Old Tup facts for kids
Old Tup, sometimes termed the Derby Tup or the Derby Ram, is a folk custom found in an area of the East Midlands of England. Geographically, the custom was found on the borders of Derbyshire and Yorkshire and stretched into part of Nottinghamshire. The tradition entails the use of a hobby horse with a goat's head that is mounted on a pole and carried by an individual hidden under a sackcloth. It represents a regional variation of a "hooded animal" tradition that appears in various forms throughout the British Isles. In geographical location and style it displays strong similarities with the Old Horse custom, but in the latter the hobby horse was presented as a horse rather than a ram.
As recorded from the mid-nineteenth through to the early twentieth centuries, Old Tup was a tradition performed at Christmas time. Men would form into teams to accompany Old Tup on its travels around the local area. The team would carry Old Tup to local houses, where they would expect payment for their appearance.
The earliest record of the Old Tup custom comes from circa 1845. Various other records of it come from the latter half of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Unlike other hooded animal traditions found elsewhere in Britain, the Old Tup custom does not appear to have died out at this point, and continued to be practised in the local area throughout the century.
