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THE

EARLY RACES OF SCOTLAND

AND THEIR MONUMENTS

*\

PrinUdbyR. CUrk,

FOK

EDMONSTON & DOUGLAS, EDINBURGH.

LONDON . . HAMILTON, ADAMS, AND CO.

CAMBKIOCR . . MACMILLAM AND CO.

DL'BLIII . . . m'gLASHAN AND GILL.

GLASGOW . . . JAMBS MACLEHOSE.

2.26.

i .

/i

Early Races of Scotland

AND THEIR MONUMENTS

HEUT-COL. FORBES LESLIE

EnLNBURGH : EDMONSTON AND DOUUl.AS,
Mnt;t;cLxvi

zz.

■6. i- <^2-

PKEFACE.

In examining memorials of the races that occupied
Caledonia from the earliest ages to the end of the
sixth century of the Christian era; one purpose of
the Author was, if possible, to discover the general
design of the Caledoniain hieroglyphics, as well as
the special object, actual or emblematical, which
each symbol was intended to represent. In this
undertaking, from the absence of all positive data,
buccess, even in the most limited degree, could only
be hoped for by accumulating facts regarding the
first inhabitants, the most ancient monuments and
superstitions of Caledonia, and by comparing them
with similar remains in other lands. In attempting
to accomplish this design, primitive monuments in
India, Brittany, England, Ireland, and Scotland have
been examined. Yet, regarding subjects so obscure as
those treated of in these pages, it is with extreme
diffidence that the following suggestions as to the

VI PREFACE.

separate symbols, and the general design of the
Caledonian hieroglyphics and monuments, are sub-
mitted to the public. With more confidence it may
be anticipated that the arguments employed, and the
inferences drawn from them, cannot be refuted, and
different explanations substituted, without advancing
the objects aimed at in these essays — the elucida-
tion of the ethnology, monuments, hieroglyphics, and
heathenism of the ancient inhabitants of Caledonia, or
that part of Britain which lies to the north of the.
Firths of Clyde and Forth.

The monuments reared and the objects worshipped
in the days of heathenism in Ireland — even in Gaul
and South Britain — were originally, there is reason
to believe, not materially different from those of
North Britain. But the hieroglyphics are confined to
the latter country ; and as it never fell under Roman
or Anglo-Saxon dominion, and as there is no proof
in that early period of any important intrusion on
its Celtic population, the arguments regarding the
races who reared or occupied its monuments, and ad-
hered to its forms of paganism, are greatly simplified.

In different divisions of these volumes a few repe-
titions will be found. This arises from the same facts
or observations bcung required in explanation of diff^er-

PREFACE. VU

ent subjects treated of in separate chapters, and it is
hoped that the arrangement will, without materially
increasing the size of the work, be found more con-
venient to the reader than the alternative of numerous
references.

I have now only to acknowledge the obligations I
am under to Joseph Eobertson, LL.D., for his help
in the revision of these pages, as well as for much of
that valuable information which he is alike able and
ready to impart, and of which, in common with many
othera who have written regarding Scotland, I have
gladly availed myself.

RoTHiENOKMAN, January 1866.

CONTENTS OF VOL. I.

CHAPTER I.

Vauk

Notices op Britain and its Inhabitants in Ancient Greek

AND Roman Authors ..... I

CHAPTER II.
Ethnology op Caledonia .15

CHAPTER III.
Phcenicianb — Their Inpluenceon the Britons and Caledonians 47

CHAPTER IV.
Religion op the Earlt Inhabitants op Britain and Caledonia 62

CHAPTER V.
Solar and Planetary Worship in Britain and Caledonia 104

CHAPTER VI.

Worship op Spirits, Atmospheric and Terrestrial : Ethe-
real Fire — Spirit of the Waters: The Water Kelpie,
etc. — Spirit of the Elver and Imps . . .140

X CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VII.

Page

Worship of Fountains, Lakes, and Rivers . .154

CHAPTER VIII.
Primitive Stone Monuments and their Antiquity . .183

CHAPTER IX.
Cromlechs — Circular Columnar Fanes . 207

CHAPTER X.
Menhirs (Columnar Stones) — Devotional ; Memorial . 249

LIST OF PLATES.

Plate.

L-V.

VI.

VII.

VIII.

IX.

X.

XL

XII.

XIII.

XIV.

XV.

XVI.

XVII.

XVIIL

XDL

XX.

XXL

XXIL

XXIIL

XXIV.

XXV.

of Britain

VOLUME L

View of Aveburv
Silbury Hill, Avebury — Woodcut
Hieroglyphics

Figures from the Ruins of Carthage
Sacred Tree in Ceylon
Comparative size of principal Stone Circles
Stone Avenues at Caniac .
Plans of Stonhenge and Sinhinny .
Plan of the Hurlers
Botallick Circles, Cornwall
View of Sinhinny
View of Ardlair .

Part of Circle in Clmrchyard of Midniar
View on the Plain of Camac
General Plan of Avebury .
Plan of the Great Circles at Avebury
View of Stonehenge
View of Stonehenge restored
Plan of Circle at Castle Rig, Cumberland
View of Circle at Castle Rig, Cumberland
Plan of Monument at Callernisb, Lewes
View of Great Menhir at Loc-Maria-Ker restored
View of Great Menhir at Loc-Maria-Ker broken and
prostrate . . . . .

Frontispiece.

TitU'page.

Page 1

47

174
183
191
207
207
214
215
216
220
232
234
234
240
241
244
245
247
249

25y

EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES.

It is a remarkable fact that numerous hieroglyphics, graven on con-
spicaous monuments in many of the most fertile parts of Scotland,
should only lately have attracted special notice. Many such monuments
known to have existed are no longer to be found. Some have been
destroyed, and accurate delineations' of the remaining " sculptured
stones of Scotland" are only to be seen in folios published within the
last twenty years — exclusively for two societies with a limited number
of members — ^viz. " The Bannatyne " and " The Spalding " Clubs.*

The volume of the Spalding Club, edited by Mr. John Stuart, has
been taken as the basis of the present work, in so far as it refers to
the hieroglyphical figures on " the sculptured stones of Scotland."' The
Roman numerals attached to each figure of the hieroglyphics or em-
blems give the means of reference to the plates and descriptions in
7%« Sculptured Stones of Scotland, published by the Spalding Club.

' The notices and plates of a few of
these sculptures, as given by Gordon,
Cordiner, Pinkerton, etc., are not suffi-
ciently accurate to be of much value.

' To the intelligence and liberality of
the late Mr. Patrick Chalmers of Auld-
bar is owing the first of these works —
viz. an elephant folio of plates and
letterpress descriptive of the sculp-
tured monuments of Forfarshire. This
work was edited by Mr. Chalmers in
1846. The second of the works re-
ferred to was edited by Mr. John Stuart,
for the Spalding Club, in 1856. It is
in folio, and contains accurate plates of
all the most ancient sculptured monu-
ments of Scotland then known. Others,
however, have since been discovered,

which, but for these publications, would
probably at no remote period have dis-
appeared, or have remained neglected
and unnoticed. These are now in course
of publication in a second volume of
The Sculptured Stones of Scotland, and
will, like the first volume, have the valu-
able addition of an introduction and
notices of the plates by the same editor,
Mr. John Stuart, now secretary to the
Scottish Society of Antiquaries.

• The plates in the present work,
mostly from dravrings by the author,
are executed by the same artist, Mr.
Gibb, who had so accurately copied
and delineated the sculptures for the
work of the Spalding Club.

XIV EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES.

VOLUME L

Frontispiece. View of Avebury, from a drawing by the Aathor,
nia<le in 1856. For Flans of Avebury see Plates VIII.
XVIL XVIIL and Index—" Avebury."

Title-Paoe. View of SilV»ury. The great artificial mount which
forms part of the General Plan of Avebury. See Index —
« Avebury '' and « Silbury.*'

Plates I. II. IIL IV. and V. These five plates contain examples of
the mobt remarkable figures that appear sculptured on rude
stone monuments scattered over the eastern and northern
districts of Scotland. With few and unimportant exceptions,
monuments with these figures are confined to the country which
was occupied by the Celtic tribes called Cruithue — the Picta
of the classical authors and early Scottish histoiy. On the
eastern and northern lowlands of Scotland, from the Forth
to the Orkney Islands, these sculptures are found, but in
greatest numbers within the districts between the rivers Dee
and Spey.

These figures are in this work considered as pagan symbols
— for there is every reason to conclude that the most important
of them originated and were in use before the introduction of a
Christianity which tolerated many pagan devices. In a material
form this fact api>ear8 in these sculptures where the heathen
emblems are seen in combination with the cross. In some
monuments the cross is on one side, and the emblems are on
the other side of the stone ; but more frequently the cross
is surrounded, and in some cases surmounted, by heathen
symbols.*

For the sake of brevity, the sculptures of which the cross
forms an original part of the design are, in these descriptions,
termed Christian, the others are called heathen ; as also are
the figures found on the opposite side of the stone from a cross.
The sculptures where there are no crosses are generally graven

»As in Platen XLVII. and C VI. of SciilpturM Htones of Scoitand, SpaWing
Chib.

EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. XV

on mde upright Btones and boulders which show no signs of
the mason's art except these sculptures.
Plate I. (ul) The Douhk Di^. This figure is most common on rude
boulders or unhew^n stones, but also appears in sculptures along
with the cross.^ See pp. 397-402.

(m.) Double Disc and Sceptre. Tliis, the most common of the
Caledonian hieroglyphics, is found in many sculptures,* both
heathen and Christian. See Plates XLVIIL LII ; see also pp.
397-402.

(iv.) The Crescent^ is found both in heathen and Christian
monuments. See Plate L. and pp. 402-407.

(rv.) Tfie Cresi'ent and Sceptre * is nearly as common on the
sculptured stones as the double disc and sceptre. See also Plate
L. and pp. 402-407.

(cxxxvin. and xvii.) The Mirror or Mirror-Case is very
common on rude monuments, and also along with the cross.*
It is difficidt to distinguish between the mirror and the mirror-
case. It would seem that their value was e<|ual, and that as
emblems they w^ere indiscriminately employed.

(xciL cxii. XVII. and cxxxviii.) The Comb and Cornb-Ca8\^
The same remarks are applicable to these figures as to the
mirror and mirror-case. The mirror or mirror-ciise, and the
comb or comb-case, almost invariably appear together in the
same sculpture. What is here termed a comb-case has been
generally called a book. Although very similar, these figures
can be distinguished from each other — the comb-case being
generally found along with the mirror, whilst the book is
always placed in the hands of ecclesiastics. See Plate LV. and
pp. 430-432.

In one of the compartments of an elaborate sculpture (vol. i.
Plate XXV. of the Spalding Club work) a hunting-scene is
represented, on the uppermost corner of which the mirror and
comb-case appear over and in front of the principal figure, as if
they were emblems of his tutelary deity. The appearance of

* 7 heathen, 2 ChristiaTi * 32 heathen, 5 CliriHtian.

« 33 heathen, 1 Christian. * 25 lieatlien, 6 Christian.

' 3 heathen, 1 Christian. * Ls lieathcn, 2 Christinn.

XVI EXPLANATTOy OF THE PIJ^TKS.

the«e emblems, where all the figures are men ou hors^jback,
ifl opposed to a common opinion — riz. that the mirror and
comb-CBM! were found only on female monmnenta. In a
hunting-acene sculptured on another monument (Spalding Club,
vol. i. Plate XLVL) the double disc and sceptre appear in nearly
the same relative position to the principal mounted figure as
the mirror and comb in Plate XXV. This gives support to the
suggestion that these emblems may represent the tutelary deity
of the person over whom they are placed.

(xv. and xin.) The Fire-Altar} The figures here termed
fire-altars are always in the sculptures placed upright Those
with, as well as those without the bird, are only found on
heathen monuments, although in connection with the cross
there appears a figure, sometimes called the balance, which is
probably designed to represent the fire-altar. See Plate LIII.
and pp. 402, 417-420.

(ciL and cix.) 7^ Brooch* is foimd both on Christian and
on heathen monuments.

There are figures which, although nearly of the same fonn
as the brooch, are yet without the lines that extend between
the two external rings, and are more likely to be a variety of
the mirror and mirror-case than of the brooch.

(cxill.) The Circular Fig^ire on a Stand^ is most common on
heathen monuments. See Plate V. and p. 420.

(cxxxviii. and cviii.) The Horse-Shoe Arch,* although a
conmion emblem on heathen monuments, has not yet been
found in any sculpture along with the cross. The arch is
always represented upright See also Plate LIV. and pp. 422-
426.

(xxxix. and oix.) The Elephant,^ This remarkable figure
IB of common occurrence both on heathen monuments and in
sculptures along with the cross. In a cave at East Wemyss
the elephant is seen sculptured on the rock in the same design
with the goose. See also Rate LI. and pp. 415-417.

* 7 heathen, 2 Christian. ' 6 heathen, 1 ChriRtian.

* 3 heathen, 1 Christian. ^ 10 heathen.

* 18 heathen, 3 Christian.

EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. XVli

(xv.) The Hawk * is found both on Christian and on heathen
monuments. In Plate III. will be seen (cviii.) a figure which
may either represent the hawk, less correctly and more elabor-
ately executed, or some other kind of bird. See pp. 443, 444.

(xvn. and vi. of Plate I., and xxxii. and xxxvu. of Plate
III.) The Fish? The two figures in Plate I. seem mytho-
logical, and not intended to represent real fish. The fish,
although common in the heathen, is rare in the Christiau sculp-
tures, in one of which, however (Spalding Club, vol. i. LXIX.),
it appears preyed on by a bird. See Plate LIV. and pp. 425-
430.

(cxii.) The StDord in the Scahbard ' is foimd both on Chris-
tian and on heathen monuments, the end being always scj^uare.
Pp. 444, 445.
Plate II. (cxxxvni.) Human Figure with Do^s Head* This figure
appears on a stone by itself ; but on a Christian monument
(Spalding Club, voL i. CXVIII.) there are several indistinct
figures of a similar form. Pp. 441, 442.

(lxxxiii.) The Serpent '^ is common both on heathen and on
Christian sculptures. See also Plate LI. and pp. 402, 407-
415.

(lxvii.) The Serpent and Sceptre^ are more common on
heathen, but are also found on Christian sculptures. See also
Plate LL and pp. 402, 407-415.

(xl. and xcii.) The Flower or Plant ' is found both in Chris-
tian and in heathen sculptures. See also Plate LVI. and pp.
440, 441.

(cxxxin. of Plate II. and Lxxni. of Plate IV.) The Doifs
Head? Since the body of this work was sent to press a figure
exactly 'similar to that of cxxxm. has been discovered cut in
the rock of a cave at East Wemyss ; and it is a fact of some
importance that in this case the dog's head is in combination

^ The hawk or a bird. 6 heathen, * 5 heathen, 1 Christian.

1 Christian. ^ 7 heathen, 2 Christian.

* 12 heathen, 1 Christian. * 5 heathen, 2 Christian.

* 3 Christian, 1 heathen. ' 3 heathen, 3 Christian.

• 3 heathen.

XVlll EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES.

with the double disc and sceptre. See also Plate LVL and pp.
441, 442.

(XLI.) Tht Tnangle is found only on one, a heathen sculp-
tured stone, and even there is not well defined. Lxxm. may
be an embeUiahment of the triangle. See p. 447.

(x.) The Circle encloaiiiff three Circles atid three Triangles is a
single example, and appears on a heathen monument along with
the crescent and sceptre. See also Plate XLVIL and p. 420.

(cxiv.) The Horse. Many horses appear on the sculptured
stones, but this is the only one without a rider or trappings,
and with the peculiar marks w^hich this bears. This is the
only figure on the stone. A horse without rider or special
marks appears cut in the rock of a cave at East Wemyss. See
also Plate LVL and pp. 432-435.

^xxxvin.) Tht Boar. This figure is cut on a rude boulder,
on which faint remains of the double-disc emblem may be
traced. The boar is found in sculptures along with the cross.
See also Plate LVL and p. 437.

(xxxvin. and lxxvil) The Bull. These are heathen sculp-
tures, but cattle with the same peculiar marks as in zxxviii.
appear in Christian religious processions, as in ex. Plate IV.
and in voL i. Spalding Club, LXX., where the cattle are appar-
ently intended for sacrifice. See Plate LVL and pp. 435-
437.
Plate III. (cvin.) The Bird and (xxxii. and xxxvil) The Fish are
referred to above in Plate 1.

(lxxiv. and lxxxiv.) The CetUaur. There are two sculptures
in which the centaur appears bearing the bough of a tree.
There are three sculptures in which the centaur is found. See
also Plate LVI. and pp. 442, 443.

(xLiii.) Bird^s Head on Human Figure. These monsters are
in a Christian sculpture. See also Plate LVI. and p. 438.

(xiv. XL. and Lxxiii.) The Hippocampi^. These figures are
in Christian sculptures. See also Plate I^VI. and p. 439.

(LXX VII.) Peculiar form of Fish. A single example.

(lxxvil and xiv.) Serpents. The two serpents — a single
example — and no other figure on the same stone. The other
i8 on n iiiommient partly Christian. See pp. 402, 407-415.

EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. X]X

Plate IV. (lxxiii.) Borfs Head. Referred to in Plate IL

(^Lxxui.) The Camel, Appears on monuments of the Clinstiau
period.

(xc.) Cattle, Referred to in Plate IL
(VoL ii. Spalding Club, VI.) Bird swalloicinff Seri>€nt.
(xc.) Tree on a Platform or in a Flo'trer-Pot f Resembles
plant in a sculpture at Carthage. See Plate VI.
(xxxn.) Plant or Flower, Referred to in Plate II.
(cxxxi. and xcvi.) Are figures on heathen monuments.
Plate V. (xv. and cxiii.) Circular Figures on a Stand, Always placed
upright. Referred to in Plate I. and p. 420.

(cxi.) Tlie Double Crescent is found both in Christian and
heathen sculptures.

(Letter A.) The Goose appears sculptured on a rock in a
cave at East Wemyss, combined in the sjmie design with the
elephant. See also Plate LVI. and pp. 86-90.
(cxxxii.) Sea-Monster, is in a heathen sculpture,
(xxix. and xxxii.) The Harp is in Cliristian sculptures. See
also Plate LVI. and p. 448.
Plate VL Figures from the ruins of Carthage, showing emblems some-
what similar to those on the sculptured stones of Scotland.
Fi-om Dr. Davies' Researches in Carthage. See p. 47.
Plate VII. The Sacred Tree at Anuradhapoora in Ceylon. From a

drawing made by the Author in 1827. See p. 174.
Plate VI 1 1. Comparative size of the principal stone circles in
Britain. This diagram is on too limited a scale to show the
most remarkable distinctions of Avebury — viz. its miles of
approaches, marked by huge monoliths, and an artificial mount
that covers five acres of ground. See p. 183.
Plate IX. Stone Avenues of Carnac in Brittany. From a drawing
made by the Author in 1857. The view is looking along three
outer lines of the rude columns, of which there are eleven lines
forming ten avenues. See also Plate XVI. ]>. 191.
Plate X. Plans of the circles of Stonehenge in Wiltshire, and Sinhiniiy

in Aberdeenshire. See Plates XIII. XIX. XX. p. 207.
Plate XL Plan of the Hurlers. From BorlaseV Cornirall. See p. 207.
Plate XII. Plan of Botallick Circles. From Boi la.seV Cum imll. S«je p. 2 1 5.

XX EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES.

Plate XIIL View of the Circle at Sinhiniiy, Aberdeenflhire. See Plate
X. p. 215.

Plate XIV. View of part of the Circle at Ardlair, Aberdeenshire. P. 2 1 6.

Plate XV. View of part of the Circle in the Churchyard of Midmar,
Aberdeeufihire. P. 220.

Plate XVL View on the plain of Camac in Brittany, taken in 1857.
See Plate IX. p. 232.

Plate XVIL Plan of Avebury, showing the avenues of approach and
the Mount of Silbury. See Frontispiece and Title-page ; also
Plate XVIIL p. 235.

