The New Murrey and Blue blog

The above is not a picture of the event I saw, but resembles it.

At around 2.30 in the afternoon of Sunday, 11th December 2016, driving home after being out with my family for lunch at the Hatherley Manor Hotel near Gloucester, my sister-in-law and I saw a two-sun parhelion.

It is the first time I have seen a ‘sun dog’, and even though the sky was one of broken clouds,  the two suns were still  unmistakable. It was like the picture above, except the left sun was smaller. If only I’d had my camera! But even if I had, the lane was winding, narrow and high-hedged, and not at all suitable for stopping. By the time we reached a sensible place to park, the second sun had gone.

While it was there, it was breathtaking to see. I can imagine the effect three such suns would have had at Mortimer’s Cross. Edward IV was very smart to convince his men that it was a sign of God’s approval for his cause! Some say the ‘sun in splendour’ was already his badge, some that he adopted it after his victory at Mortimer’s Cross. Either way, that day was truly momentous.

Of course, others will say the parhelion story is just a myth. I hope not, and much prefer it to have been true.