Historic ‘swan upping’ ends for another year
An ‘upping’ of Oxfordshire’s swan population finished in Abingdon yesterday.
The annual census has been carried out each year since the 12th century, when the Royal Family claimed ownership of the birds – then considered a delicacy at banquets.
In the swan upping ceremony, the Queen’s swan marker and crew, use six rowing skiffs in a five-day journey up-river, stopping to weigh cygnets and give swans health checks.
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