Plate XVIIL Plan of the Great Circle at Avebury. See Plate XVIL ;
the Frontispiece to Vol. L ; and p. 234.

Plate XIX. View of Stonehenge ; taken in 1856. It was too late to
notice under the proper head in this work the account of a
primitive monument seen by Palgrave^ at Kaseem in Central
Arabia. He was informed that thei*e were other similar monu-
ments in the same neighbourhood. This monument appears to
be a near resemblance, in size of columns, massive architraves,
and form of construction, to Stonehenge. Palgrave considers
these monuments to have been " in some measure religious.'*
He also states that in the suiTounding districts planetary or
Sabsean worship was, and still is, to a great extent practised.
See Plate XX. p. 240.

Plate XX. View of Stonehenge, as the Author believes it appeared, when
perfect, to those entering from the East See Plate XIX. p. 241.

Plate XXI. Plan of the Circle at Castle-Rig, near Keswick, Cumber-
land See Plate XXIL p. 244.

Plate XXIL View of the Circle at Castle- Rig, and mountain of Blen-
cathra beyond it. See Plate XXI. p. 245.

Plate XXIIL Plan of Primitive Monument at Callemish in Lewes.
From Paper by H. Callender, Esq., in Proceedings of Society of
Antiquaries of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 382. See p. 247.

Plate XXIV. View of Great Menhir at Loc-Maria-Ker, Brittany,
restored. From sketches by the Author, taken in 1857. See
Plate XXV. p. 249.

Plate XXV. View of Great Menhir at Loc-Maria-Ker, as it lies broken
and prostrate. See Plate XXIV. p. 258.

* Palgrave's Cnitml and EftHeni Aixibi4t, 1865, vol. i. p. 251.

Plate 1

III

III

IV

IV

CXXXVlll

unm

XCII

XVII

XXXVil

XV

XIII

an

XVII

CXXXVlll

Cll

cix

am

CXXXVlll

CYIII

XXXIX

CIX

XV

CXIl

CVHI

XXXtl

Plate m

XXXVII

LXXIV

XUII

XL

Lxxxiy

LXXIII

Plate IV

IXXIIi

XC

Yl. V«l. II.

XC

XXXIl

CXXXI

XCVI

r
\

CHAPTEE 1.

NOTICES OF BRITAIN AND ITS INHABITANTS IN ANCIENT

GREEK AND ROMAN AUTHORS.

Was Britain the Island ? — If so, Avebury may have been the Temple mentioned
in the Fourth Century b.c. — ^Avebury only made generally known to the
British Public in the Eighteenth Century — The Harp in use by the Ancient
Inhabitants of Britain — They used Greek Characters, but not the Greek
Language — Gold and Gold Ornaments — Torques — In Gaul and Britain the
same Religion — Language nearly similar — I^st Country of Lionnesse —
Religious services performed over the supposed Site of the submeiged City
of Ys — In Brittany, the alleged Site of the Palace and the Burial-Place of
King Arthur — Launcelot-du-Lac, Merlin, etc. — Cassitorides, Tin Islands,
Britain, mentioned by Herodotus in the Fifth Century n.(\ ; by Aristotle
in the Fourth Century b. c. ; by Polybius in the Second Century b. c. ; by
Caesar, Diodorus Siculus, and Stitibo, in the First Century B.C.

THEEE is in Diodorus Siculus^ a statement which it is im-
portant to examine when the primitive fanes and ancient
religion of Britain are objects of inquiry. Some reasons are,
therefore, now offered in support of the argument tliat Britain
'^5 the island, and that Avebury may be the temple of which
Hecataeus had obtained vague information when he visited
Syria in the fourth century B.c.^ The notice which is now to be

* Booth's Diodorus S., 1814, vol. Hecatiieus of Mih*tus may be meant ;

i. pp. 138-39. in wliich case the account wouM not

' I have treated the quotiition as only be more ancient, ]»ut he still

from Hecutiens of Abdera, although more valuable.

^VOL. L V,

2 EAULY NOTICES OF BRITAIN.

examined is introduced iii no flattering terms by Diodonis,
who says : Amongst those who have written old stories much
like fables, Hecataeus and some others mention an island,
over against Gaul, as big as Sicily, under the arctic pole,
inhabited by Hyperboreans, so called because they lie beyond
the blasts of the north ; that the soil is rich and fruitful,
and the climate temperate ; that the inhabitants of this
island worship Apollo above all other gods, ascribe to him the
highest honours, sing daily praises of him, and behave as if
they were his priests ; that Apollo had there a stately grove
and renowned temple of a rmind form, beautified with many
rich gifts ;^ that there is a city consecrated to Apollo, the
citizens of which employthemselves in chanting sacred hymns
and tuning their lyres to the god ; that the inhabitants of the
island have a language of their own, but have been visited by
Greeks, who had made divers gifts inscribed with Greek
characters ; moreover, that in this island the moon seems
near the earth.

With regard to the island thus described, and its position,
notwithstanding arguments to the contrary,' I think the
description is only applicable to Britain. I proceed, therefore,
to consider those points that have reference to the great
circular temple ; to the worship of Apollo ; to the use of the

* Another translation of this pas- * By Toland, in his History of the

sage is — " There is in the island a Diruids, A late writer, also of great

sacred enclosure of Ajwllo of great research, and vnih ingenious argu-

splendour, and a temple worthy of ments, attem])ts to prove that Heli-

notc, adorned with many offerings, goland, not Britain, is meant by

and sjiherical in shape." — Cot. Brit. Heoatieus.
IHM. vol. i. p. cxxxii.

ANCIENT TEMPLE OF APOLLO. 3

lyre in the sacred rites ; to the accumulation of rich gifts in the
temple ; to a native language ; and to Greek inscriptions. It
is not unworthy of notice that Hecatseus, as he accompanied
Alexander the Great to Syria, may have derived information
regarding Britain from Phoenician soui-ces, and he would natu-
rally feel particularly interested in the worship of Apollo, whose
attributes so nearly resembled those of the Celtic god Belenus.^

With respect to the stately grove and round temple, the
penitentials and early laws of Clu'istian Britain, as well as the
notices by classical authors, sufficiently establish tlie fact
of the heathen rites being celebrated in groves ; but the
absence of any notice by Csesar, Tacitus, or other ancient
writers, regarding such Cyclopean monuments of the Celtic
nations as Avebury, near the Roman station of Cunetio, or of
Stonehenge, near the station of Sorbiodunum, is an omission
that demands careful examination, and is only to be ac-
covmted for by the supposition that contempt for such rude
monuments predominated over any feeling of wonder and
admiration that might have been excited by the magnitude of
the materials, and the extraordinarv amount of labour ex-
pended in their erection.

Caesar never reached the places in Britain just mentioned
as being afterwards occupied by his countrymen, and coidd
never have seen Stonehenge or Avelniry ; but possibly, even
probably, he passed at least one anxious day amongst the
most extensive and wonderful of all the Celtic monuments —

' From Strabo it would appear that of Apollo Leucatas. They were of-
human victims were sacrificed at the fcred in honour of the g(xi and to
promontory on which stood the temple avert evil.

4 EARLY NOTICES OF BRITAIN.

that day when, from ten A.M. until sunset, from the peninsula
that overlooks the Morbihan Sea and the bay of Quiberon, he
and his anny watched the long-contested battle between the
Eoman fleet and the ships of the Celtic confederacy. Yet of
the gigantic monuments at this spot, and in the surrounding
country of the Veneti, Csesar takes no notice. Those who
have never seen the Cyclopean remains in that district, or doubt
their antiquity, may nevertheless infer from the narrative of
tlie victor that they existed, at any rate, prior to this naval
action. For Ctesar followed up his success by putting the
whole senate of the Veneti to death, and depopulating the
coimtry.^ By some writers, much weight has been allowed
to the proposition that the Greek and Eoman authors not
having mentioned the Celtic monuments, is all but conclusive
that they did not exist at the time of the Romans. Tlie same
argument, duly followed out, would prove Avebury to be a
modern erection ; for Avebury lay unnoticed, not only by
those who wrote in Greek and Latin, but also by those
who wrote in Anglo-Saxon, Norman, or English, up to the
seventeenth century. Yet a high-road from London to the
west, through Marlborough to Bath, passing by the mount
of SQbury, and crossing the stone avenues that led to
Avebury from Overton and Beckhampton, was in existence in
the time of the Roman dominion^ in Soutli Britain, and con-
tinues in general use to tliis day.

* C. JuL Cres. I)e Dcllo Gaflico, Baduiiica avoided the mount. Had

lib. iii. c. 14, 15, 16. thi« mount not existed, the Roman

■ This is proved hy the galleries road would have passed over its site,

worked into and along the base of the — Archa'ohxfien] histifnff^ Salisburv,

jnount of Silbury in 1849. The Via 1849, p. 303.

AVEBUKY. 5

Vastly superior in extent, as well as e\ddently of an
antiquity greater than any similar monument in Britain,
Avebury was nevertheless unknown or unnoticed nntil
accidentally seen by Aubrey when following the hounds in
1648. The MSS. in wliich he describes Avebury was written
about 1663 ; but it was eighty years after — viz., in 1743 — that
Stukeley visited, described, and /^idflishcd his account ;^ until
which time this extraordinary monument may be said to have
been unknown to the British public.

To return to the stately grove and renowned circular
temple mentioned by Hecatieus. There exist even now, in this
country, the remains of many primitive temples of that form
which once were shaded by stately groves. But there is one, in
particular, of surpassing size and interest, viz., Avebuiy.^ There
is good reason to believe that it was in existence when Heca-
taeus wrote, and also that it was worthy of greater commenda-
tion if it had been better known to the historian of Abdera.

The next part of the passage from Hecatjeus relating to
the temple is that which mentions the worship of Apollo,
the chanting of hymns, and accompaniment of the lyre, with
which his votaries celebrated the praises of their god. There
need be little hesitation in identifying the deity of the Celts,
called Apollo by Hecatanis and Caesar, with the god of day,
or the sun, who was probably worshipped in Britain under
the name of Bel, Belenus, or epithets somewhat similar.'^

* Sir Richard Colt Hoaiv's Ancinit ^ Dcscrilx'd in the chapter on

inifMrfiy rol. ii. pp. 57-65. 1812, "Omit Circular Fanes of KriUiin."
fol. » Seethe articles "Bel-nual," *' Bel-

tane."

ZJihLY >'OTI«.ES OF BEITAIX.

Several aucient auiL'jrs iii*:iiti'>n the l^irk wh«x like the
Driid-s, foraie<l a peculiar class in Gaul an J Britain ; and
iJ'uAoTus Siculus informs us that they sin:j: their verses and
aeeornj^ny themselves on instruments resembling lyres.* This
is in s'^me degree confirmat*jiy of the statement by Hecatarus,
03 showint^ the early period at which the harp was in use by
the Celtic race. It mav also }je considered worthv of notice
that the British king Cunoljelin, who is also called Belinus,*
and flourisheil at the commencement of our era, had on the
reverse of some of his coins the figure of Apollo with the lyre.
Tlie last two portions of the quotation from Het?atieus,
the jirol^able accuracy of which, as well as the leas^.'as for
their applicalnlity to a temple in Britain, that rv^m in to be
stated are — the gifts inscribed with Greek characters^ and
the many valuable offerings with which the famous temple of
Apollo was enriched. For confirmation of the firet jK>int
reference must again be made to the pages of Ciesar, where
he states that the Druids were not ignorant of the art of
writing, and in their public and private reckonings made
use of Greek charactere. Pomponius Mela says that the
( Jauls had their accounts and claims for debts deposited M*ith
them in their graves.

' The liarp is found on the sculp-
tured Ht*>n<*8 of Sctitlnnd, and was ou
H rnonunnait in HritUmy, no longer
existing, but desoriluMl l)y Peuhouet
In the Arclufitlotjlc Armf/rioiine. In
the Hanie Hi-ulpturc were the circles,
single an<l eoncentric, and the figure
r«'H»Mnhling a horse-shoe.

* lioth 1)V Dion C'assius and bv
Nennius.

* It is to be inferred from a notice
by Bede regarding Caedmon that in
the seventh century playing on the
harjj was an extremely general accom-
plishment. — Biiidff ffixf,y Man. Hist.
Hi it. p. 237.

* Mov. Hist. Brit p. 104.

SACRED HOARDS — GOLD TORQUES. t

With reganl to the many valuable otterings in the tenii)k*
of ApoUo, which, to some persons, may apju-ar tlie most apo-
cryphal part of the statement of Hecatu^iis, tliere are sufficient
reasons for admitting the accuracy of what lie had heard and
recorded in regard to the riches of the place, sui)posing it to
have been Avebury. Ctvsar, in describing the customs of the
Celts, says that the valuables they acquired in successful
warfare might be seen heaped in consecrated places, and that
the terrore of superstition, and the dread of cruel punishments,
were sufficient to protect these hoards from theft or violence.^
The variety and value of the torques and other ornaments
possessed by the Celts is undoubted ; for it is proved by
the records of history, confinned by the number of massive
articles formed of gold, which at different times have been
discovered and preserved. Yet the many specimens to be
seen in public and private museums bear but a small propor-
tion to those which have been found and secretly disi)osed of
by fortunate and generally illitemte discoverers. Could a
list and valuation be formed of gold ornaments that have
been discovered in the United Kingdom, the manufacture of
which must be referred to a very early or pre-historic period,
it would 8urj)rise those who have not hitherto paid attention
to the subject. '^ It has raised the question, Whence came
the supplies of the precious metal ? Did the Celtic race
possess these treasures before they reached Britain ? If not,
where were the gold-fields in the island that furnished mat(»-

* ('.Jul. V'XSK. Mou. JliHf. BrU.\i. 34. lund, aii<l Dr. Todd's Address in tlu'

• On tlii-s siiliject seo Dr. Dan. pHHrnfimfs of //?/' Jioi/nf Irish Acn.
Wilson's Prfhiittfn'ic Aniwls nf Sent. flcmi f<n' l.S5(>.

8 EARLY NOTICES OF BRITAIN.

rial to tlie artificers who shaped the torques and girdles that
liave been found in secret hoards or sepulchral mounds ?
Strabo mentions gold and silver among the articles exported
from Britain, and Tacitus says that both these metals were
found in the island ;^ probably in superficial deposits, which
if not exhausted will not now repay the expense of collection.
It would appear that gold digging in the Scottish Borders, in
Clydesdale, in Nithsdale, and in Crawfordmuir, was carried
on with some success as late as the sixteenth century ; that
in 15G7-68 Cornelius de Vois, from that district, sent eight
pounds weight of gold to Edinburgh, the produce of thirty
days' work of the persons he had employed ; and that the
liogent Morton presented to the French king a gold basin
filled with gold ])ieces — aU the produce of Scotland.^

Ill the fourth century B.C. Manlius conquered a Gaul of
gigantic stature, and took from his neck the golden torque.*
Torques were amongst the spoil taken from the Gauls by Mar-
cellus B.C. 196, and by Scipio Xasica B.c. 191. In the second
century B.C. Polybius mentions tongues as a mark of distinc-
tion worn by Celts and Persians. The Druids wore torques.
Strabo mentions that they were worn by the Britons ; and
their Queen Boadicea is described by Dion Cassius as wearing
one of large size. The Gauls, both men and women, wore

* Mon. Hist. Brii. pp. 6, 43. otlu-rs the ends of these bangles i)asa

* See Chaml)ers's Annals of Scot- each other.

Inivt^ vol. i. pp. 17, 18, 50, 51, 108. * Tonjues can he distinguished in

* In the Assyrian seiilj>tures in the the sculptures of Persejiolis, and
British Museum the Assyrian figures, tor<|Ues were deiK)site<l 530 years B.C. in
whether plain or winged, wear arm- the tomb of Cyrus. — ArcJuxoloyical
h'ts, some of wliirh are joined ; in Jouniat, 1S45, vol. ii. p. 370.

DRUIDS OF GAUL AND BRITAIN. 9

bracelets of gold — massive chains of gold about their necks,
with weighty rings on their fingers, and crosslets of gold on
their breasts.^ Torques have also been found in Etruscan
tombs, which is an interesting fact, from the evidences that
appear of a Celtic element in the original population of Italy.
Thus we see that, from the earliest periods in which Celts
and Druids are known in histoiy, they were accustomed to
wear gold ornaments, and considerable deposits of such valu-
ables have been found in the neighbourhood, and within the
primitive Cyclopean monuments of Amiorica.

It is also to be remarked, that in the island mentioned by
Ilecatreus, although inscriptions in the Greek character were
to be found, the inhabitants had a language of their own.
This was the case with the Gauls in the time of Caesar, from
whom we learn that they used the Greek characters,' but did
not understand the Greek language.'^ To give due force to
this circumstance, however, it becomes necessary here to bring
to notice, that at the commencement of the historic period the
population both of Gaul and Britain was Celtic, and had a
common religion and a common language. Ca'sar says that
the Druid institution is supposed to have been devised in
Britain, and to have been brought thence into Gaul.'' To
tliis it has been objected that the assertion is not authorita-
tively from Ca*sar himself But the argument is of no weight
as against tlie identity of the Dniidical religion of the two

* Di(Hlonis Situlus, b. v. Stniho, letter had to he convmnl tliruiigh his
b. iv. c. iv. — Mon. Hist. Brit. p. 104. Gaulish eiR'iiii»\s to his lu'lea^iered

* Moa. Hint. lirit. p. 33. lieutenant, Q. C'iieio.

^ Cflpsar wrote in r.reek when his * M(m. Hisl. Brit. p. 33.

10 EARLY NOTICES OF BRITAIN.

countries, for Caesar says distinctly that those persons in Ganl
who desire to obtain a more perfect knowledge of the Druid
system generally proceed for the purpose of studying it to the
island of Britain.^ Tacitus says that in Gaul and Britain you
will find the same religious rites and the same superstition ;
that the languages of the two nations differed but little, and
the free and unconquered part of the British nation retained
the ferocity of the ancient Gauls.^ After having inquired into
the customs and examined the antiquarian remains in the
parts of the united kingdom where the Celtic race and language
have kept the firmest hold, let any one proceed to Armorica —
read its legends — ^visit its Cyclopean monuments — hear the
Celtic language and the music of the baniou or bagpipes — and
he will be convinced of the accuracy of the remarks made by
the Roman authors, that the ancient inhabitants of Gaul and
BritEun were not only a cognate race, but had similar institu-
tions.

Antiquarian writers who have treated of the county of
Cornwall, from Norden and Carew up to those of the present
century,^ all mention the submerged country of Lionnesse,
which, according to tradition, they say extended from the
Scilly Isles to the present Land's End. Some of these writers
even retail statements of buildings seen there beneath the
water, and others improve on this by the tales of doors or
windows brought up by fishermen from the spot where the

» J/oM. Hist. Brit. p. 33. " /6«W.p. 42.

" Even to Murray's Handbook ftrr Coimwalf, 1850, p. 137.

SUBMERGED CITY OF YS. 11

submerged houses liad been seen ;^ the details being completed
by the account of an ancestor of the Trevelyans and Vivyans
who was saved by his horse, which brought him safe to the
mainland through the flood by which the country of Lionnesse
was overwhelmed, all which is attested by the armorial bear-
ings of these families.^ One country of Leonais, and probably
the one believed to be lost, still exists in France. It compre-
hended the divisions of Morlaix and Brest, and its limits
nearly corresponded to those of the modern department of
Finisterre. As Ciesar destroyed the fleet of the Veneti and
their Celtic allies, with which, he says, they traded to Britain
from these coasts, the sudden cessation of a continued inter-
course with a kindred race may be the cause of the tradition
of the lost country of Lionnesse.

