Wigwhack

Knowing where you come from, where your cradle stood, is an important part of many families in Andeau. For everybody there is a moment where you will move out of the house, starting your own family, leaving town for work or other adventures. When that time has come their will be a feast to wish you a fortious future and to send you on your way.

Tradition

It is tradition to give the leaving family member a family heirloom in the shape of a seal. This can be a metal coin or a small wooden chip. They cast the gift with a special tool called a Wigwhack that burns or presses the seal into the chosen material. In some cases, the tool will need to be heated for this, but that varies by family. This results in your own special family seal to carry with you or give it a special place in your new home. The seal goes back generations and is often a simpel decorated illustration of an animal, tool or plant. Something that describes the story of your family. You get the ornament to remember your family, wherever you go. Many people cherish this piece of tangible family. It is a piece of home, a place you always can return to where ever life has brought you.

Duplicates and alliterations

For big families, or when you travel across the world, duplicates of the Wigwhack are made so you can cast your own seal for the next generation when the time has come.

Wealthy families alliterate on the design, adding details or removing parts. They interpreted the tradition more as telling an active story of prosperity.

For many, the heirloom loses its luster with this. The seals that have remained unchanged for generations are the most respected. That is also why some families try to restore their seal to its original state.