The Glastonbury thorn legend ties in Christ's death as well as the celebration of his birth.
The legend goes that soon after the death of Christ, Joseph of Arimathea came to Britain to
spread the message of Christianity. When he traveled there from the Holy Land he brought with
him his staff. Being tired from his journey, he lay down to rest. In doing so, he pushed his
staff into the ground beside him. When he awoke, he found that the staff had taken root and begun
to grow and blossom. It is said he left it there and it has flowered every Christmas and every spring .
It is also said that a puritan trying to cut down the tree was blinded by a splinter of the wood before he
could do so. The original thorn did eventually die but not before many cuttings had been taken. It is one
of these very cuttings which is in the grounds of Glastonbury Abbey today.