If you’re a jewelry fan, you’re going to be disappointed to learn that it’s not actually gold rings that are given on day 5.   Unlike the four collie birds in the previous stanza who just had their name changed to a different, and non-existent, species of bird, the five rings in this stanza have, in singers’ and illustrators’ minds, changed from five ring-necked pheasants to five pieces of jewelry. But more on that in a second, let’s make sure to cover the religious view on the 5 golden rings.

The 5 golden rings are interpreted as the first Five Books of the Old Testament, known as the Torah or the Pentateuch:  1) Genesis, 2) Exodus, 3) Leviticus, 4) Numbers, and 5) Deuteronomy, which gives the history of humanity’s sinful failure and God’s response of grace in the creation of a people to be a light to the world.

Now as for those pheasants, while gold rings for one’s fingers have been around since ancient times, the word ring, even today, has different meanings. Today we refer to the platform on which boxers fight and wrestlers perform as a ring, a criminal conspiracy as a ring, jewelry for fingers, toes, ears, noses and belly buttons are all referred to as rings. As a verb we ring a bell, in America our telephones ring while in England they ring people up rather than call them up on a telephone as we do in America. Given the versatility of the word ring in today’s language it is not unusual to discover that our sixteenth century ancestors used the shortened term ring to describe a ring-necked pheasant as well as jewelry for their fingers.

So once again, we have a bird reference (do you see a pattern here?).  Why the pheasant?

Pheasants have long been a popular game bird and pheasant hunting has long been a popular sport in Europe and the U.S. In medieval times and earlier hunting was reserved for the nobility. Many stories relate to peasants going cold and hungry while surrounded by a forest full of trees and game. But it was illegal to cut the trees for fuel as they were the habitat for the animals (which the starving peasants were forbidden to hunt for food) that the local lord and his friends hunted for sport. Of course, the local lord and his friends did not simply kill the deer, birds and other game (other than foxes which, in England, were killed for both sport and to keep them from raiding the chickens and other domesticated fowl that were raised for eggs and meat) but followed the hunt with a feast where the products of the day’s hunt were served.

Pheasants were a prized bird as they were both tasty and, more importantly, had long been associated with the nobility. Old legends, popular in the Middle Ages, tell of Jason and the Argonauts bringing back golden birds.

Jason and the Argonauts back in 750 B.C. sailed from Thessaly, Greece in search of the “Golden Fleece”.  During this epic journey, they landed in Phalis, acquiring not only the sorceress, Medea, but also a lot of golden birds.  The Greek word phasianornis means bird of Phasis.”  It is believed that this species of ring-necked pheasant are from the sub-species of the infamous

It didn’t take long for people to conclude that the ring-necked pheasants were a sub-species of these golden birds. Soon, eating pheasant was only for the very rich and royal, often becoming the high-point of the feast.  Many times, it was customary to swear an oath upon it before eating.

So the five golden rings in this stanza refer to five ring-necked pheasants, a dish that was sure to be served at some of the king or queen’s Twelfth Night feasts during the Twelve Days of Christmas celebrations.

Adding Spice to your life,

Lia

Nicole Ha via Stacey Tamaki’s Fun & Flirty blog

On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me, Four Colly Birds . . .

On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me, Three French Hens . . .

On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me, Two Turtle Doves . . .

On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, A Partridge in a Pear Tree . . .