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The
Wedding Veil
by: Tom
Tsatsos
The veil dates
back to the ancient Greeks and Romans. They
were wary of evil spirits and demons, and
bright colors were believed to scare off these
unwanted spirits. Occasionally, a Roman bride
was completely covered in red veils to protect
her from evil spirits. Others believe wearing
the veil stems from the time of arranged marriages.
The father of the bride may have feared the
groom would not want to marry his daughter
if he found her unpleasant to look upon, so
the bride would be heavily veiled and she
would not be revealed to the groom until after
the ceremony.
Many believe the tradition of the 'unveiling'
stems from Biblical story of Jacob and his
two wives. Jacob's father-in-law, Laban, tricked
him into marrying Leah instead of his true
love, Rachel. Leah was heavily veiled and
Jacob did not realize he had married the wrong
woman until after the ceremony. Thus the Jewish
tradition of Bedeken was born, where the groom
lowers the veil before the ceremony and raises
it prior to the kiss.
The veil became popular in England during
the 1800's and signified modesty and chastity.
In the Christian tradition, the veil is lowered
by the father before the processional and
is raised by the groom prior to the kiss.
In some Eastern ceremonies, the bride is veiled
throughout the entire ceremony and is not
unveiled until after it is over.
The wedding veil has evolved over the centuries,
and has signified youth, virginity and modesty.
Roman brides were married in swathes of brilliant
red or yellow, while Viking queens wore metal
skullcaps. Many Japanese brides still wear
the traditional tsuno-kakushi, a white hood
that supposedly hides the horns of jealousy.
Veils made of lace were made popular in the
United States by Nelly Curtis, the adopted
daughter of George Washington. Legend has
it that Major Lawrence Lewis, her father's
aid, saw Nelly standing behind a filmy lace
curtain and he was so taken by her beauty
that he asked for her hand in marriage. She
then wore a lace veil on her wedding day in
order to preserve the effect for her groom.
About the author:
Tom Tsatsos
http://www.theamericanwedding.com
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