It is, however, a singular fact, that a somewhat similar
tradition^-viz., of a part of the extreme west portion of the
ancient Celtic division of Cornouaille,^ adjoining that of the
Leonais in Armorica, having been submerged — is still preserved
in that district. Between Giulvenec and Penmarch the pilots
on that coast still endeavour to point out, at a depth of twenty
feet beneath the surface of the ocean, Dniidical altars, the re-
mains of the submerged city of Ys. Even until the commence-
ment of the present century the priests and all tlie people of
that pai-t of the coast annually assembled to embark in their
boats, and proceed to where the priest ofiered Christian sacri-

* Tlie shipwrecks in tliis ilau<,'fr- '* UWtRonH Comthn^ vol. i. p. 148,

OU8 locality will siiHioieutly t'Xpljiiii 1772, fol. ; ami C'arew'H Survey of

whence the doors and win<low.s were CornvaU, p. 7, 1811, 4to.

derivetl. * Cornwall in Brittanv.

12 EARLY NOTICES OF BRITAIN.

fice over the spot where the city of Ys is believed to have
stood.^ Probal)ly in Europe these were the last ceremonies
offered for heathen ancestors, and the most marked continu-
ance of rites commenced under a heathen priesthood. It will
be seen from this detail that there is not only the country of
Lionais, but also that of Cornwall, as ancient divisions of
Brittany. In the former the site of King Arthur's palace is
pointed out, also the island of Aiguilon, where they say he was
buried, and the site of the castle of Launcelot-<lu-lac and La
Blonde Yseult on the banks of the Elorn. In the next Celtic
division to Cornwall, in the Morbihan, is shown the forest of
Brocelinde, where Merlin *' drees his weird ;" and there also is
the consecrated fountain of Balanton, which is still believed to
possess miraculous properties. There also may be foimd Cara-
doc and Madoc, and other names familiar to the ancient legends
of British liistory.

The mention of the lernian Isles in the Argonautica, like
the quotation from Hecatieus, may be received as confirmatory
of a vague knowledge possessed by the Greeks in the fourth
and sixth centuries B.C. regarding the British Islands. That
this knowledge was derived through, and purposely mystified
by the Pha?nicians, we may be assured, as we have evidence
of the extreme jealousy with which they regarded, and the
success with which they baffled all attempts to discover the
route to the islands whence they procured an abundant supply
of tin.^ This jealousy is evident in the treaty concluded

* Souvestre, Dcrnirrs Bretons, vol. i. pp. 36, 37. Parit*, 1854.

* J/oH. HiM. Brit. p. 6.

THE CASSITERIDES. 13

between the Eomans and Carthaginians in the middle of the
fourth century B.c.^ By it the liomans bound themselves not
to extend their voyages to the west beyond Tarseius.

Herodotus, in the fifth century B.C., admits that he knew
nothing of the Cassiterides ; but the same paragraph contains
the important addition, " from which we get tin." *

A century later, viz., in the middle of the foiu'th centur\'',
all we can learn from Aristotle is, that he knew that the
Britannic Isles were in the ocean beyond the Pillars of Her-
cules ; that the two largest were called Albion and leme ; and
that these islands lay beyond the Celts.

Polybius, in the second century B.C., mentions the Bri-
tannic Isles and the preparation of tin, but does not return
to the subject in any of his works which have been preserved.

Hitherto the traffic from Britain to the ^lediterranean
seems to have been monopolised by the Phoenicians, but in the
first or possibly in the second century B.C., Publius Crassus
made known to the Eomans the route by sea from the Pillars
of Hercules to the tin islands.

In the first century B.C. we have the Eoman invasion and
Britain described by Caesar, and also the statement of Strabo
and Diodorus Siculus regarding the island and its export of
tin.

Tin appeal's to have been well known and common in the
time of Moses.^ And it may be infen-ed that it was brought
into Palestine from the west, as it is not mentioned amongst

* Polybius, 1>. iii. ^ Mon. Hist. Brit p. 1.

* Numbers xxxi. 22, 49.

14

EARLY NOTICES OF BRITAIN.

the articles imported by the fleets of Solomon to the port of
Ezion-Geber on the Eed Seia. Moreover, it is mentioned as
being brought to the Phoenician harbours from Tarshish.^
Tarseius, or Tartessus,^ was a name of various Phoenician set-
tlements in Andalusia ; and from their colonies in that part
of Spain it is known that the Phoenicians derived their prin-
cipal mineral wealth. There seems, however, to be good reason
for believing that the mines of Spain were insuflScient for the
supply of Eastern Europe and Western Asia with a metal so
necessary as tin — required as an alloy for the copper, which
in early ages was used for the manufacture of most domestic
vessels, as well as in all armour for defence and warlike
weapons — and that from the British Isles a great part of the
tin was supplied to the Greeks at a much earlier period, as
we see it was in the time of Herodotus ; contributing to make
tin an article of no rarity even in the days of Homer.^

* Ezekiel xxvii. 12.

• The importance of Tarseius, Tar-
shish, to the Phcenicians, to Tyre, is
particularly shown in the 23(1 ch. of
Isaiah, where Tyre is even called the
'* daughter of Tarshish."

"It must have been at a very early
period that mining implements of
holly, box, and hartshorn were used
in the ancient tin-works of Comw^aU,
where they have been commonly

found ; and such tools Korden, in his
Survey of Coraicall in 1584, tnily and
(piaintly calls weak pickaxes for such
obdurate materials. And in Carew's
Survey of Cornwall he mentions as
found in old mines ** tool -heads of
brass called thunderaxes," which, he
says, *' make smaU show of any pro-
fitable use."

Eratosthenes mentions the Hesper-
ides, whence tin proceeds.

CHAPTER II.

ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

Early Migrations — The Gypsies — Lslaiids of the Blesse<l — Ancient Celtic
Traditions — Early Celtic Inhabitants — Albannaich — Aborigines — Gaels and
Britons — Belgae — Gaels the Earliest Inhabitants in the Historical Period
— Celtic Words, Inver and Aber — Sliabh and Ben — Llan, Pen, and Ken —
Bal and Artl — The four Pictish Words — Albannaich and Craithne — Dalriad
Scots of Caledonia — Pirts of Ireland — Mass of the Early Population of
Caledonia Celtic.

IF the principal inhabitants of Britain and Western Europe
came from the East, history gives no direct information
of their migration, nor of the continued but irregular flow,
when wave succeeded wave in the human tide that bore the
ancestors of European nations to the regions of their destiny.
It is, however, easy to comprehend A\ith how little reluctance
nomad tribes, accustomed to continual change of place for
themselves and pasturage for their flocks, would pass beyond
conventional limits ; and that rivers, mountains, and narrow
seas would be insufficient to restrain multitudes allured by
the ambition of leaders, or impelled by the terrors of pesti-
lence and famine to leave the haunts of their youth and the
graves of their ancestors.

If permitted to judge of unrecorded ages by events that

16 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

have occurred at a later period and are preserved in history,
it may be presumed that the lust of conquest and religious
intolerance were great impelling causes of the original expa-
triation and onward movement of various races. Conquerors,
perhaps styled Great by their flatterers, and fanatics, deemed
Saints by their followers, have often caused the greatest cala-
mities to their fellow-men, and were probably amongst the
most efficient causes of the earliest, as well as of the latest,
migration from the East into Europe, viz., that of the race
usually called Gypsies. There were Gypsies — or a scattered race
nearly answering the description of that unsettled people — in
various parts of Central Asia at a very early period. But I
aUude to the horde, more numerous then than others that are
nations now, that crossed into Europe in the early part of the
fifteenth century. In them we see accomplished, at a compa-
ratively recent period, the progress of a very large body of
inhabitants of Hindostan from that land of the sun to the
cloudy extremities of Western Europe. The lot of the Gypsies
has been a hard one, even in Britain. " Tribes of the w^an-
dering foot and weary breast," the wonder is that they have
survived and still remain a separate race, notwithstanding
savage proscriptions, continued evil treatment, and never-
ceasing hardships. Docs not their remaining under such cir-
cumstances suggest the idea of an instinctive law which has
ever prevented the uncivilised races of mankind from turning
back on the path over which they were pressed onwards to the
West ? And as regards the subject we are now considering,
such a peculiarity in our constitution might in some measure

ISLANDS OF THE BLESSED. l7

account for the numerous and gigantic monuments of Celtic
or Preceltic erection that cumber the barren peninsulas and
rocky islets of ancient Armorica, and extend over Britain and
Ireland to the Western and Orkney Isles.

There were many persons at one time who, in their zeal for
the honour of the country, maintained that Britain was one
of *' the Islands of the Blessed" They failed to prove their
case ; but when Clement VI., who was Pope from a.d. 1342
to 1352, granted "the Fortunate Isles," meaning only the
Canaries, to Lewis, Earl of Claremont, the English ambassadors
at Home — ^amongst whom were Henry of Lancaster, the Earl of
Derby, *and the Bishop of Oxford^ — seriously doubted lest their
own country had been comprised in the donation.

Procopius relates a curious Celtic tradition, viz., that the

inhabitants of Gaul living opposite to Britain were exempt

from tribute on account of their being employed in ferrying

departed spirits to the British shores. To the Gauls these

spirits were invisible, and, in so far, less material than the

phantom-boat that, fleet as the wind, bore its light freight to

land, and brought back the human crew to their proper

haven. This legend seems to refer to blessed spirita But

the modem version, as given by Souvestre,^ although it shows

the long endurance of such tales in a Celtic population, only

applies to the souls of the wicked ; and it is satisfactoiy to

find that they are not destined emigrants to the British isles.

* Also Kalph, Lord Stafford, and * Sou vestre, 2?cni iVrs^r^/r^w, vol. i.
Hugh Spencer.— Seidell's Notes on p. 118.
Polyolhio7t, \\ 14, 1622, fol.

18 ETHNOLOGY OF CALKDONIA.

It is believed, says Souvestre, that in the dead of the night
wicked inhabitants of the promontory of Saint Gildas de
lUiuis are awakened by three knocks, given by no mortal hand,
at the door of their houses. By the same invisible and irre-
sistible power they are impelled to arise, to proceed to the
shore, and to embark in the long, black, and apparently empty
barge which awaits their arrivaL Once on board, a large
white sail rises and distends itself, whilst the spectre-barge
glides swiftly from the land, bearing its augmented freight of
wicked, viewless spirits ; and all " drive on, and on, and
anchored ne'er shall be."

«

From historical facts and reasonable deductions there ap-
pears suflBcient evidence to warrant the conclusion, that the
earliest inhabitants of Caledonia to which reference can be
found in the Greek or Eoman authors were of Celtic origin
and spoke the Celtic language. Albiones, Britons, Cale-
donians, Picts, Scots, and Attacots may have been different
tribes, and may have had different dialects ; but they were of
Celtic race, and spoke a Celtic language. Although the name
of Scotland is derived from the tribe of Scots, yet, under that
name at least, they were neither the earliest of its inhabitants
nor the most numerous of the settlers that occupied Caledonia,
i.e. Scotland, beyond the Firths of Forth and Clyde.

That the island of Britain was called Albion we learn
from two authors of the fourth century B.c. ; and Albannaich
is the most ancient and honoured appellation which the earliest
Gaelic poets used for their countrymen. It is to be found in
the " Albanach Duan," an historical poem which, in its pre-

THE ALBANNAICH. 19

sent form, is admitted to be of the eleventh century. At the
battle of the Standard, in 1138, the English annalist Hoveden
says, " The Scots raised the shout of their country, and the
cries of Albany, Albany, ascended to the heavens." The name
is also employed by a poet of Celtic lineage writing in the
present century : Campbell makes the wizard foretell to
Lochiel that the tears of Albin would not outnumber the dead
when the merciless sword of Cumberland should wave over
the gory field of Culloden — that last distinctive struggle in
which the Albannaich were destined to engage ere they merged
in the modem generic name of Scots or Britons.^

Whether the Celtic superseded in Britain an earlier race,
or were themselves the dimly-shado wed-forth earliest of pre-
historic occupants of the soil or the forests, cannot yet be
decided ; but many facts and still-increasing evidence warrant
a conviction that all, or the fairest portions, of Britfiin were
inliabited at a period far more remote than we are accustomed
to receive, or rather to assume, as having been established.
In the first century before Christ there is the testimony of
Caesar, corroborated by others, that tlie number of the in-
hal)itants in Britain was very great — numberless is his
expression. That the island was fully peopled, even to its
utmost limits, is a proof that it had been long inliabited ; and

^ In Seidell's notes on Pohjolbum^ Mr. .Tost>j)li HoluTtson — viz.j the Hook

p. 122, in reference to the word ** Al- of JJtir — AIlui is the name of S«otlaiul

banacht," he admits Albania to he in a charter of the middle of the

properly aj)plied to Scotland. In twelfth (-entiiry.

that most valuable Celtic record now ^ Mon. Hist. Brit. pp. 31, 32.
being edited for the Spalding Cluh by

tliis iff i'lirtlipv (M)iTul»nrat<Ml by \\w rcsistanco offered by the
M»mib nritoiiP iit flrRt, atul by the Caledonians at all times,
wlipu aitncki'd by the llonuuis. But the most convincing
|nn)of in Ihp lUMM^Rsity tho llonmns felt to guard against the
nttrtokB of tho North Brilish tribes by building fortified walls
rounpotin;^ both oonsts of the island ; and tluit these great
woHvR fiHoii [mrtirtlly, and eventually altogether, failed to
pivveut the devastating inroads of the Celtfi fixun Ix^yond the
ramixirts \( Antoninus and Hadrian. CycloiK\an remains
olso bear tostiniony that the tiHMuing jH^pulation of Britain
evtotulott U> its noHhern, a**5 it cort<\inlv did to Mona, An<:jlesoas
its western limit. Kxm the WVstorn 1j^1o5 sivm to have IxH-n
no oxivption., an«l to liavo Ixvn k^tW inhabitoil, a$ tliey were
tbirkly j>N>phxi Witne^is the oxtonsivo monolithic remains
in iho isLinds and ij^^lots of that grou]\ partionlarly ** tlit^
<tivy Ston<"^s" <>f Cla^isomij^h and the a<\iac^nt f^Tom^oc:l1^ ^^
wvll as nmiiov«^u^ othoi'$ in the island of I/^wi>s. At o-nc- <^^
these the m«">ss, ciuht feet in depth, wfi<; cleaTod a'W'aA' lH-f<^>"^^*
vefK'hing the bn?^' «->1' the rxn^o eohirnns of a prirnilivo cir^''^^*^^^
temple x^hi<h hnd heen ob>JC'UTed by Xho slow irrv>'v^\"h ^^^
nntnrnl f}<N-nnin1ntiuii of veecV-ftblo soil.^ "Even l^^o 5^o5^"*'^^^
of tlic i7»hnbit.(vl i5;let<j in the Hehrith^, 'v^-hero Tiov.- oiAy '^^^
or three fninilif^f; exist, possess r(*mains of ]n'inru.i'X'C' CvcAol*^*^^
Tnonnrnents

KtlmoloLTV', when it pa^^^ses beyond tlie liiint^ss. <-^^^ tracVi^-^^^^*^'
}iiston\and primitive nionnnient.s, must )>e crroTvi^^^ Atn^*^^'^**^
on geology, unless wc eonsider (Taniol(ll;^ a ^^'^ tlWMt»ii| evidt^-^^^^

VESTIGES OF EARLY KACES. 21

on which to establish facts. There is the testimony of the
rocks ; the flint instruments found, along with the remains
of extinct animals in or beneath undisturbed beds of gravel,
sand, and clay ; the bone-caves, with and without human
relics ; the skeleton of a whale and deer-horn harpoon, the
probable cause of the death of the fish, found twenty-five feet
above the highest level of the waters of the Forth, and under
a deep covering of slowly-accumulating soil ; canoes found
at great depths beneath the surface of the land, and far from
any existing lake or stream. These and such like facts may
possibly be explained, and their dates be approximately esti-
mated by geologists. To them we must look if we expect any
information as to the time that may have elapsed between
the deposit of such early proofs of man\s existence in these
islands and the first notices of them by history. To geologists
also we must trust for arguments, if such there be, by which
archaeological data, and creation as revealed in the material
world, may be reconciled with received chronology.

The preceding remarks have a more general reference to
Britain ; what follow are limited to the ethnology of Caledonia,

* At Brixhani, in Devonshin*, and of Hcotland, vol. xvii. p. 110). Sec

in France, near Al>bt»ville, and ni-ar also a siniilar ciuje mentioned in Wil-

Amicns ; at Hoxne, in Sullolk, and SiUi's IWhistoric AnnitlH of Sajtfnml^

other places, as described l)y M. dc p. 106.

Perthes, Prestwich, Flower -Evans, The lake-dwellings as yet affonl the

and Sir C. LyelL A Celt was found best data for calculatin*; iKiriods of

imlxjdded in granite ** in a socket remote antiquity in regai-d to man's

exactly fitted to it," when the firm existence, although some of them may

and solid mass was bl.isted with gun- have been formed in times compara-

|>owder. So stiites the Ueverend Mr. tively recent. — See Sir ('. Lyell's

Little in his accfuint of tin- jnirish of AnfinnHn of Mn,i, pp. :U1», \M''\,

Southwiek (Hhl St<itisUr»i! Jcmnif 'h'*.

22 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

or Britain on the north of the rivers and estuaries of Forth
and Clyde. Following the example of a well-known ethno-
logist,^ a series of propositions are now offered, and, in so far
as regards the Celtic race when it is first distinguished in
Western Europe, the opinions and propositions of Dr. Latham
are adopted. It is after the Picts are mentioned, or rather the
Pictish name appears, that a different view is taken of addi-
tional elements supposed to have been added to the previous
occupants of Caledonia.

The position in which the Gaels appear at the commence-
ment of the historical period, unless in some fragmentary
portions of the race, or as an element in mixed populations,
was on the extreme verge of the north-western portions of
Europe, viz., in the northern parts of Britain, in Ireland, and
in the Western Isles.

Next the Gaels, pressing on them and partly amalgamating
with them, was another great division of the Celtic race, viz.,
tlie British ; the advancing British probably intruding on
the Gaels, as the Gaels had intruded on some previous occu-
pants of the soil, Celtic or Preceltic, who are unknown to
history, aud as yet only partially substantiated by ethno-

If it could be proved, and it is probable, that the route of
the migration of the Gaels was by Africa through Spain,
the tradition of Spanish origin, and the appearance of Spanish
features in some of the tribes, can be accounted for by Iberian

* Dr. Lathani's Ethnoloinj of thr Ih'scri})tivc Ethnology^ vol. ii. chaps.
fiiUishlslamhy\bh2. Also Lnt ham's iv. and xviii., 1859.

CELTIC MIGRATIONS.

23

intermixture, as well as by later communicatiou under the
management of Phoenicians, or the impulse given by Phce-
nician adventure to the inhabitants of the peninsula. The
legends of the miraculous transport of the monument of Stone-
henge from Africa to Spain, from Spain to Ireland, and from Kil-
dare to Britain, would thus admit of some foimdation. This
would also be the case with the alleged migration of the Lia-
Fail, or "Stone of Destiny," of the Scottish race, which is
now in the coronation -chair at Westminster.

The form of the circular columnar temples, so common in
Celtic countries, might easily have been preserved during the
longest migration, by ranging small stones so as to form cir-
cular fanes similar to those of a temporary kind that, even in
the present day, are commonly erected in the Dekhan of India.
Such fanes, only more important in design and materials,
would then have been erected when the migratory race
attempted or established what they may have deemed a per-
manent settlement.^

The propositions above alluded to are now^ introduced,
and when they are at variance with the views of late influen-

* Several of the early Spanish his-
torians have notices, even names and
details, of colonies and their leaders
that departed in ))rehistorical ages
fron\ Spain and passed into Ireland.
Tliese notices, however, can only he
received as vague traditions, of ecpial
or less value than similar tniditions
adopted into ancient Irish histories.
Rut in a separate chapter the chain

of similar primitive monuments are
traced through Northern Africa and
Sj)ain to France and Britain.

* This subject is more particularly
referred to in the chapter on the pri-
mitive monuments of India and other
countries.

• These propositions are marked
with inverted couimas, and with Ro-
man numerals.

