The primstav
The primstav a year carved in wood
The primstav was a calendar made of wood, with a summer side and a winter side. Its marks told people when it was time for haymaking, moving, feasts and rest.
Next marked day
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Summer side Winter side
What the primstav was
The primstav was a perpetual calendar carved into a flat wooden staff. It was used in Norway from the Middle Ages until well into the 1800s. Every day was a notch, and important days had marks of their own.
The staff had two sides. The summer side began on 14 April and the winter side on 14 October. The marks were often Christian, such as crosses, but also everyday things: an axe, a scythe, a mitten, a goose and a drinking horn.
The marked days through the year
A selection of the most important marked days. Primstavs varied from place to place.
- 13 JanTwentieth day of ChristmasThe twentieth day after Christmas Eve, when Christmas was over.
- 2 FebCandlemasThe candlestick on the primstav. Wax candles were blessed in church.
- 12 MarGregory’s massNamed after Pope Gregory the Great. Spring is approaching.
- 14 AprSummer dayThe primstav is turned to its summer side. The mark is often a tree in leaf.
- 1 MayCuckoo massThe cuckoo was soon to call. The spring farm work was under way.
- 24 JunMidsummerMidsummer and bonfires. Herbs gathered this night were thought to be extra powerful.
- 10 JulKnut’s wakeThe mark is a scythe. Haymaking began.
- 29 JulSt Olav’s wakeThe axe of St Olav, who fell at Stiklestad in 1030.
- 15 AugLady DayThe Assumption, in memory of the Virgin Mary.
- 29 SepMichaelmasThe harvest should be in. It was also a common moving day.
- 14 OctWinter dayThe primstav is turned to its winter side. The mark is almost always a mitten.
- 1 NovAll Saints’ DayA weather day. Sailing stopped for the winter.
- 2 NovAll Souls’ DayThe day to remember the dead.
- 11 NovMartinmasThe goose is the mark. The evening before was called bear night.
- 13 DecLuciaThe light mark. The Christmas season began. In the old calendar this was the longest night of the year.
- 25 DecChristmas DayThe drinking horn is the mark. Feast and celebration.
Marked days and weather signs
The marked days were fixed points in the year. They told people when work should be done, and many were tied to weather signs: the weather on a marked day was supposed to say something about the time after. The advice varied from place to place.
The primstav today
We use the primstav as a reminder to live with the seasons. What could you do on winter day to welcome the winter? Perhaps knit a pair of mittens, or light the first evening candle. We are working on an Arvekraft primstav of our own, see products.
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