Oyster Feast
The Oyster Feast is the centrepiece of the annual civic calendar in the ancient borough of Colchester located in Essex in the East of England.
The Colchester Natives
The Colne oyster fishery dates to the Roman era. It was mentioned in the Domesday Book. The
Annual opening of the oyster fishery
The oyster fishery is officially "opened" on the first Friday of September each year. The Mayor of Colchester, the Town Clerk, and the Town Sergeant take passage on an oyster dredger out into the Pyefleet Channel of the Colne estuary off Mersea Island, in full civic regalia. A flotilla of small boats carrying invited guests follows the Mayor out into the channel. Oaths are sworn, pledging devotion to the monarch. The Mayor dredges and consumes the first oyster of the season. The Mayor and guests then proceed to an oyster lunch which celebrates the opening of the fishery.
The Oyster Feast
On the last Friday in October each year, the
The feast has its origins in the
Literature
- David Cannadine: The Transformation of Civic Ritual in Modern Britain: The Colchester Oyster Feast, in: Past & Present, No. 94 (Feb. 1982), pp. 107-130
See also
External links
- The Colchester Oyster Fayre
- Just how old is the Oyster Feast? - Andrew Phillips, Essex County Standard, 7 October 2005
- Oystermen wait for European help - BBC Online, 30 August 2005
- Colchester Native Oysters - Richard Haward, commercial supplier