24 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

tial writers, ailments are given in support of the opinions
now advanced.

Proposition I. " There were two great and independent
divisions of Celts — viz^ ike Gaels and the Britons^

II. " The British Isles were peopled from the Celtic portions
of the European Continent."

III. " The Gaels had been fur a very long period estab-
lished in portions of the west and northr-wcst of Europe
hefore the Briioits pressed them onwards to tlie extremities
of th£ British Isles."^

IV. " The Belgm were Celts of the British branch; that
is, they were so at the period in which they could have
had any influence in. regard to the svhjcct now under
amsideratian''

V. " The country mentioned as Caledonia by the Romans
WIS by the Gaels called Albainn, and its inhoMtaitts
Albannaich."

* Fnrproofof original Keltii', i>ar
ticularly G«liu, elcmenUin the Lutii
l«Tit:u!iy.-, s,-,- Pr..f>-B4or F. W. New.

t Ituly iviis atill bftrbaroua.
th.' XfUa wi-iv t'^rmj.lnble" (Latham^a
D.-xi-rii>tii-r Elliii'.l.-jii, vol. ii. p. 6U5).
" 111 hiipiKiii ol litis opiuton, use
SnTivestm iji iiU DcniUra Brctotia,
vol. 1. pp. U2, 143, 144; olao La-
lliiiiirs Eth-nol'm of the British

Ni«bulir, in liin Eihui-gi-ajihy,

lnUd by Dr. Schmitz, vol. ii. pp. 306,
307, may also be <[Uot«d in favaur of
this propoaJtioQ, dtliuuKli in a pura-
grapb iiiiineiliattly following ha ac-
cuses ail English offitor of t!ip " bold
assertion " as a fact of »liiit Niebuhv
alleges was au impossibility, viz..
" That soldiers from the Highlanda of
Scotland conversed with the people of
IreUnJ." The offirer stated tlie truth.
The accuser rashly denies what he
could easily have osi'crtained to liBVv

EARLIEST CELTIC POPULATION. 25

VI, " The Gaels were the original Celtic population of
Caledonia in the historic peiijod!'

The name by which the island of Britain is first distin-
guished is Albion — evidently the same as Albainn, by which
name Caledonia was known to the Gaels of Ireland — its
inhabitants in consequence being called Albannaich. Tliese
were also the names recognised by the Gaelic inhabitants of
Caledonia for themselves and their country.

The ancient names of rivers, mountains, rocks, and re-
markable natural objects in Caledonia are Gaelic. The names
of persons to be found in the cartularies and most ancient
records, as in the venerable Book of Deir in the north-eastern
district of Caledonia, are generally Gaelic. At the battle of
the Standard in 1138, the English annalist Hoveden says,
" The Scots raised the shout of their country, and the cries
of Albany, Albany, ascended to the heavens." Albania and
Albanacht are used for Scotland and the Scotch by Drayton,
and approved by Selden. Chamberlayne says, "The High-
landers speak a sort of Irish which they call Albanach, and
which they have both from the ancient Scots who came
out of Ireland and from the Picts who were originally
Britons."

Previous to offering some remarks on names of places and
words attributed to the two prominently different races and
languages of the Celts in Britain, the opinions on this subject
of the latest historian of Scotland, and of the last writer who
has treated of the early population of Scotland, are here in-

26

ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONU.

sertecL Mr. Fraser Tjrtler says that in the year 1093 the
" Gaelic or Celtic people inhabited nearly the whole of Scot-
land to the north of the Firth of Forth." ^ And the Professor
of History in the University of Edinburgh^ thinks " it
cannot be questioned that the language of Scotland — king,
court, and people, Highland and Lowland, except a narrow
strip of sea-coast — in the reign of Malcolm Kenmore,^ was
Celtic or Gaelic."

It does not seem now to be maintained that what is some-
times called the Scottish Conquest was otherwise than the
royal race of the Picts being supplanted, possibly after they
and their adherents had been defeated by their relations and
rivals of the Scottish royal race in the ninth century.
Neither can it be successfully urged that it was after this
event, in A.D. 843, when the Scots of the Irish branch obtained
the kingly power in the south and east of Caledonia, that the
mountains, rivers, and remarkable places of these fertile parts
of the country first received their Gaelic names, and that the
inhabitants of these districts then and at once adopted the
Gaelic language.'*

The Celtic words Inver and Aber have nearly the same

» P. F. Tytler's History of Scot-
lanflf vol. ii. p. 188.

• Cosmo Inncs, Sketches of Early
Scottish History, pp. 85, 86.

■ His reign extendetl from 1057 to
1093.

* hi Abenleeiishire, even since the
tonnueucenient of the present cen-
tury, a {^reat change has passed, and
is still in pi-ogrcss, in the names of

places. In the Lowlands of Scotland
the progress of draining has destroyed
the modest rilLs that flowed half-con-
cealed through green swampy glens or
sheltered glades, and names commenc-
ing with the Gflelic **Allt" arc now
s(d<lom heanl. Other Celtic names
have been changed, and many can be
traced, although absurdly fashioned
into Saxon fonns.

INVER AND ABEB. 27

meaning ; and the relative position in which they occur in
names of places has been employed as if it were a sufficient
argument for defining the presence or preponderance of the
British or Gaelic Celts in certain districts. In this way Aber,
prefixed to names of places, has been urged as adequate proof
that the Picts of Caledonia were Celts of the British branch.
The value of these and some other words requires examination.
Inver is to be found in names of places in Wales. It may
possibly be a British word. It certainly is a Gaelic one. Aber,
although undoubtedly British, is also Gaelic — compounded of
the two words Ath and Bior — and signifying the same as
Inver, viz., the confluence of two streams, or the entrance to
a river. If the word Aber had been miknown to the Gaelic
scholars of modem days, its former existence in that language
might have been presumed from the ancient names of places
in the districts of Caledonia, where it occurs most frequently,
being generally Gaelic and not British.

Beyond the limits of Caledonia on the south of the Forth
and Clyde, but within the boundary of modern Scotland, the
word Inver, generally pronounced Inner, is of common occur-
rence, and bears witness to a Gaelic nomenclature. Thus,
Inner or Inverkip, in the county of Eenfrew ; Innerwell, in
the county of Wigton ; Innerwick, in the county of Hadding-
ton ; Innerleithen, in the county of Peebles ; Inverleith and
Inveresk, in the county of Edinburgh, derive their names from
their situation in regard to the rivers Kip, Leitlien, Esk, etc. etc.

From the iloray Firth to the Forth, in the eastern
counties of Caledonia, the prefix Inver or Aber is used

28 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

indiscriminately in contiguous places. At the confluence of
lesser streams with the river Dee, in Aberdeenshire, we find
Inverey, Abergeldie, Invercauld, Invercanny, Aberdeen. Yet
in those counties — viz., Aberdeen, Kincardine, Forfar, Perch,
and Fife, in which were situated the capitals, and which were
the richest provinces of the southern Picts — the number of
names of places beginning with Inver is three times as nume-
rous as those commencing with Aber ; there being, in a list
taken from land-registers, which do not go farther back than
the middle of the sixteenth century, seventy-eight with Inver
to twenty-four with Aber. It may, however, be adiuitted that,
although Aber is Gaelic, its use is far more general by Celts
of the British tribes ; and that the predominance of Inver in
the districts north of the Spey, and the intermixture of places
the names of which commence with Inver or Aber, not unfre-
quently used in records of nearly the same date for the same
place in the country lying between the Moray and the
Solway Firths, is, to a certain extent, evidence of a British
element of popidation extending into Caledonia. The Britons,
in earlier times, may have been pressing on to the north by
gi'adual intrusion, and were probably afterwards increased
by bodies of exiles escaping from the severity of Roman
bondage and the punishment of unsuccessful revolt.

By late eminent ethnological authorities, the word Sliabh,
as the Gaelic for mountain, being, it is assumed, confined
to Ireland, and not known " even in the Gaelic parts of
Scotland," is deemed, along with the prevalence of the
word Aber, to be all but conclusive against the country

SLIABH AND BEN. 29

having been early and generally occupied by the Gaelic
branch of the Celts. Although many more examples might
be produced, those already noted are sufficient to destroy
the value of the argument founded on the words Aber and
Tnver. The like effect will, it is presumed, result from an
examination into the real meaning of the word Sliabh,
which, it has been alleged, was the true Irish Gaelic word
for mountain, whilst Ben was the word similarly employed in
Caledonia.

Assent may justly be refused to whatever is important in
these alleged facts, whilst it may be admitted that Sliabh is
the current word for many mountains in Ireland. But
" Sliabh,'' though called synonymous by those who uphohl
these views with Moin or Muin, a moimtain, rather means a
heathy ground, whether it be low and flat, or in the shape of
a hilL " Sliabh" signifies " any heathland, whether mountain^
or plain."

Tlie statement that Sliabh, as mountain or moor, is
imknown or uncommon either in the Gaelic parts or even
in those districts of Caledonia farthest removed from the
portions so designated, is a mistake. Sliabh Ghaoil, Sliabh-
diasg — the Sleuch mountain above Loch Maree — at once
occur in refutation ; and no doubt many more might be
added. But it is of more consequence, in support of the
proposition which this note is intended to demonstrate, to
turn to names of places in the eastern and southern parts of

* O'Brien's Dictionary^ 1832, (juoUhI in Dr. Keeves' Adamnan's Life of
St. Columki, 1857, 4to.

30 ETHNOLOGY OF CALKDONIA.

Caledonia in which SKabh can be distinctly traced, although
now in a corrupted form.

In a very ancient deed fixing tlie boundaries of certain
lands granted to the religious establishment of Culdees at
Monymusk, in Aberdeenshire, by King Malcolm Canmore,
one of the points specified is from the summit of the moun-
tain called Scleuemingome/ the Hill of the Goats ; Slamannan,
in Stirlingshire,^ but bordering on Linlithgow and Lanark-
shires ; Eupe de Slwy,^ Kincardineshire ; Sleavenochill —
Sleive-n-Ochill — the Ochill-hills ; Sliauche and Slouie, Aber-
deenshire ; Sleug and Slew, in Perthshire ; Slew, Wigtonshire,
etc. etc.

Neither is Ben or Beinn, as a Gaelic word for mountain
or hill, in any way confined to Caledonia or uncommon in
Ireland In the extreme north-west portion of Ireland there
is the mountain of Benmore ; and in the extreme east of that
island, Ben Edair, the ancient name of what is now so well
known as the HiU of Howth. Then there are Benna Boirche,
mountains of Moume ; Ben-dubh, Tipperary ; Ben Levagh,
Galway ; Benbalbagh and Benicolben, Sligo ; Benchor,
Bangor, Ulster ; Ben Eigny, now Benyvenagh, near Loch
Foyle ; BenduflP, Tipperary, etc. etc.

Having thus stated reasons why Aber and Slieve, so far

* Scleuemingornc — Sleive-nan-Gao- ' Sliebh Mannain.

rain — " versus orientem usque ad ca- • Slew is often used for Sliebh in

cumen montis qui vocatur Scleueinin- Irish names ; as Slewardagh for Slieb-

gome quod interpretatur Mora Capra- hardagh ; Slemish for Sliebh - Mis,

rum." — Robertson's AntiquUies of etc.
Aberdeen ami Banff Shires, Spalding
Club, vol. i. i» 172.

PEN ANT) KEN — BAL AND ARD. 31

from being conclusive, are not even available as important
evidence in contradiction of the proposition that the original
Celtic population of Caledonia was Gaelic, not British, I pro-
ceed to point out a few words in confirmation of the proposi-
tion, and in proof that it equally applies to the inhabitants of
the eastern and southern as to those of the w^estern districts
of Caledonia. Neither do the words now to be quoted depend
on a few or solitary instances. Thus, an ordinary gazetteer^
shows upwards of four hundred and fifty names of places in
Wales beginning wdth Llan, and only one in Caledonia.^
Beyond its southern limits, but principally in Wales and
Cornwall, names of places commencing with Pen may be
reckoned by hundreds ; in Caledonia three or four only have
this prefix ; the Gaelic equivalent Ken, Kean, or Kin, as now
used, but originally Ceann or Cinn,^ is that found in names of
places to which Pen is applicable on the northern side of
the Forth. Ken or Kin is more common in Wales than Pen
in Scotland ; for instances — Kinmael, Flintshire ; Kengarth,
Pembrokeshire ; Kinnerton, Eadnorshire ; Kenfig, Glamor-
ganshire, etc.

That names of places containing the words Bal, from Bail,
a place or residence, and Ard, a height or rising ground, are
so common in Ireland and comparatively rare, so is alleged,
in Caledonia, has also been used as an argument to prove

* Gorton's Topographical Dictionary. ' Tliere is no letter K in Gaelic. In

' Even the existence of that one is the counties of Aberdeen, Kincardine,

capable of being explained so as not Forfar, Fife, and Perth, a cursory

to affect the argument, viz., Llan- examination of registers shows three

bride, in Morayshire. names beginning with Pen, and two

hundred with Kean or Kin.

32 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

that the language of the Picts and other Caledonians of the
southern and eastern districts was British, not Gaelic. But
the foundation of the argument has been assumed, and is
easily disproved. It is true that of large towns and places
that appear in gazetteers names commencing with Bal and
Ard are not numerous. But in fact such names are extremely
common. In the lowlands of Aberdeenshire — that is, in the
portion of one county, and in the part of Caledonia farthest
removed from the settlements of the intrusive Gaels, viz., the
Scots from Ireland — registers of land show upwards of fifty
places the names of which commence with Bal, and forty
which commence with Ard. In the Pictish territory, from
the Moray Firth to the Forth, I soon collected upwards of
four hundred names of places beginning with Bal, and up-
wards of one hundred with Ard ; and the number might
easily be doubled.

VII. " The Picts were GaclSy hut hciitg pressed on by
British Celts, and afterwards augmented by British
emigrants, became eventually, particularly in the eastern
and southern parts of Caledonia, not less Celtic but
to some extent British,''

There seems suflficient reason for believing that the Picts
were the ancient Celtic inhabitants of the southern, northern,
and eastern districts of Caledonia, who received from others,
about the commencement of the fourth century, the name of
Picts in place of Caledonians ;^ — neither of these names, it is

* Many of the argameuts on this point will be found in Tliomas Innes's

SCOTS, PICTS, AND ATTACOTTS. 33

probable, being acknowledged by themselves ; but that point
is immateriaL

Bede informs us^ that two savage foreign nations — the
Scots from the north-w^est and the Picts from the north, who
attacked the inhabitants of South Britain — were not called
foreign from being inhabitants of countries out of Britain,
but because they were from that part of Britain which ex-
tended beyond two inlets of the sea — \az., the Firths of Forth
and Clyde. It cannot be doubted, from the constitution of
Celtic society, that there were various subdivisions in the
Scots as well as in the Picts. One of these tribes seems par-
ticularly to have attracted attention — viz., the Attacotti, who
by one ancient author are called a warlike race ;^ while St.
Jerome vouches for their being fastidious cannibals.^

Bede cannot, in his account of the languages of Britain, be
asserted as giving authority, direct or implied, to any gi'eater
affinity between the language of the Picts and the Britons
than between that of the Scots and the Picts. lie merely
states the four languages of Great Britain as being those of
the Britons, Picts, Scots, and English.

Valuable as any information acquired from Bede un-

Ciml and Ecdcsiitstical Iluitory of * St Jerome, Mon. Hist. Brit. p.

Scotland^ pp. 20-22, Spalding Club, xcix. It lifus been suggested that the

1853. See also Mr. W. F. Skene's name given by classic authors to this

Iligklands of Scotland^ vol. i. pp. tribe, viz., the Attacotti, may have

12-20, and a whole array of authors been derive<l from an epithet applie«l

and authorities in Chalmers's CaJe- to them l)y other tribes or communi-

di/niitj vol. i. pp. 191-230. ties that suffered from their feroeity.

* Hint. Ecd. AiufLWh. i. cap. xii. The Oaelic words, Athaich-C'oillteach,
Mon. Hist. Brit. p. 117. are not very diflerent in sound — Ath-

* Ammianus Marcellinus, Mon. aith signifying *' giants," and C'oill-
llist. Brit. p. Ixxiii. teach " a woody country."

VOL. I. I)

34 ETHNOLOCJY OF CALEDONIA.

(loubtodly is in regard to the Picts and Scots, there is a work
equally trustworthy, of earlier date, and fi'om its peculiar
scope naturally affording much more detailed information on
the subjects now under consideration. I allude to Adamnan's
TAfe of St. Columba} From this history it would not
appear that there was any great difference between the
language spoken by the saint and the dialect of the Picts.
There is indeed one passage that directly, and one which
doubtfully refers to St. Columba, as employing some one to
interpret for him when addressing the Picts and while ex-
plaining the Scriptures.^ But in reasoning with the Pictish
King Bnideus, and with the king's tutor, Broichan the Druid,
the saint does not seem to have required an interpreter, nor
when he explained true religion and converted Emchatus and
his household. These circumstances admit of easy explana-
tion, if we acknowledge as authority the lives of St. Cainich
and St. Comgall, who are said to have accompanied St.
Columba when he visited the Pictish king at his fortress^ near
the Ness river, and to have taken part in his conversion ;
for these friends of St. Columba were of the race of the Irish
Picts.* From the ancient names of places, rivers, and mountains
in Caledonia, there cannot have been any great difference
between the dialects of the Scots and Picts, whether of Ire-
land or of Caledonia.

* Edited in 1857 by Dr. Reeves, • Believed to be Craig- Phadric.
with an immense amount of valuable * Dr. Reeves's Adamnan^ pp. 93,
information in the editor's notes. 220, 221 ; and Mr. Skene, in the Pro-

* I)r. Reeves's Adaimuiny pp. 62 cccdiitga of tJi£ SociHy of AiUiquaiHcs
and 145. of Scotlatul, vol. iv. pp. 301, 302.

PICTISH LANOUxVGE. 35

The only four words that there are authorities for fixing
as Pictish are now to be considered. On two of them, or
rather one compound word, great stress has been laid as a
principal argument for the opinion that the Picts w^ere of
the British and not of the Gaelic race of Celts. These words
are Peann-Fahel. The other two words are ScoUofthes and
Cartoit Of the last word, I have only seen " cartoit, a pin, in
the Pictish language/' ^ It may here be premised that in the
following remarks, speaking of the Pictish language, thb
original language of the Picts in Caledonia is meant, and not
any dialect in use by the mixed race established betw^een the
Roman walls ; nor a British dialect, partly intruded on the
Gaelic in the south and south-eastern districts of Caledonia,
and which, judging by the names of places, decreased towards
the northern provinces, and entirely ceased before it ap-
proached that part of Caledonia in which tlie northern Pictish
capital was situated — viz., near the river Ness.

With regard to Peann-Fahel, which is so written in the
oldest manuscripts of Bede, and fixed as the name of the
place where the Eoman wall of Antoninus terminated on the
east coast, the place, although on the border, is not in
Caledonia, the country of the Picts proper. Bede says it is
called Peann-Fahel in the Pictish language. From this
various writers have assumed that peann is to be considered
identical with Pen.^ This must not be taken for granted.
Pen is a British Celtic word, which enters into the formation

* Dr. Reeves's Adamnan, quoting English tongue" is no sufficient proof
** Connac Gloss." p. 63. in opposition to the general absence of

• Being called "Pennultun in the Pen in the nomenclature of Caledonia.

30 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

of very iiiany names of places in all parts of Britoin except
in Caledonia, the country of the Picts in Britain. From
north to south ; from the Lothians and Dumfriesshire to the
counties of Doraet and Sussex ; from the shores of Kent,
Norfolk, Durham, and Haddington on the east, to those of
Cornwall, Pembroke, Caernarvon, Lancaster, and Wigton on
the west, Pen is a common prefix to names of places ; whilst
it is all but unknow^n in the proper names of Caledonia and
Ireland.

