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Ever wonder why people have those brightly coloured little gnomes in their gardens? They are so commonplace that few of us even pay attention to the bearded little guys standing in between the clivias and rose bushes. They were part of our lives as we grew up, but we never asked the question why are they there at all?

According to Gordon Campbell, an Emeritus Professor of Renaissance Studies at the University of Leicester in the UK, these garden companions have a much darker history than we might expect. It turns out that in 18th century England, it was very fashionable to have an unkept bearded old man living in your yard. These hermits were kept on as ‘pets’ for wealthy landowners who wanted the infuse their gardens with something ‘mystical’.

The hermits-for-hire would be encouraged to dress as a druid and made to live in a makeshift grotto on the property where the landowner could care for them, conversate with them, or simply view them for their entertainment.

Long before the movie Amelie started a trend of ‘travelling garden gnomes’, these real-life hermits were often not allowed to leave the property and were encouraged to grow their beard, hair and nails to however long ‘nature allows’.

Now it may seem cruel by today’s standards to have an old man living like a wild animal on your property, but in Gregorian times, it was serious business. These human gnomes were seen as a ‘living embodiment of melancholy for the rich and privileged.’ Sounds like an easy job if you live under a hedge.

In professor Campbells’ book, entitled The Hermit in the Garden: From Imperial Rome to Ornamental Gnome, he gave some insight into their lives in 1797:

”The hermit is never to leave the place, or hold conversation with anyone for seven years during which he is neither to wash himself or cleanse himself in any way whatever, but is to let his hair and nails both on hands and feet, grow as long as nature will permit them”.

It would be considered animal cruelty by today’s standards, but back in jolly old-time England, the ‘garden hermits’ were often wealthy landowners’ strange mix of pet, confidant and servant.

Thanks to Charles V (1500 to 1558 CE), the Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain, who went to live in a monastery, it became very vogue to give up all earthly possessions and live a secluded life of introspection much like a hermit. It’s perhaps this example that made hermits into mystic symbols of knowledge and reflection. Much like having your own guru to drag from his kennel and parade around your rich friends.

Although garden gnomes are often considered to be a 18-century German ode to ‘little people’ that lived in the forest, Professor Campbell believes that they originated in the ‘kept hermit’ tradition before that.

Either way, the next time you see a little garden gnome in the corner of your grandmother’s garden, go speak with him, and just maybe you will receive some wisdom and guidance.

[source:ifls]