russia and Hawaii.



With increasing industrialization, the flower crown became a romantic sign of the basic "country" life (wished for, in a stylized variation, by Marie Antoinette) and increasingly valued for its decorative worth. While brides continued the ritualistic customs of flower-wearing, it was the earth-mother hippies who have most affected the accessory's read more existing incarnation. Discovering themselves partying rather than raking, these flower children would truss their slept-in hair with wildflowers to represent their connection to nature.



In still more current years, the flowers have actually even taken a subversive turn on the runways, with Rodarte designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy adorning models with burnished coronets and cast-metal petals-- and letting loose a fresh wave of flower mania amongst the style flock while doing so. In honor of the summertime solstice, a motivating look back at flower crowns throughout history.





In agrarian societies, connected to the land and the seasons, flower crowns had great symbolic significance. With increasing industrialization, the flower crown became a romantic sign of the basic "country" life (longed for, in an elegant version, by Marie Antoinette) and progressively valued for its decorative worth. Finding themselves partying rather than raking, these flower kids would truss their slept-in hair with wildflowers to represent their connection to nature.