The word " Scollofthes" is declared by an author of the
twelfth century U) be the Pictish name for the " clerks of the
church."^ Attention was first called to this passage by Mr.
Joseph Robertson in his Treatise on (lie Scholastic Offices of
the Scottish Church in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Century.'^
The place where the incident occurred in which the word
Scollofthes came to be used was at Kirkcudbright, which the
writer, Reginald of Durham, calls in Pictland, although it is
so far removed from Caledonia, the country of the true Picts.
An examination of these words, therefore, affords no proof
that the original Picts were Celts of the British bmnch.

To j)rove that the constitution of society among the
Picts was to a certain extent peculiar, and that the symbols
graven on the sculptured stones of Caledonia are different
from those of any other country, cannot materially influence
the decision as to which of the two gi-eat divisions of the
Celtic race — viz., the Gaelic or British — the Picts should be

* This )K'ing an office of the Chris- * Mr. Joseph Robertson, in Miscel-
lian f^hurrh, cannot be consi«h»re<l as Inny of th' Spal(h'7ig Cfuh^ vol. v. p.
.in orifjinal ('i»ltic evpressiou. 56.

CALEDONIAN HIEROGLYPHICS. 'M

assigned ; for these peculiarities are not found amongst tlie
Gaels of Ireland, the Scots of Caledonia, or the Britons of
Wales and Cornwall. This seems to confine the points of
primary importance in regard to the origin of the Picts to
two — viz., whether there were originally such essential differ-
ences between the Picts and the Gaels, and between the Picts
and Britons, as to constitute the Picts a third gi'cat division
of the Celtic race ? — for the language of Caledonia is admitted
U) have been Celtic. If this point — viz., the Picts constituting
a third division — is not insisted on (and it could not be
successfully maintained), it follows that the peculiarities, if
not existing in the original emigrants to Albion, gradually
arose or were developed in that Celtic tribe or tribes called
by the Irish the Cruithne, and historically known as Picts.

Even if the preceding remarks are admitted as reasonable,
it would still remain to be considered whether the peculiari-
ties of Pictish polity, and the Caledonian hieroglyphics found
in the countiy inhabited by the Picts of Scotland, were
spontaneous devices of that people, or resulted from foreign
influence and example. As regards the sculptures, tlie latter
alternative appears most probable ; and with the present
limited means for fonning an opinion, the Pluenicians or
their colonists are the only people of whom there are reasons
for believing that they had intercourse with, and may have
influenced, the Celtic i>()pulation of the most fertile regions of
Caledonia, to which these sculptures are nearly confined.

38 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

VIII. " There were Albannaich {Gaels, Scots) in Caledonia,
and Cmithne or Cridnnich (Picts) in Ireland, before the
name either of Scots or of Picts appears in history!*

IX. " In the noi^thern and western parts of Caledonia
tlie population remained more exclusively Gaelic than
in the sovihem and eastern divisions. The Gaels
on the west were occasionally increased by emigrants
from a kindred race in Ireland. In the beginning
of the sixth century the Scots and Gaels in the
western portion of Caledonia received from Ireland an
important accession, not so much by numbers as in in-
flu£)Uial leaders of the Scots, who thenceforth gradually
increased their influence until tliey obtained supremacy,
and gave their name to the country of Scotland^

That the Scots became a dominant tribe in Ireland, and at
one period gave tlieir name to the island, and that they kept
up communication with the Scots in Caledonia, may be fully
admitted. Probably the Attacotti were a kindred or Scottish
tribe ;^ but the numbers of Scots alluded to in Irish annalists
as emigrants or auxiliaries to the Caledonians could have had
no material influence in the wars either of resistance or
aggression which were ceaselessly and sometimes successfully
maintained by the inhabitants of Caledonia — Scots and Picts —
against the Romans and Romanised Britons. Neither could
the Scots of Ireland, with their primitive vessels,* have been

* The Attacotti, if we admit tlie BriUiin. See also note to previous
authority of Ricluml of Cirencester, ])roiK>sition regarding tlic Attacotti.
were a peojilc once forniidahle to all ^ CurachC'orwg, or coracle-boats

SCOTO-IRISH COLONY. 39

at all times ready to cross the Irish Cliannel, and join in
defending Caledonia or attacking the Eoman province — even
if, in defiance of all examples and histories, ancient and
modern, the Irish septs had been in continual amity with each
other and with the Caledonian tribes.

The confined limits of the rugged territory occupied by
the Scots of Ireland in Britain is of itself sufficient evidence
against the Scoto-Irish of Caledonia having been an influential
body in the wars of the Caledonians against the Romans in
the fourth century. Even the emigration of Scots from Ire-
land in A.D. 506 under the sons of Eire, which has assumed
so great a position in Scottish history, and is chronicled with
considerable pomp in Irish annalists, consisted only of " three
times fifty men ;*' whUe it is disputed whether the royal
brothers and leadera of this company numbered five or six —
the period of the arrival of these one hundred and fifty emi-
grants to Albion being about a century and a half after the
commencement of the continual aggressions of the Scots and
Picts upon the Romanised provinces of Britain.

The Scots from Ireland in Caledonia were neither numerous,
politically important, nor entirely independent of their Irish
chieftains, imtil under Aidan, the first ordained and inaugu-
rated king in Scotland of that tribe called Dalriads. Tliey
had, until a.d. 575, not only a country, Dalriada, and a king
in Ireland ; but he also claimed authority over those of his
tribe who had settled on the south-western peninsula of Cale-

maiie of wiokei-work rovcrcd with brought St. Coin mlm and 1 lis folio wei^s
hidoH. Such wa8 thp vossj'l that to Scotlandin a. n. 563.

40 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

(Ionia. It is clear from their history even at the period, viz.,
A.D. 575, when Aidan*s authority over these colonists was
partially recognised by the original tribe in Ireland, that his
subjects were not a numerous body.

It seems, therefore, reasonable to infer that the Scots —
who for more than two hundred years previous to 575 are
repeatedly mentioned as having formed one of the most
important divisions of the Caledonian confederacy of Scots
and Picts, waging continual conflict with the Eomans and
Britons — should not be confounded with a colony of Scots
from Ireland, who crept into a remote peninsula of Caledonia
at a later period ; a colony which was originally unimportant,
although it became prominent afterwards, its chiefs having
eventually acquired and transmitted to their posterity the
united regal power, and given the name of Scotland to the
Albainn of the Gaels — the Caledonia of the classic authors.

Contiguous to the country of the Dalriad Scots, which
occupied the north-east part of Ireland, lay the country of the
Cruithne Picts, extending more to the south. They appear
to have been one of tlie more powerful and influential tribes,
and from their name and locality offer a strong argument for
the identity of the original Gaelic population in Caledonia
and Hibernia — Albion and lerne.

It does not follow because the name of Scotia, in the
early historical period, was only applied to Ireland, that there
were not Scots in Caledonia previous to the gradual intru-
sion of tlie Dalriad colony. Although a dominant tribe in
Ireland, Ihoy may havo l)een, 1 believe they were, of less

SCOTS AND PICTS. 41

importance in North Britain than tliose called Caledonians
and Picts.

The Picts of the classic authors — the Cruithne of the
Celtic — occupied a large poition of Ireland, but never appear
to have been noticed by any writers except the native annal-
ists. The early Scots of Caledonia may have held the like
subordinate position in Northern Albion that the Cruithne •
(Picts) did in Ireland.

The earliest notice of the Scots in Britain is by Ammianus
Marcellinus, when, in a.d. 360, the Scots, in conjunction with
the Picts, devastated the Koman provinces in Britain.^ The
most northerly of the Roman possessions in Britain had,
previous to this date, l)een formed into the province of
Valentia, on the extreme northern frontier of which the
Romans had erected fortified lines extending between the
Firths of Forth and Clyde. Tlie Scots and Picts renewed
their inroads in the years 364 and 368 ; and in these two
irruptions were united with the Attacotti, another Cale-
donian tribe, which first makes its appearance in history at
this time.

The Scots and Picts continued to harass the Roman
provinces, and their inroads, apparently increasing, are noted
in the years 382, 388, 396, 398, 409, 411, 416, 426, 436, and
up to 445,^ when the Romans finally departed from Britain,
and left their former subjects of its southern provinces an
easy prey to the noithern hordes, classed under the names of
Scots and Picts.

* ^fon. Hist. lirit. Ixxiii.
2 MoH. Hist. Brit. pp. Ixxiii. -Ixxxii. in, 62, 92, 03, 117, etc.

42 ETHNOLOttV OV CALEDONIA.

That the Scots iu Britaia were a prominent tribe and
^temianeat iuhahitauta of Caleilouia would appear from the
position in wliich they are placed by Gildas,* NenuioB, and
Bede* — viz., the Scots were from the north-weat, or north-
weat and by west ; the Picts from the north (of the Roman
])rovince of Volentiu). Even if liistory had been silent on
tliis jioint, the walla built by the Romans would sufficiently
iiidicatu the direction wlieuco their enemies were expected
Ireland lie^ neither west nor nortb-west of the northern
wall ; and if it had been from Ireland that the Scottish
iuvailurs came, as it must have come by sea, there was no
occasion for them to pass the defenceless coasts of richer
provinces tliat tltcy might face the fortified wall of the
Roiuona, nor fur tlm liomans to build a wall which could
always be taken in reverse by their expected enemies.

X. " /« ike tarty penotl to which the yresciil investigatums
are UiniUd there is no authority fur admitting an
imi>ortant Scatulinavian elitnent in the population of
Caluhnia.'

XI. " T/u-n is no authority for aitmitting as historical, and
no ncivsnity for supposing, any notable mitp-ation by
ma into Caledonia from the period of Ctesnr's landing
to the death of Sntrus. The great amount of popula-
tion in that country which successfti/ly nsisteil the

'imi iM-r/a-rrrtng/if :rltacknl the Ri/nian.

. H"t. Bril. I", fill.

CALEDONUNS CELTIC.

43

provinces in Britain, appears, by reasonable deduction
from aictJientic history, to have been Celtic.^'

There does not appear any sufficient authority for the
assertion, or validity in the arguments, of those writers who,
with great ingenuity and enthusiasm, have endeavoured to
establish a Scandinavian or Teutonic origin^ for any of the
Caledonian tribes. Had any distinct race, alien to the Celtic
inhabitants of Caledonia, existed before, or established them-
selves during, the three first centuries of the Christian era in
the country on the northern sides of the Forth and Clyde,
the Eomans, with tlieir usual insidious and unscrupulous
policy, would not have failed to foim a league with the
intrusive element before undeitaking their expeditions against
the Caledonians ;^ whereas we know that their various tribes
were unanimous in cherishing an intense hatred and in offer-
ing a combined opposition to the Eomans. Nor was this a

' A charter granted between a.d.
1171 and 1199 by David Earl of Hun-
tingdon, brother of the Scottish king,
to Malcolm, son of Bartholf, the an-
cestor of the families of the name of
Leslie, is addressed to all true sub-
jects, lay or clerical, " Francis, Anglis,
Flamingis, et Scotis." Here the Teu-
tonic elements are strongly marked,
the Scandinavian entirely omitted ;
yet, long before the date of this charter,
there were not wanting, although in a
less proportion, Scandinavian ingre-
dients in the ^wpulation of Aberdeen-
shire. (This charter is printed in
Kobertaon's Antiquities of Af^erdeen-
f^hire^ vol. i. p. 646, Spalding Clu]).)

* The Saxons, who afterwards formed
80 prominent a portion of the popula-
tion of Scotland, are unknown to his-
tory until A.D. 287, when they are
firat mentioned by Eutropius as in-
festing the coasts of Belgica and Ar-
morica. It is nearly a hundred years
before the Saxons are again mentioned,
and then by Ammianus Marcel lin us,
as, along with Picts, Scots, and Atta-
cots, vexing the Britons by unceasing
attacks. But it is to the eleventh
century, and the reign of Malcolm
Canmore, that Scotland owes that
([uiet influx of Saxon settlers that has
sometimes been called ** the Saxon
CNmcpiest."

44 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

transient entliusiasin, for the same resolute opposition to
aggression on their own territories, and vindictive i-etaliation
on the lloman districts, was continued by the Caledonians
during the whole period of the Roman occupation of South
Britain. So enduring and remarkable an accordance in feel-
ing and action amongst many Celtic tribes can only be
accounted for by supposing them to have been directed by
some unceasing and general controlling power. The cruel
superstition, subtle policy, and paramount authority of the
Druids, stimulated by lloman persecution, suggests the in-
fluence of that priesthood as the most i)robable explanation of
such unwonted unanimity and perseverance in the various
Celtic tribes of Caledonia.

Tlie repeated revolts of dififereiit tribes in South Britain,
as the Iceni, Ordovices, Silures, etc., who rose against their
oi)pressors, and the severities inflicted by the Romans conse-
quent on the re-establishment of their authority, will suffi-
ciently account for Caledonia being crowded by exiled Britons.
For example, in the case of the Brigantes, who occupied the
country on the north of the ^fersey and Huniber, it is only
reasonable to presume that when vanquished they did not
wait to be exterminated, although that is said to have been
their fate, but retired from their rugged and fort^st-clad region
across a nominal boundary, along with the Caledonians, with
whom they had leagued in attacks upon their southern neigh-
bours and foreign masters.^ Thereafter, as restless and land-

* Whilst A. Didiiis-GaUus wiw Pro- protectors h( Cartismaiulua, the iiifa-
praetor in Britaui, hetwcvn A. P. 5(» moiis qiiocMi of the Brigaiitos, defeatod
and 58, thp Romans, appoaring as tlie tliat p^ojjlo under the command of

THE BKIGANTES.

45

less exiles, giiided by a proscribed priesthood, it is not difficult
to account for tlieir hostility to former oppressor or to settlers
on lands of which they had been dispossessed/

The Brigantes, it is probable from their position, were
of the oldest Celtic race,^ and this is supported by one of the
tribes in Ireland, mentioned by Ptolemy, being of the same
name. Tlieir resistance to the Romans in earlier periods,
and their insurrections afterwards in support of the northern
assailants of the Romans, may also be deemed con*oborative of
tlie identity of the Brigantes with the Caledonians, and of their
being of the Gaelic branch. Probably, although such was the
original tribe that occupied the territory in which our earliest
histories place the Brigantes, there is proof that they were
intermixed and in communion with the tribes of the Celtic

their chief Venusius, the husband of
Cartismandua. — A n na Is of Toa^U tiSy
MoTU Hist. Brit. xxxviL But the
final defeat and disjKJSsession of tlie
Brigantes by the Romans is mentioned
by Pausanias {Mmi. Hist. lint. 1.),
and appears to have occurred when
the Brigantes joined the Caledonians,
who had made an irruption into the
Roman province. These nortlicrn
confederates were repelled by the Pro-
praetor Lollius Urbicus soon after the
accession of the Emperor Antoninus
Pius in A.D. 138.

What was understood by the de-
struction of a people such as the Bri-
gantes is explained by a pas.sa«^e in
the Annals of Tacitus {^flm. Hist.
Brit, xxxvii.), viz., that on the insur-
rection and pertinacious resistance of
the Silures against the Romans, the
Roman governor Ostorius declared

** that he would destroy the very
name of the Silures out of Britain, in
the same way as had been done for-
merly with the Sigambri, wlio had
been transported to (laul." This ex-
pression, having reached the devoted
tribe, is said to have stimulated their
tiercest paasions.

* Pinkerton, in his Enquinj into the
Early Historii of ticidland, vol. ii. p.
42 of the edition of 1814, says, in
his usual style, ** Pausanias seems,
in total ignorance of Britain, to call
the Maeatae Brigantes." In part
at least the Maeatae probably were
Brigant<*s.

^ The names of ])laces on the 8lo]>es
of the Alps and other parts of Western
Europe render it probable that this
tribe Were early inhabitants of thes**
b)caliti«'s.

46 ETHNOLOGY OF CALEDONIA.

British, when their name is first mentioned. Tliis, however,
is what might be expected, if the arrival of the Gaelic branch
preceded, and eventually and gradually gave place to that
later migration, the British Celts.

ffvni liif nms c^daitaae.

CHAPTEE III.

PHCENICIANS — THEIR INFLUENCE ON THE BRITONS AND

CALEDONIANS.

Phoenicians in Britain the earliest and for many ages the only Traders from
the East to Britain — Tarshisli — Similarity of Phoenician and British objects
of Worshij) — Baal and Ashtoretli — Bel or Bal in Phoenician and British
Names — Funeral Wail of the Celts — Chariots of the Britons — Phoenicians
prevent the knowledge of Britain and the route to it — The Celtic Maritime
States of Gaul — The Fleet of the Veneti, and its superior mode of con-
struction, probably the result of Phoenician influence — Temple of Saturn
at Cadiz — Its Priests — Their Dress similar to that of the Dniids — Phoe-
nician Monuments similar to the primitive Monuments of Britain — Super-
stitions in Sardinia, derived from the Phoenicians, similar to some in
Britain — The Nuraghes of Sardinia, and Picts' Houses of Caledonia.

ALTHOUGH the Celtic may not have been the first nor
the exclusive race in Britain, they are the earliest known
to history. But there are reasons for believing that the Pha»-
nicians — ^under which name are here included their colonists
in Africa and Europe, including Carthaginians and their
colonies — may, to a limited extent, be an element in the early
population of Britain, and in a more considerable degree have
influenced the manners and customs of its Celtic inhabitants ;
also, that this was the result, not only of commercial inter-
course, but that the Phoeniciana mixed with the piX3-occupants
of the soil, and are an ingredient in British ancestry. This

48 PirCENICIANS — THEIR INFLUENCE ON BRITONS.

would seem highly probable, even if there were no proofs in
support of such a position. Niebuhr, in his Ethnology^ remarks
the striking facility with which the Phoenicians became amal-
gamated with foreign nations ; and Turner, in his History of
the Anglo-Saxons^ includes the Phoenicians along with the
Kimmerians and Keltoi as the earliest inhabitants of Britain
of whom any authentic circumstances can be collected.

The Phoenicians were the earliest and for ages the only
people who knew the route by sea from the confines of Asia
to the western extremities of Europe. They alone, in the
early dawn of history, and probably for ages before, braved
the terrors, real and imaginary, that awaited the mariner who
might venture to pass beyond the Pillars of Hercules ; and
according to Strabo, the Phoenicians possessed the better part
of Africa, and were also settled in Spain before the age of
Homer ; and so continued until their dominion was finally
overthrown by the Eomans.

It cannot be supposed that a maritime people of such pre-
eminent enterprise as the Phoenicians, when they reached the
sacred promontory, the westernmost point of Eurape, would
long remain ignorant of the contiguous coasts of Gaul, and
the mineral wealth of the British Islands. We know it
was not so ; and that from these countries the Phamicians
supplied tin to the Greeks and other nations of Kastern
Europe and Western Asia. It has been suggested,** from the

* Niebuhr's Ethnology, translated and Trade of tJie Carthaginians, Ox-

by Schmitz, vol. ii. p. 288. ford. 1823, vol. i. p. 171.

» Quarto, 1807, p. 14. * By Kenrick in his Phwnicla, 1855,

^ Sec also Heeren on the Politics p. 118.

TARSHISH.

49

mention of Tarshish in tlie tenth l)ook of Genesis, and of
the gem Tarsis in Exodus/ that the Phoenicians traded to
Tartessus (i.e. Andalusia) before the period when the first
books of Moses were written. Gadeira (Cadiz) was not the
earliest Phoenician settlement in Spain ; yet there are his-
torical data for fixing tlie foundation of that colony at least
eleven hundred years B. c.^ Strabo, in another place from that
already quoted, makes the Tyrians precede an immigration of
Kelte into Iberia or Spain. The same author says that Car-
thage, the settlements in Spain, and beyond the Pillars^ proved
so successful to the Phcienicians that even to the present day
they occupy the best parts of the continent of Europe and
the neighhouring islands. From Polybius as well as Strabo
we know that the Phoenicians possessed the whole northern
coast of Africa. Pliny, in his Natural Histot^, quotes M.
Varro when he mentions Iberians, Persians, Phoenicians,

* Chap. xxviiL v. 20. From 2 Chro-
nicles, chap. XXV. 86, it would appear
that there was a place called Tai*shish
on the eastern coast of Africa, or hc-
yond it to the eastward, the name
being probably given by the Phceni-
cians. But the Tarshish from which
the wealth of that people was derived
was certainly in Spain. Of a Tar-
shiah other than that in Europe late
notices will be found in Lares and
PenaleSf by W. B. Barker, pp. 12,
13 ; and in Ceylon, by Sir J. E.
Tennent, vol. ii. pp. 99, 100, 101,
102. In the preface to Winslow's
New Tamil Didimiary we find that
** the names by which the ivory,
apes, and peacocks conveyed by Solo-

VOL. I.

mon's ships of Tarshish were known,
are the same with those still used in
Tamil ; seeming io imply that the
traders visited Ceylon or India, and
obtained with these novelties their
Tamil names — Dante, Kapi, and Togai
— as found in the Hebrew Bible."

Solomon's ships, however, di<l not
bring tin ; that in early ages came
from the West, not from tlie East.
On that subject 1 think a recent
work, The CassiieridrSy by George
Smith, LL.D., is full and satisfac-
tory. It confinns the opinion I had
previously formal, and renders un-
necessary many of the arguments 1
had formerly advanced.

' Kenrick's Phmiiciay p. 125.

E

50 I'IKKNICIANS — THEIR INFLUENCE ON THE BRITONS.

Celts, ami Carthaginians, as having spread themselves over
Spain.

As the young men of the Gauls who required to be per-
fected in the Druid mysteries were sent to complete their
education in Britain, it follows that the system must have
been more perfect in that island. Tliis can easily be accounted
for, if we regard the religion of the Druids as being in many
respects similar to that of the Phoenicians and Carthaginians,
in which case they would doubtless exercise great influence
over the votaries of a kindred worship, to whom in all branches
of knowledge they were superior. A few circumstances, in
proof of similarity of the worship of the Pha^nicians and the
ancient Britons, may here be introduced in addition to those
which are referred to under the heads of Stone Worship, The
Menhir, Baal, Beltane, and in describing many of the figures
found on the sculptured stones of Scotland.

Ehodes, as might be expected from its position, was visited
and possessed by the Phoenicians at a very early period, long
before the Trojan war/ The sun, in his physical character of
Helios, was the chief deity of Ehodes, and in later times was
represented by the Colossus of Ehodes. It also appears that
the inhabitants of that island were famous for astrology and
navigation ; that they were supposed to possess the power of
raising tempests and of transfonniug themselves into the
form of other animals ; moreover, that they anxiously kept
secret the knowledge they possessed.^ It will be remarked

* Kenrick's Phamicia^ p. 78.
* Diodonis SicniluM, l». v. chap. 3; Linan's Pfiarsnh'a, b. v.

RELIGION OF THE PHCENICIANS. 51

that many of these qualities were attributed to the Druids of
Gaul and Britain.

A similarity in the practices of the Druids to those of
the Patriarchs was long since pointed out/ and there is no
want of authorities to prove how generally the planetary
worship prevailed in the old woricL But with regard to the
Phoenicians, it will be sufficient to quote the last and most
comprehensive writer on their country :^ " Baal and Ashtoreth,
the two chief divinities of Phoenicia, were unquestionably the
sim and moon, and the minor deities appear either to have
been the same heavenly bodies, or at least to have repre-
sented objects of astral worship."* Tlie fragments that have
been preserved regarding the religion of the Phoenicians show
that their theology " had its real origin in the personification
of the elements and the worship of the heavenly bodies/*'*
" The Apollo of the Phoenician colonies at Utica and Carthage
was probably the solar god. Bel or Baal was also identified
with the planet Saturn, which, as the highest of the series,
presided over the rest, and was therefore their Lord or BaaL"®
The richest and most superb edifice in Carthage was the
Temple of Apollo,^ and probably, as in Ehodes, in his
original character, viz., representing the sun. Heliogabulus,

* Universal Andent History ^ 1748, and also had often led to new alxKles
vol. xviii. p. 649, et seq.y and works a population which had left entire
there quoted. cities, such as the Tyrians.

* Kenrick's PJuenicia. • Kenrick's PJvotnicia, p. 299, and

* Ih, p. 298. * Ih. p. 295. ' authorities quoted by him.

* We are told by Lucan, in the fifth ^ Diodorus S., b. xvii., and Uni-
book of his Pharsalidt that Phoebus versal Ancient Hvit/>ryf vol. xvii. p.
wa.s the fate-foretelling deity of Delphi, 278.

.52 PHCENICIANS — THEIR INFLUENCE ON THE BRITONS.

the Eoman emperor, caused the image of Astarte, the moon,
to be brought from Carthage, and espoused to the conical
stone, the representative of the sun, which he had brought
from Phoenicia.^

In Britain, coins of Greek cities on the coasts of Syria or
Asia Minor, and of the fourth and fifth centuries B.C., have
been discovered in strata apparently older than the Eoman
period ; and two altars, one dedicated to the Syrian Astarte,
the other to the Tyrian Hercules, have been found in the
north of England- Yet, as both the coins and altars were
found at places — ^viz., Exeter and Corbridge — once occupied
by the Eomans, their auxiliaries might have brought the
coins, and certainly erected the altars.^

Pinkerton has said that " Druidism was palpably Phoeni-
cian;"^ and Sammes remarks, "that the customs, religion,
idols, offices, and dignities of the ancient Britons are all cleariy
Phoenician."* Such decided opinions, without more support
than these authors have given in the evidence which they
advance, are not calculated to increase the number of their
followers. Yet the more that the subject is examined, the
stronger do the reasons appear for considering that the religion
of the Britons, as well as the form of their fanes and primitive
monuments, greatly resembled those of the early Phoenicians.
This similarity, however, does not prove that Britain derived

* Gibbon's Raincm Empire^ chap. vi. ' Enquiry into th£ ffisiory of Scot-

' Wilson's PrehiMorie Annals of land, vol. i. 17.

Scotland, pp. 202, 203 ; and Wright, * Brittan. Aiitiqua, preface, 1676,

Ancient Inhabitants of Britain, pp. fol.
269, 270, 271.

PHCENICIANS IN BRITAIN. 53

its gods or modelled its fanes entirely from Phoenician ex-
ample, but renders it probable that to both countries some
objects of worship, and forms of Cyclopean monuments, had
descended from a common source.

It would be natural to conclude that a people so intelligent
as the Phoenicians greatly influenced a nation comparatively
rude, such as the Britons, with whom the Phoenicians held a
profitable intercourse for ages before Britain was accessible
or even known to the rest of the world. But on this point we
are not altogether left to conjecture, for Diodorus Siculus states
that the inhabitants of the promontory of Balerium (Cornwall)
are more civilised and courteous to strangers than those who
live in other parts of the island. He then refers to the skill
with which they procure and prepare the tin-ore, and carry it
to the place of export in carts and waggons. When trans-
ferred by merchants to the opposite coast, the ore was con-
veyed to Maraeilles on pack-horses. This, with Caesar's
notice of roads in Britain, and his description of the war-
chariots and training of the British charioteers, would incline
us to suppose that in roads, as well as in carriages and Druid
mysteries, the Britons were superior to their brethren in Gaul.
If, therefore, it is admitted that the Celts passed from Gaul
into Britain, and that afterwards religion and the arts became
more developed in the last-settled and less accessible country,
it seems a rational conclusion that the impulse to these im-
provements, like the greater civilisation of the inhabitants in
the tin district, was received from the people with whom they
had continued communication bv sea.

54 PHOENICIANS — THEIR INFLUENCE ON THE BRITONS.

The prefix or suffix of Bel or Bal, used in Phoenician and
Carthaginian names, is also found in the names of the earliest
British kings preserved in history — ^viz., Cassibellaunus, Cinno-
bellinus, and Mynocinobellinus — and may be taken as an
evidence of partial union of the Punic with the British people,
or of Phoenician influence on British institutions. In two
ancient authors the names Cassibelan and Cunobeline are
both called simply Belinus. By Henry of Huntingdon a
brother of the king Cassibelanus is called Belinus.^ Nennius
calls the king Belinus.^

The Bomans had their conclamatiOj and most other nations
peculiar modes of lamentation, on the occasion of death or at
funeral ceremonies ; and it seems not a little extraordinary
that the funeral wail for the Phoenician princess Dido, men-
tioned by Virgil, may still be heard at the funeral of poor
Celts in the centre and west of Ireland. The ululatus of
Virgil, the hululu of the Greek, may be heard repeated as
ululu hululu in wild but most musical chaunts at funerals
in Leinster and Connaught.^

The waggons by which the Britons transported the tin-ore to
the mart where it was to be disposed of are mentioned by Diodo-
rus Siculus, and Caesar speaks with admiration of the number
of the war-chariots and the skill of the British charioteers.
From Tacitus and Dion we learn that chariots were also part

^ Mon, Hist. BrU. p. 696. incidences in the funeral laments and

• Ih. p. 59. ceremonies of the Irish with what is

* On the coronach (i.e. funeral wail) attributed to the mother of Euryalufi,
Pennanthas made interesting remarks, etc. etc. (Pennant's Tour in Scotland^
and mentions some of the curious co- vol. iii. pp. 113, 114, 115, edit. 1790.)

WAR CHARIOTS. 55

of the military equipment of the Caledonian army. Even if
the roads in Britain had not been mentioned particularly by
Caesar, the above facts would have been sufficient to determine
that such existed. As these circumstances show no incon-
siderable amount of civilisation amongst the inhabitants of
Britain previous to the commencement of the Christian era
and the first landing of the Eomans, they also suggest inquiry
on two points, viz., from whence were obtained the models of
these chariots, and the horse-equipments necessary in per-
forming the dexterous evolutions which were practised by
the British charioteers ? or by whom were the native artificers
taught the construction of the vehicles and the manufacture
of the necessary appliances? Unless the natives liad pre-
served a knowledge, acquired previous to their arrival in
Britain, of the necessary arts, the only people who were likely
to have been their instructors were the Phoenicians ; and
even in the days of Joshua war-chariots formed part of the
equipment of the Philistine armies. In Caesar's account of
the siege of Avaricum he says his mines were coimtermined,
and the mound skilfully undernuned, by the Gauls, who
knew and practised every description of mining operations.
From the continued communication between the Britons and
the Gauls we may be assured — and the produce of tin from
Cornwall proves — that the Britons were equally expert as
miners, although this is nowhere mentioned.

The Phoenician race possessed the whole north coast of
Africa, from the Phihrnian altars, which are l)y the groat
Syrtis, to the straits of the Pillars of Hercules — a distance of

56 PnacNiciANs — their influence on the britons.

six hundred leagues/ and in Europe had extended their pos-
sessions to the Pyrensean mountains, the ferther extremity of
Spain, bounding on GauL From their valuable colonies and
populous towns in Spain the Phoenicians carried on their traffic
with the British isles.^ The value of that trade may be
inferred from the jealousy with which the Phoenicians not
only guarded all approach from the Mediterranean to the tin-
islands, but also obscured all correct knowledge of the country
itself, the route by which it was approached, or the people by
whom it was inhabited. In the treaty with the Carthaginians
in the fourth century b.c. the Romans became bound not to
advance their ships beyond Tarseius (Andalusia). The follow-
ing anecdote, preserved by Strabo,^ shows the intensity of this
monopolising policy on the part of the Phoenicians : — One of
their shipmasters, seeing that his vessel was dogged by another
that belonged to the Bomans, purposely ran his own vessel
upon a shoal, and thus caused the entire destruction of both.
The Phoenician mariner having saved his life by means of a
fragment of the wreck, received from his country the value of

^ Polybius, book iii. In Syria and to the south along the west coast of

Palestine, as well as on the Barbary Africa, it is not reasonable to snppose

coast, the inhabitants had places for that these enterprising navigators and

the concealment of com. (King's traders would neglect to persevere

Monumenta Anliqua^ pp. 44-55. For along the coast of Europe continu-

such places in Britain, see Diodo- ous from the havens of the most

fus Siculas. For a notice of similar valuable trading settlements which

subterraneous apartments in Cale- they possessed. Direct evidence in

donia, see in this work the chapter on this case supports reasonable deduc-

Weems.) tion, and proves, on tlie contrary,

* Strabo, M(m. Hist. Brit p. vi. that the Phoenicians drew abundant

As from Sallust we learn incidentally mineral wealth from Britain, as well

that the trade of the Phcenicians was as less valuable articles of trade,

carried on as far as thirty days* sail * Mon. Hist. Brit. p. vii.

•FLEET OF THE VENETI. 5/

the cargo which he had sacrificed. lu another place, Strabo,
quoting Eratosthenes, says that the Carthaginians drovvn any
strangers who sail past on their voyage to Sardinia or the
Pillars (of Hercules) ; hence much of what is related of the
parts towards the west is discredited.

The settlements of the Phoenicians in Gaul are less
distinctly mentioned, although their influence on the coasts
of the Atlantic are clearly perceptible in the maritime
adventure of the people and the superior construction of their
ships. The two principal places of departure in passing
from the west coasts of Europe to Britain, at the commence-
ment of the Christian era, were the mouths of the rivers
Garonne and Loire,^ — tlie country round the latter being
occupied by the Namneti, the next Celtic tribe to the Veneti,
who were the most powerful and experienced of the maritime
states of Celtic Armorica, and had a great number of large
ships, with which they were accustomed to sail to Britain.^
Their vessels were built of oak planks, not placed in imme-
diate contact with each other, but having interstices between
that were caulked with sea-weed. The benches of these ships
were a foot in breadth, and were fastened by iron spikes the
thickness of a man's thumb. The anchors were secured by
chain-cables of iron. The prows and poops were higher than
the turrets that had been erected on the decks of the Eoman
vessels;* and in the naval action on the coast of Armorica

^ Strabo, Mon, Ilist. Brit. p. vi. neti fought the uavol action with

■ Csesar, M(ni. Hist. Brit. p. xxvii. Caesar's fleet.
From Strabo, Mon. Hist. Brit. p. vi. , * Ciesar, b. iii chap. xiii. xiv. ; Stra-
it might be inferred that it was to bo, b. iv. chap. iv. s. 1.
preserve \\\\n commerce that the Ve-

58 PHCENICIANS — ^THEIR INFLUENCE ON THE BRITONS.

the Veneti and their allies had two hundred and twenty
ships. To account for the possession of so numerous a fleet —
so remarkable also in the size and equipment of the ships — it
seems necessary to admit the influence of Phoenician art and
science on the people of Armorica, or to come to the conclu-
sion that they possessed an innate civilisation superior to
what has ever been yet conceded to the Celts in Western
Europe prior to the conquest of Gaul and South Britain by
the Eoman armies.

The Veneti had a senate, the whole of the members of
which were put to death by Caesar's orders.^ The Pictish
king had also a senate.^ The ^dui of Gaul had a senate.
From these three senates of Celtic tribes being mentioned,
we may conclude that a senate was part of the organisation
of Celtic nations.

It will also be remarked that these great ships of the
Veneti were built with interstices between their planks, and
were caulked. The caulkers of the Tyrian ships are mentioned
in Ezekiel xxvii. 9. If we compare these ships of the Veneti
with the coracles of the Celts, in which, as late as the sixth
century of our era, the voyage of St. Columba and his twelve
followers was made from Ireland to Scotland, we can hardly
doubt that Phoenician intelligence directed the formation of
the Venetian vessels, and that the spirit of Phoenician
monopoly may have influenced the combination of the mari-
time nations of Gaul against Caesar.

* C(rsar^ h. iii. chap. xvi.
* Reeves' Adamnan'ti Vita St. ColumfxTy 4to, 1857, b. ii. chap. 36, pp. 151-2.

PHCENICIAN TEMPLE AT CADIZ. 59

Tlie temple of Saturn at Gadir (Cadiz) was believed
to be coeval with the estabUshment of the Tyxian colony
at that place, or about 1200 B.c. It is said by a Roman
author who wrote about the middle of the first century
of our era/ that in this temple was retained to the latest
times the primitive mode of Phoenician worship. There
was no image of the god, but an ever-burning fire was main-
tained, and the priests who attended were barefooted and
clad in linen.^ The sacred fires and the dress of the priests
were characteristics also of the Druids of Britain,* and both
the Phoenician and Druid priesthood appear to have practised
tonsure.

In another chapter wiU be found notices of Cyclopean
monuments similar to the Celtic, extending at intervals from
Phoenicia, on the northern shores of Africa, to the Straits of
Gibraltar, and from these through Spain and Gaul to the
British Islands. Under the head of " Inscriptions," also, some
in Phoenician characters are traced in the same route with
certainty to GauL Various ceremonies still practised in
Sardinia, and which are believed to have descended to the
present race in that island from their Phoenician ancestors,
have an extraordinary resemblance to superstitious practices
that were retained until a very recent period in Scotland, and
are noticed xmder the heads of Baal and Beltane.

In Sardinia, after certain ceremonies perfonned in connec-
tion with great fires lighted on St. John's Eve, the people go

* Siliiis Italicus.

* Kenrick's PJi/tnicui, p, 157, aiid authorities there qiioteii.

' Pliny, Xnt. Hisfnry, b. xvi. chap. 95.

60 PHCEXICIANS — ^TUEIB INFLUEKCE OX THE BRITOXS.

in procession to a church, near which they seat themselves in
a circle, and feast on eggs fried ^-ith herbs. This is said to
be connected with the Phallic worship and rites of Hermes,
derived fiom the Phoenicians.^ In the first days of spring
the Sardinians have a practice of lighting fires in their squares
and at cross-roads ; then, as the flames hegin to ascend,
children leap through so rapidly as to escape burning. This,
says Father Bresciani, is initiation through fire into the rites
of Moloch. But the people are not aware of the heathen
origin of these rites, which are believed to have descended to
the present inhabitants &om their Phoenician ancestors.^

In the chapter which treats of the sculptured stones of
Scotland will be found arguments in favour of some of the
exports from Britain being of a nature likely to tempt the
Phoenician trader to visit the harbours that lay nearest to the
Caledonian forest Of the imports, brass, bronze (mentioned
by Caesar), and the articles characterised by Strabo as mean
merchandise (viz., bracelets, necklaces, amber, glass, eto.),
certainly found their way to the inhabitants of the north-
eastern districts of Scotland. This is proved by continual
discoveries of these articles in sepulchral tumuli of a very
early period.

The Nuraghes of Sardinia have considerable resemblance
in details, as well as in general appearance, to the uncemented
dome-shaped buildings variously called in Scotland Duns,
Burghs, and Picts' houses, and in Ireland clochans, which,

> Forester's Sardinia^ p. 334. « Ib^id. p. 342.

* Strabo, Aftm. Hist. BriL p. vii.

NURAGHjfcS AND PICTS' HOUSES. 61

with some similar beehive-shaped houses in the Hebrides,
are evidently modelled from the same original as the Piets'
houses. One property the Nuraghes and Picts' houses possess
in common, that their origin or erection is in no way eluci-
dated by authentic history or rational tradition. This is the
more remarkable as regards the Nuraghes when the position
and history of Sardinia is considered, and that the remains of
three thousand of these structures are reckoned in that island
in various stages of decay, and some in good preservation.^

Under the head of " Customs and Superstitions common to
the inhabitants of Asia and Britain," are detailed particulars
of the belief in the miraculous formation by snakes of " the
Serpent Gem." Tliat superstition still lingers amongst the
Celts of Cornwall and Scotland, and was lately heard by a
modem traveller from an old native crone amidst the ruins of
Tadmor.

In conclusion, the opinion I have formed on this subject
is, that the Phoenicians had a more extended and permanent
influence on the population of Britain, even of Caledonia, than
has lately been asserted, or has at any time been conceded.

' In La Marmora's great work and Sardinia, and Forester's Corsica and

its illustrative plates, the Nuraglies Sardinia, the Nuraghes are carefuUy

are shown of various kinds, and so described. See also the chapter on

fully, that it is easier to know their " Strongholds and Dwellings of the

peculiarities than those of the Picts' Celts" in this work,
houses of Scotland. In Tyndale's

CHAPTER IV.

RELIGION OF THE EARLY INHABITANTS OF BRITAIN AND

CALEDONIA.

The Druidical Religion general over Britain— Drnids — ^Their Power and
Organisation — Divitiacus the Druid —Tenets of the Druiils — Mystery
and Cruelty — Druid Sacrifices— Dress of the Druids — Tonsure of Druids
and Phoenician Priests — Deisiol — ^The Misletoe, Salago, and Vervain —
Serpent's Gem or Druid Beads — Superstitions concerning them of great
Antiquity — Witchcraft a continuation of Heathenism — Sacrifice of one Man
to Redeem the Life of another — Famous Trial in 1690 consequent on this
Belief— Transferring Pain or Disease from a Human Being to a Dog or
Cat — Trials consequent on this and other Superstitious Practices — Cruel
Sacrifices, continued in the Present Century, of one Animal to Redeem
the remainder of the Herd — The Hare, the Cock, and the Goose forbidden
as Food to ancient Inhabitants of Britain — Existing Superstitions
concerning these Animals — Cocks now or lately sacrificed in Britain —
Druidesses were believed to have the Power of transforming themselves
into the form of varioTis Animals, had Power over the Winds, could fore-
tell Events, and cure Diseases — ^The same Powers attributed to the
Witches, the Gaelic Ban Druidh — Obscene heathen Practices in Brittany
— Imprecations in certain Christian Churches and Wells against Enemies —
Gods of the Celts — Christianity introduced, but Paganism not discarded —
Annait a heathen Object of Worship — ^Temples of Annait — Worship of
Annait in Persia, India, and Carthage.

THE religion of the early inhabitants of Britain is of course
a subject of paramount importance in any inquiry regard-
ing the primitive monuments and hieroglyphics of Caledonia.
Unless, however, the extract from Hecatieus, elsewhere

DRUIDICAL RELIGION. G3

mentioned/ may be taken as applicable to Britain, and to
prove the worship of a deity called by that author Apollo, the
earliest notice of the religion of the Britons is to be found in
Cffisar. At the period of his invasion in the first century B.C.
the Druidical system was in full force, and it so continued
until the Eomans took Mona (Anglesea) in the year A.D. 61.
From that time it probably declined in South Britain, and
for the same reason became more intense in CaledonifL
Prohibited and persecuted in Gaul and South Britain, it may
naturally be concluded that the Dniids retired to Caledonia
to maintain their religion and stimulate the hatred of the
unconquered portion of the Britons against the Eomans.

The Emperor Tiberius attempted to put down the Druids
of Gaul^ But his edicts to that effect, although they may
have increased, could not have diminished the power of the
Druids in Ireland or Caledonia, and were only partially
successful in Gaul,^ where the w^orst practices of the Druids
prevailed hundi-eds of years after the edicts of Tiberius and
Claudius. The religion of the Britons, we are distinctly told,
was the Druidical in its most perfect form. It is therefore
for those who assert that the Druid religion did not prevail

* Under the head of ** Notices of Lampridios and Vopiscus mentioning
Britain by Ancient Authors." them in their lives ; and long since

• T>i- %T A TT- 1 ^ ir that, Procopins, writing nnder Justi-

trJn^-l ■ ; \"''' ' ni"". <^^^i 500 yean, after Chriet.

Hist. BrU. p. IX. ; also b. xxix. ^ ^i i. ^i *.i #-. i i

^ * affirms that then tlie Gauls used sacri-

' ** Under Augustus and Tiberius, fices of human flesh, which was a part

the Druid religion was prohibited in of Dniidian doctrine." (Selden's A'o/w

Rome, and Claudius endeavoured to to Dray Urn's PoJyolbion, p. 154. See

effect its destruction in Gaul. Yet in also tlie articles ** Ajx^r" and ** Dio-

the succeeding Emperors* reign there detian" in Smith's DUtioiiary of

were some of them left, as api)ears by Oreek ami Roman Biography).

64 RKIJGION OP EARLY DfHABITAKTS OF BRITAIX.

over the whole population to prove their case. But as
regards Caledonia certainly, and over aH Britain in a modified
(\(i<rree, evidence is to be found not only to confirm the direct
testimony of Caesar and Tacitus, which by itself might be
deemed sufficient, but also to establish the fact that the
Druidical was the religion of the inhabitants of Britain at the
period of the Boman invasion, and in Caledonia continued to
be so until the introduction of Christianity.*

In the chapters of the life of Agricola, in which Britain
and its inhabitants aro described by Tacitus, Caledonia
and the Caledonians are particularly mentioned, and their
solemn rites and sacrifices are noticed. Writing of the
Britons generally, he says that the Grauls and Britons have
the same religious rites and the same superstition, and
the two languages differ but little. The same historian
mentions the ferocity of the unconquered part of the British
nations — that is, the Caledonians — whom Agricola defeated
by land, and whose country he circumnavigated with his
fleet. The intimate knowledge that he must have acquired
of the Caledonians in his various campaigns assures us that
had the religion, sacrifices, and the language of the Caledonians
been different from those of the other Britons, Tacitus would
not have failed to learn and record the fact. Druids and
Druidesses of the Celts and Gauls are mentioned in the third
century, as connected with events in the lives of Aurelian and
Diocletian. They are mentioned by Ammianus Marcellinus

^ We have the authority of C«sar and 6an1 being the same — the Druid -
and TaflituH for the religion of Britain ism of Britain being the most perfect.

PAGAN RITES AND SACRIFICES. 65

and Ausonius in the fourth century, and their practices are
noticed in the sixth century by Procopius. The history of
the Druids since the Christian era is thus epitomised by
Gibbon : — " Under the specious pretext of abolishing human
sacrifices, the Emperors Tiberius and Claudius suppressed the
dangerous power of the Druids ; but the priests themselves,
their gods, and their altars subsisted in peaceful obscurity
till the final destruction of paganism."^

The Druids were not only the priests of the Celtic race in
Gaul and in Britain, but also exercised judicial powers, and
wielded such imbounded influence that, imless where they
were denounced by the Eomans, and the people of the
country were under the control and protection of their
conquerors, no contemporary superstition coidd have existed.
In Caledonia the Eomans are known to have left no more
abiding memorials of their earlier victories and later hostile
processions through the eastern half of Scotland than an
intense hatred of themselves and their British allies.

The various septs in Caledonia, when they formed a
league to resist the Romans imder Agricola, held public
conventions, with solemn rites and sacrifices ; and when St.
Colimiba commenced his mission, and Christianity was intro-
duced, it was in the face of a Pagan religion full of cere-
monies, and possessing an establislmient of priests. This
we learn from the biographer and successor of St. Columba
— St. Adamnan — who not only had the records of the mon-
astery to refer to, but listened to the details of the works

* Gibbon's Decline and Fall of Roman Empire, chap. ii.
VOL. I. F

GO UELIGION OF EARLY INHABITANTS OF BRITAIN.

of his predecessor from those who had been eye-witnesses of
some of the miracles performed by St. Golumba. Among
other acts recorded of him, it is mentioned that he raised the
dead, controlled the winds, changed water into wine, brought
rain in time of drought, and caused a fountain to flow trom a
rock ; that his prayers brought victory to kings, and his
maledictions discomfiture to enemies. St. Columba also drove
out from Ireland a remnant of demons who had evaded St.
Patrick, and remained in Donegal when their brethren were
expelled from the Island of Saints. Both St. Patrick and St.
Columba made use of their bells in overcoming the demons.^
When to this is added that he had the gift of prophecy and
held communion with angels, we need not wonder that the
Christian saint confounded the Pagan magicians in Caledonia.
He also restored to health the infidel moffician Broichan,
who had been governor to the Pictish king. Pliny says the
magicians of the Celts were by them called Druids.* A
magician is still in Gaelic called Druidh ; the same word
is used for a sorcerer. Ban Druidth is a sorceress or
witch.^ Drycrocft, the Anglo-Saxon expression for witch-
craft, is derived from the Celtic Draoi, magic ; Draoidheadli,
magician.*

* Reeves, Vila St. ColumhcPj p. Ancient Laws of England. See also

206. Adamnani Vila St. Columboi, by Dr.

* Pliny, Nat. History t b. xvi. chap. Reeves, pp. 47, 73, 149, particularly
xcv. note commencing in p. 73 — ** Magi

* Druidheacheaclid — magic, witch- is \the Latin word always used
craft. — Annstrong's Gaelic Diction- in ' the acts of the Irish saints as
arjf, antl HighUvul Society s Diction- equivalent to the vernacular term
ary. bpaoice, Druids, or bpuitJ, as in

* ThoriM»*H glossjirj* attached to the earlier comiKxsitions. In an Irish

THE DRUIDS.

07

These remarks refer more paiticularly to Caledonia, as
its inhabitants had not been subjected to the Romans, and
were less liable than the Britons of the south to the objection
that the population contained an intrusive element not of the
Celtic race. Besides these reasons, the monuments and
sculptures, which are more immediately the object of inquiiy,
being situated in that part of Britain, might of itself be a
sufficient explanation. Yet the primitive memorials, prac-
tices, and superstitions that survived the introduction of
Christianity into Britain, were in all parts of the island so
similar, that there can be little doubt of a general identity in
the forms of Paganism that prevailed in South and in North
Britain ; and that the Druids, acknowledged to have the sole
power in all matters connected with religion, possessed in
fact nearly unlimited control over all other departments.
It is therefore of great consequence to ascertain, as far as
possible, the characteristics of the Druids, and the religion
and general system of which they were the directors.

The Druids.^

Although not essential, it is still of some importance to
the subject under examination, to inquire how the Celtic

MS. at Wurtzburg of St. Paul's
Epistles, 2 Tim. iii. 8, Jannes and
Jambres are called Egyptian Druids,
and in an ancient hymn attributed to
St. Columba an expression in the
Gaelic is equivalent to Chnsf ift iny
Druid.

Mt

may be worthy of consideration

whether the Gaelic word carnach,
used for a Druid and for a priest, is
not connected with the conical heaps
of stones on which earn -fires were
lighted, and whether the word Druid,
used in Gaelic for circle, may not be
derived from the circular fanes that
were occupied, if not erected, by the
Druids.

08 RKLUJION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

priesthood received the name of Druids. The common
opinion that it was derived from the oak is strongly supported
by the name of that tree/ not only in the Celtic dialects,
but also in the Greek, Persian, and Sanscrit languages. By
the Druids the oak was considered peculiariy sacred. It was
an object of their worship — the living representative of a
deity. Groves of oak shaded their blood-stained altars and
witnessed their mysterious rites. Boughs of oak were
employed in all their religious ceremonies ; and its leaves,
either as ornaments or emblems, were worn by the Druids.*
Some authorities combat the arguments in favour of the
name Druid being derived from tlie oak, and maintain that it
is from Draoi, magic. May not Draoi itself have a common
origin with the name of the oak in Celtic, Sanscrit, Persian,
and Greek ? The word Druid is in eariy ecclesiastical writers
always translated magician.^

The misletoe, when found growing on the oak, was cut
with great ceremony, and accompanied by sacrifices offered
by tlie Druids.* But even when found on other trees the

* An oak-tree is in Welsh and Armo- Greek language. — Selden's Polyolln*/»,

rican d^rw, in Irish dait, in Gaelic fol. 1622, p. 151.

dnrach, darrahj in Greek dnis. In ' Pliny, in Mon. Hist. Brit. civ.

Sanskrit a tree is druhj in Persian • Many of the forms of derivation

dirakht. The name given to the of the word Druid are examined in the

Druids by Diodonis Siculus, h. v., is ** Jhscmirs sur Religion Gauloisey Pr.

Saronida?, which confirms the deriva- M. deChiniac delaBastideduClaux,"

tion of Drui<l from the oak. For a Paris, 1769, pp. 9, 10.

Pliny, b. iv., says the Saronic Gulf, * Pliny, in Afon. Hist. BriL civ.

encin*lc<l witli groves of oak, derived The misletoe has been found on oaks

its name from the ancient (ireek name in Anglesea, Fram]iton-on-Sevem,

of that tree. ZapomSes is given in Ledbury Park, near Eastnor Castle,

Hcsychius, LexicoUt Batav. 1766, no. St Dials, Monmonth, and Godalming

1 1 57, as signifying oaks in the ancient in Surrey.

THE MISLETOE. 69

misletoe was still an important article in the mysterious rites
of the Celtic priesthood ; and it was alleged that, as its
blossoms appear at the summer and its berries reach maturity
at the winter solstice, the plant thus marked the two great
seasons of Druid festival To the other proofs of the descent
of witchcraft from Druidism may be added the modern
superstition that a piece of misletoe hung round the neck
efifectually prevents the machinations of witches.

The Druids in Ireland at the time of St. Patrick — viz.,
the middle of the fifth century — and the Druids in Scotland
at the period of St. Cohunba's^ visit, a century later, are
repeatedly mentioned in the lives of these saints. From
such records we also discov^ practices of the heathen priest-
hood which are afterwards refen'ed to, as they may still be
traced in the modern superstitions of Scotland.

The Druids were exempted from military service and the
payment of taxes. They were the instructors of youth, the
arbitrators in civil disputes, and the judges in criminal trials.
They were the sole interpreters of religion ; the directors of
sacred rites and all religious sacrifices, particularly in the
immolation of human \dctims.^ These appear to have been
their acknowledged powers and privileges, to which it is
evident all other authorities must have been subordinate.

There is no distinct authority for considering the Druids
to have been continued by family descent as priests of the
Celtic sacrifices and to have been a separatee caste. Still, as

' Dr. Todd's St. Patrick. *» C. J. C'jesar, Diolorus Siculus,

" Dr. Reeves' (Adam nan's) St. Co- Stmbo, Man. Jitvf. Brit, xxxii. xxxiii.
htmba. v\\. «'iv. rv.

70 RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

the bards and musicians, poets and harpers/ were contem-
porary oflScials with the Druids, and inherited inspiration, it
may not be unreasonable to suppose that the Druids, in like
manner, succeeded to civil and sacerdotal power. It is
certainly more rational to believe that priestcraft, rather than
poetic inspiration, passed by hereditary descent amongst the
Celtic nations.

Of the organisation of this powerful hierarchy but little
is knowa They were presided over by one elected from
among themselves, and whose authority continued for his
life. It also appears that this object of ambition was not
always secured by peaceful suffrages, but occasionally came
to be decided by force of arms. They had a form of excom-
munication attended with such eflFects that it became the
most severe of punishments. It cut oflF the individual who
had refused submission to their authority from all society
with his fellow-men, debarred him from religious rites, and
deprived him of all civil privileges. The Druids of Gaul we
know, and those of Britain we may presume, from their
religious superiority, had a consecrated place of general
assembly to which they annually repaired, and where all
disputed cases, private as well as public, were decided.^

Divitiacus of Gaul, the ^duan noble, the friend of Caesar
and guest of Cicero at Rome, was a Druid who professed
knowledge of the secrets of nature and of divination.

' PilxTs might also be added, as states himself the eighteenth bard iji

being hereditary. Tlie last of the descent, and repeats his ancestry.

Celtic banls of Scotland died in 1726. * C. J. Cesar, Man. ffisL BrU.

In his declaration (in Brown's Hist^nj xxxiii.

of the Highlands, vol. i. p. 37) he ■ Cicero On Divination.

DRUIDICAL SACUIFICES. 71

The Druids never committed to writing anything con-
nected with their religious mysteries ; but in all other
transactions, whether public or private, they made use of the
Greek characters. They studied nature and moml philosophy ;
believed in the immortality of the soul, and in its transmi-
gration ; professed to know the size and fonn of the earth
and the imiverse, the motions of the heavens and the stars,
and to ascertain the intentions of the gods. They also taught
that not only the soul of man, but also the material world,
was indestructible, although at different times it had been
altered by fire and by water/ In the Druidical rites there
would appear, from existing superstitions that will be after-
wards noticed, to have been an admixture of obscenity. But
the most prominent characteristics of this religion were
mystery and cruelty, two commonly-associated elements of
ancient sacerdotal power and man's debasement. From the
palpitations of dying human victims Druids and Druidesses
were wont to draw their auguries. Captives taken in war,
criminals, or even persons against whom no charge was pre-
ferred, were offered as sacrifices, and made to suffer deatli in
various forms — some being slain with arrows, while others

» CjBsar, Diodorus Siculus, Strabo, The knowledge of writing among

Pomponius Mela, Man. Hust, Brit, the Gauls is confirmed by a passage

xxxiii. xxxiv. ciii. civ. cv. in Pomponius ^Mela, where he says

The tablets found in the camp of tliat in former times they earned

the Helvetii, written in Greek cha- with them their accounts and claims

racters, prove that Celtic tribe to of debts to the grave. This tlie geo-

have understood calculation, as well gi'apher mentions as the result of that

as how to read and write. There doctrine of the Druids, tlie imnior-

were in these tablets separate registers tality of tlie soul.
of fighting men, old men, women,
and children, in all 36S,000.

72

RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

were crucified, or were consumed in a general holocaust of
human beings, and animals wild and domestic. Not only to
their gods, but to the manes of ancestors, human beings and
domestic animals were sacrificed, that they might accompany
and serve the departed spirit in the new form it was about to
animate, as they had done when it occupied the earthly
tenement which it had just abandoned.^

Of heathen rites, the Deisiol or sunwise mode of progression
is repeatedly mentioned at the periods when Christianity was
established in Ireland by St. Patrick, and in the north of
Scotland by St. Columba.^

In performing the sacred office of cutting the misletoe
from the oak, the Druids used a golden sickle, and were clad
in white robes. The plant salago, when gathered by the
Druids, they declared to be a preservative from accidents to
those who wore it about their persons. In gathering it the
Druids were dressed in white, with bare feet, and used the
right hand passed through the left sleeve.^ The vervain was
a plant used by the Druids in their divinations, and was also
gathered with many ceremonies.* ' From these notices by

* C. J. Caesar, Diodorus S. and
Strabo, Man. Hist. Brit. pp. ciii. civ.

» Dr. Todd's Life of St. Patrick,
pp. 119, 120, 125. Dr. Reeves' St.
Columba, pp^ 68, 250, 266, 308.
The superstitions attached to the
sunwise mode of progression are by
no means extinct in the nineteenth
century.

' Plinv, Man. Hist. Brit. civ. cv.

* Medea performed magic lite^ with
bare f«M't. Some herbs she pUicked

up by the roots — ^some she cut with a
brazen sickle. She hung vervain
round the altar of Hecate (see Ovid's
3fetanwrphoseSf b. vii. fable ii)

*' Gin ye wish to be leman of minep
Lay aside the St John's wort and the
vervain,"

is the pleading of a disguised fiend
to a mortal maid. — Minstrelsy of
(he Scottish Border — the '* Demon
Lover."

DRESS OF THE DRUIDS.

73

Pliny we learn that the dress of the Druids was white/ and

that they went with bare feet. It may here be remarked

that the Phoenician priests were dressed in linen, and had

their feet bare, when they officiated in the ancient temple of
Saturn, with its ever-burning fire, at Gadeira or Cadiz.^

The Druids seem to have practised tonsure — a rite that

most probably originated where it certainly prevailed from

the earliest ages — with the heathen priesthood of eastern

countries and warm climates.^

'* Vervain and dill.
Hinders witches from their wilL"

— AvLbrey's Afisccllanie^, p. 139. Edit.
1857.

On the trial of Elspeth Reoch in
Orkney, 12tli March 1616, it appeared
that she cured diseases by an herb,
melefour, which she pulled between
her mid -finger and thumb, whilst
resting on her right knee. — Sir J. G.
Dalyell's Darker Superstitions of Scot-
land^ p. 22.

Alesoun Piei-son (28th May 1588)
was tried for witchcraft. She was
accused, among other acts, of hav-
ing gathered herbs, as she had
seen the fairies do, before sunrise.
She seems to have been consulted for
her medical knowledge by the cele-
brated Adamson, Archbishop of St.
Andrews. Her remedies for his ague
— some of which are in the record
of accusation, and include, among
other less jxilatable ingredients, claret
wine — probably failed to cure the pre-
late, as the unfortunate paralytic was
convicted and burnt. — Pitcairn's Cri-
minal Trials^ vol. i. p. 162.

Miilsummer, now St. John's day,

was the season principally devoted to
the collection of plants to be used for
medicinal or occult purposes. This,
in all probability, was derived from
the heathen times and solar worship.
— Sir J. G. Dalyell's Darker Supersti-
tions of Scotland, p. 114 ; quoting
Martin de Aries Dc Super stitionihasj
Paris 1517.

The seamrag (shamrock-trefoil) was
still in 1794 considered an anodyne.
It must be plucked by the left hand,
and the person who gatlicrs it must
neither speak nor look back until his
tiwk is accomplished. — Old Statis-
tical Account of Scotland, parish of
Kirkmichael, Banlfshire, vol. xii.
pp. 45-45.

* By means of fire from heaven, St.
Patrick destroyed nine magi (Druids)
clothed in white vestments, feigning
themselves saints. — See Sir J . G. Dal-
y ell's Darker Superstitions of Scot-
land ; quoting AncioU Ecclesiastical
AiU/ioritieSy p. 239.

* Kenrick's Phimiciny p. 127.

* Dr. Keeves' Vita S. Coluviba:, p.
350.

74 RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

The occult powers of certain fountains were among the
objects venerated by the Druids and the heathen inhabitants
of Caledonia.^

One of the objects of superstition among the Celtic people,
and of magical imposition by the Druids, was the serpent*s-egg,
serpent's gem, or Druid's bead.* They are sometimes supposed
to have been represented by shells of the sea-urchin ; but tm-
doubtedly the rings and beads of glass that have been often
found in sepulchral deposits of the early British period are the
serpent's gem and Druid's beads, and were probably derived
from Phoenician traders.

Probably the little white stone sent by St Columba to
the Pictish king was one of these. The Druid Broichan was
miraculously cured by drinking water poured over this conse-
crated charm, which retained its supernatural powers at all
events imtil the termination of the Pictish monarchy in Cale-
donia.* In the island of Fladda, on the north coast of Skye,
was a small chapel dedicated to St. Columba ; and on an altar
in it lay a rotmd blue stone, which maintained, in the belief
of the people, miraculous and sanitary powers, even in the
end of the seventeenth century when visited by Martin. To
wash this stone ensured a favourable wind ; and to apply it
to the place, cured local pains in votaries and believers. A
variegated stone of bright colours, about the size of an egg,
was sioreptitiously removed from the little island of Oldney,

* Reeves' Vila S. CoiumboBf p. 119; • Tliomas Iiiuoss Ecclesiastical His-

ako OildaSf section 4. (ory^ pp. 197 and 207 ; and Dr.

'Ovum Angiiimim. In Celtic, Reeves' Vita S. Columba:, p. 147.
Glain-Naider or Glaine-nan-Diiiidhe.

THE serpent's GEM. 75

in the parish of Assint, in Sutherland, about the middle of the
last century. It had always been regarded with the greatest
veneration by the inhabitants.^

The account given by the Druids of the manner of the for-
mation, mode of acquiring, and magical properties of these
amulets, as detailed by Pliny, differs but little from the popu-
lar belief long preserved, and possibly not yet extinct, in some
parts of Wales and CornwalL The serpents are said to have
assembled at certain seasons, and when twined together in
masses, to have thrown off these rings, which were formed of
their viscous slime. By the hissing of the snakes the rings
were ejected into the air, and then was the time for a daring
mortal to secure the prize, by receiving it on a cloth before it
could fall to the ground. It was also indispensible to his
safety, as weU as to success, that he should be on horseback ;
and take flight with the prize he had seized, as he would be
instantly pursued and in danger until he had placed a river
between himself and the despoiled serpents.

Absurd as such priestly frauds and popular superstitions
may be deemed, they are not devoid of interest, and have a
certain value as showing that the Druids considered the ser-
pent as endued with intelligence and mysterious powers, such
as it received credit for with the descendants of Abraham and
the aborigines of South India. Tlie Caledonian hieroglypliic
of the serpent, either by itself or transfixed with the double-
angled scepti'e on the sculptured stones of Scotland," also adds

* Old Stalistiml AccouiU of Scot- ' See article on the " SeriJent and

land^ xvi. 205. douhle-angled Sceptre."

76

RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

to the interest of the narrative preserved by Pliny ; while a
legend nearly similar has been handed down to the present
day in those parts of Britain where Celtic dialects are still
spoken, or have lately become extinct. It has been well re-
marked that " the most conclusive evidence of the remote
antiquity to which these singular and widely difiused^ relics
belong, is to be found in the fact, that their origin and virtues
were the subject of the same superstitious fables (eighteen
hundred years ago) in the age of PUny, as in the British folk-
lore of the eighteenth century." ^

In this Druidical fiction the serpent is not only represented
as possessing supernatural powers, but, like the Naga (cobra
de capeUa) of the amcient serpent-worshippers of India and
Ceylon, as being of a beneficent disposition. For these serpent
rings and beads were believed to ensure good fortune to their

A

possessors, and water poured on them was deemed sufficiently
efficacious to restore to health either men or animals that were
afflicted with disease. Carew, who wrote his Survey of Corn-
wall about 1602, says — " The country people retain a conceit,
that the snakes, by their breathing about a hazle-wand, do
make a stone-ring of a blue colour, in which there appeareth
the yellow figure of a snake ; and that beasts which are sttmg,

^ They are found in ancient Eg3rp-
tian tombs.

* Wilson's Prehistorical and Arches-
ological History of Scotland, p. 806.
Pliny, Mon. Hist, BrU. cv.

• In the parish of Kirkpatrick-
Fleming a tumulns, which had the
name of the Bellonmount, was opened.

It contained a kistyaen formed of six
flag- stones, in which " w^ere found
some Druidical beads" (Old Statistical
Account of Scotland, xiii. 272). It is
unfortunate that the reverend author
of this statistical account does not
more particularly describe these beads,
or say what became of them.

THE SEKPENT'S GEM.

77

being given to drink of the water wherein this stone has been
soaked, will therethrough recover." Carew adds, " there was
such a one bestowed on me," etc. etc.^ The serpent's egg, the
amulet so called, was held in high estimation by the Druids,
and amongst other virtues, was believed to ensure to its pos-
sessor the favour of princes and success in law-suits. A Roman,
of equestrian i*ank, a native of Gaul, was put to death by order
of the emperor Tiberius for having one of these serpent's eggs
concealed in his bosom during a trial.^

The fiction regarding the pursuit by serpents of the dar-
ing horseman who ventured to carry off the egg they had
ejected into the air, and of his safety being insured whenever
he had passed a river, is one of the numberless proofs of the
descent of British witchcraft from Druidical superstitions and
practices. E\al spirits and witches even now have no power
to pursue those who have offended them beyond a river. The

1 Both men and animals in Ireland,
as well as in England and Scot-
land, were supposed to be cured by-
water in which enchanted stones,
crystal balls, and other like amu-
lets, had been placed. St. Coluraba,
and other early saints, made use of
such means. The head of St. Maman
at Aberkerdoure, in Banffshire, which
was preserved as a relic, was also
employed in the same manner, viz.,
to infuse sanative qualities into the
water in which it was washed, and
which is said to have restored health
to many invalid peraons.

Water in which the adder's stone
had been placed was carried an hun-
dred miles to be administered to

patients in the Highlands of Scot-
land.

On May-day cattle were sprinkled
with water in which a crystal ball had
been washed or boiled ; and mention
is made of ** a large cr}'stal, somewhat
oval, which priests kept to work
charms by."

• These and many other facts of a
similar nature, and the authorities
from which they are derived, will be
found in Sir J. G. Dalyell's Darker
Sv}Krstiti(ynsofSco(lan(fy pp. 150-157;
Adamuan's Vita S. Columbop, by Dr.
Reeves ; the Breviary of Ahcrdeeiiy and
Gaelic dictionaries, article ** Leug."

' Pliny, NaL Hist, b, xxix.

78 RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

witches of Kirk Alloway fell back baffled by the water of Doon
from the chase of Tam-o'-Shanter, for —

'' A running stream they daiena cross."

It is distinctly mentioned by Caesar, and is also referred to
by Cicero, that the Gauls, if exposed to great danger, or when
suflfering from painful maladies, sacrificed human victims, be-
cause they believed that the life of otfe could be redeemed by
the life of another man ; and in the performance of these sacri-
fices the Druids were employed. It is shown, on the authority
of Csesar and Tacitus, that the Druidical religion was most
perfect in Britain ; and that the Britons and Gauls had the
same rites and superstitions ; and that the languages of the
two countries diflfered but little. From many authorities it
appears that the early Christian teachers^ neither disdained to
occupy heathen fanes, nor failed to make use of some of the
mysterious practices, and to claim similar or superior occult
powers to those attributed to the Druids.

The evidence that can be produced, although only circum-
stantial, seems sufficient to prove that, generally speaking,
the witchcraft and superstitions of Britain, particularly of
Caledonia, were but a continuance of heathen rites. These, at
the introduction of Christianity, appear to have been tolerated
to all, and to have been partially adopted by the Christian
teachers. Afterwards, being prohibited, such heathen decep-
tions, when practised by unsanctified or lay performers, in-
volved severe punishment or a cruel death : those who used

* See, for proofs of this, The Lives count of St. Gennanus, etc. etc. See
of the Saints, Aberdeen Breviary, also the chapter on "Circular Colum-
Dr. Reeves' Adamnan, Bcdes* Ac- nar Fanes, and Dniids."

KEDEEMING A DEVOTED LIFE. 79

them, if other than ecclesiastics, being condemned as witches,
sorcerers, or heretics.

The following are instances in North Britain of the continu-
ance in later times of practices in accordance with a belief in
the Druid tenet, that the life of one man could only be re-
deemed by that of another. The existence of this belief, in
the end of the sixteenth century, even among individuals of
the highest rank in Scotland, is remarkably proved by the
trial of Hector Monro, the seventeenth Baron of Fowlis,
on the 22d July 1590, "for sorcery, incantation, witchcraft,
and slaughter."

In the month of January 1588 this gentleman, being
sick, sent for Marioune ^ringaruch, a notorious witch, who
came and gave him water to drink in which she had placed
three stones.^ This remedy not being effectual, the witch in-
formed the Baron tliat lie could not recover unless, to use the
words of the indictment, "the principal man of his bluid
should die for him." The accomplices now pronounced that
the substitute who must be sacrificed to save the Baron's life
was his next younger brother, viz., George Monro, the son of
Hector s father by his second wife, Catherine *Ross, Lady Fowlis.

* These stones were afterwards se- Columba cured the Dniid Broichan,
cured by the judicial authorities, and up to, and probably beyond the coin-
no doubt were of the same kind a.s niencement of the ninet<*enth century,
those made use of, probably by the Many of these stones were preserved
heathen Druids, and certainly by with great care, some of them by
Christian saints, sorcerers, and witches, ancient families, and many amongst
Under various names, as Druid's glass, ignorant and humble empirics. An
adder's stones, enclianted stones, cur- account of some of the most famed of
ing stones, etc. etc., the employment these amulets will be found in Sir J. G.
of such magical instruments of cure DalyeWn Darker SuperstUiwis of Scot-
can be tracM from the time when St. laruff chap. iv.

80 RELIGION OF EARLY BRH'ONS — THE DRUIDS.

The wretches with whom Hector Monro had associated him-
self, probably accomplished the younger brother's death by
means more effectual than ceremonies of witchcraft and in-
cantations, although these were not spared.

It seems probable that the crimes of Hector Monro, or his
stepmother, had opened the way for his occupancy, which she
intended should be temporary, of the estates and position which
he had held as Baron of Fowlis. For Hector Monro had suc-
ceeded his brother Eobert, sixteenth Baron of Fowlis, who
died a young man after living less than one year in possession,
but had previously buried three wives — viz., Is/, Marjoryi
daughter of Lord KintaU ; 2d, Lady Eleanor, daughter of the
Earl of Sutherland ; and 3rf, Lady Janet, daughter of the Earl
of Caithness. He also left a widow, Elizabeth, daughter of
Eose of Kilravock. Part of the schemes of Catherine Boss
Lady Fowlis, as alleged in her indictment, was to marry this
widow, Elizabeth, to Lady Fowlis* brother — Boss of Balna-
gowan, and to facilitate this event his wife was to be poi-
soned.

That the undertaking of Hector Monro with the witch
Marioune M'lngaruch and their associates was a case of offer-
ing one human victim to save another person who was already
devoted, appears not only from the accusations and admissions
of guilty accomplices, but also from the following circum-
stances : — George Monro, the doomed substitute of his elder
half-brother, had two full brothers, John and Andrew, younger
than himself, against whose lives Hector was not accused of
conspiring. Yet they would, equally with George, have been

UNHALLOWED RITES. 81

objects for which their motlier miglit have contemplated
Hector's death, in order to insure her son's succession. This is
mentioned in case it might be supposed that Hector's object in
procuring the death of his half-brother George, was by remov-
ing the temptation to protect himself from the deadly machin-
ations of a stepmother bent on removing all obstructions to her
son's aggrandisement.

One of the preliminary unhallowed rites connected with
the sacrifice of George Monro is particiUarly worthy of notice
from its mysterious and impressive character. The witch
and her accomplices, one hour after midnight, repaired to a
spot near high-water mark, where there was a boundary
between lands belonging to the king and the bishop. There,
having first carefully removed the turf, they dug a grave long
enough to contain the sick man. Hector Monro, and then
returned to convey him to a temporary interment. Wrapped
in a pair of blankets — it was in the month of January, and
in the north of Scotland — they carried him to the grave they
had prepared, and placed him in it. They then covered him
with the green turf that had been previously removed, which
they fastened with wands.^ The foster-mother of Hector
Monro — viz.. Christian Neil — then ran the breadth of nine

» These wands were probalily of placed to protect the green sod fioni

niountain-ashori-owan-tree, whicliwas cattle; hut it may be remarked that

esteemed a powerful protection agaiust often they are so arningetl as to be of

evil spirits. From this belief may no avail for such a purpose, and in

have been derived the origin of the many places may be seen over graves

custom which we so often see in in Imrying-grounds to which it is

churchyards in all parts of Britain, imjwssible cattle could have access.
It is now said that the wands are so

VOL. I. G

^<2 RfcU'/IOX OF lARLY &RrT''»>'S — TEE DRnt'S.

ri«!ge9,and,on retuming to th^^r grave, asfceil the witch ^ which
W2LS her choice ?'' She aiiswer^l, •* that Hector should live,
and his brother George die for him." This p^arfc of the cere-
mony having been three times rep-eated, and &oni the com-
mencement to the end of these rites no other words having
Ijeen sjKiken, Hector was removed from the grave and con-
veyed back to his beii He recovered from his illness ; and
ha\ing cautioned the witch that if Gec»rj:e Monro were to die
suddenlv all their lives would be in danger, she in answer
warranted that his death should not take place soon ; and it
actually hapf^ened upwards of a year after — viz-, in June
1500, only a month previous to the trial of Hector Monra

Catherine Ross, Lady Fowlis, was tried the same day as
her stepsrjn Hector. The charges against her were for
" witchcraft, incantation, sorcery, and poisoning." Several
of her familiars had previously been put to death — strangled
and burnt — after having confessed their own and her
iniquities. Tlie lady and her stepson, however, were both
acquitted ; and their escape, says Pitcaim, " can only be
attributed to their very powerful influence," and appears to
liave been managed by means of packed juries. The very
long articles of accusation against this lady combine many
charges of grovelling superstition, along with hideous blas-
ph(?my and wholesale poisoning.'

A long-enduring superstition — ^viz., that a person might
be relieved from a malady under which he was suflFering by

* Pitrairn's Criminal Trials^ 4to, of Lady Fowlis' indictment occupies
1^33, vol. i. pp. 191-204. The record nine pages of this quarto volume.

TRANSFER OF SUFFERING. 83

liaving it transferred and imposed upon another, and that
witches and sorcerers had the power, not of ixiinitting but of
removing disease from one individual, and, as it was called,
** laying it" on another — seems to be a corollary to the Druid
tenet that the life of one man could only be redeemed by the
life of another, and of w^hich the above occurrences in the
family of the barons of Fowdis, and in the year of gi^ce 1590,
is an instance.

The alleged art of transferring disease or pain from one
person to another, and thus relieving the original sufferer, is
one of the most common articles of accusation in the trials of
witches ;^ and a modification of the same practice is very
often comprehended in the crimes of which witches were
accused — viz., of their having transferred sickness or suffering
from a human being to some animal, generally a dog or a
cat, which vicarious sufferer, it is genemlly averred in tlie
judicial accusation, was never afterwards seen. The local and
general records of judicial trials in Scotland aboimd in such
alleged crimes. That the transfer of maladies w\as only a
modification of the tenet of the sacrifice of one life being effi-
cient for the saving of another, appears from tlie exclamation
of Catherine Bigland, who was tried in IGlo for having trans-
ferred a disease from herself to a man. Having heard tlie
accusation, she exclaimed, " if William Bigland lived, she
would die ; therefore, God forbid he live.""

In the accumulation of lilasphemous impossibilities

* Many examples of such accusa- *Sir.T. (Jrahame DalyeU's Darker

tions will l>e found in PitiainrH Su}u'ntHioiis of Scothtmiy LSS.**, j>.
Criminal Trials, .3 Vf»Js. 4to, 1833. 17^).

84 RELIGION OF FARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

amounting to twenty-eight charges, on which Ewfame Mak-
calzane was tried in June 1591, she was accused of having at
the birth of her first son cast her pains unnaturally upon a
(log, which ran away, and was never seen again ; and that at
the birth of her last son the lady had transferred her " natural
and kindly pains to a wanton cat, whilk was never seen
thereafter.'*

Such accusations would be ludicrous, were it not for the
horrible termination. This lady, the only daughter and
heiress of a distinguished Scotch judge. Lord CliftounhaU, was
convicted and burnt alive on the Castle Hill of Edinburgh on
the 24th June 1591. This unfortunate lady left three daugh-
ters ; but the estate of Cliftounhall was granted by King
James to one of his favourites.^

The belief that the sacrifice of one might save the life of
another was not confined to human beings, but extended to
animals, and it was a practice to immolate one of a herd to
insure the safety of the remainder. Dalyell, in liis Darker
Superstitions of Scotland, in 1837, refers " to a recent expe-
dient in the neiglibouring kingdom, where a person, having
lost many of his herd, burnt a living calf to preserve the re-
mainder." In the same work, quoting the trial of John Brughe
in 1643, the author states that the accusation was for burying
one of his cattle alive, and driving the others over the spot ;
and thus by devilish means curing the sickness, and stopping
the mortality amongst his cattle. This seems to have been

* This account of the family, and extracts from the accusations, are taken
fn>ra Pitcairn's Criminal Trials^ 4to, 1833, vol. i. pp. 247 to 257.

a T>

P. 184.

MODERN HEATHENISM. 85

the most approved practice, as various instances of it are
given ; and in one case, by tlie direction of Isobel Young —
her trial took place in 1629 — a live ox and a cat, with a great
quantity of salt, were buried, to arrest sickness and mortality
amongst cattle.^

" In Wales," says a reverend historian of that country in
1812, "when a violent disease breaks out amongst the homed
cattle, the farmers of the district where it rages join to give
up a bullock for a victim, which is carried to the top of a pre-
cipice, from whence it is tlirown dowm." This is called "casting
a captive to the devil." ^

In Brittany the same superstition is retained, but is
directed to a more rational conclusion. On the eve of the
Pardon at Saint Nicodemus, in the commune of Plumeliau,
an ox, a cow, a calf, and a sheep, decoixited with ribbons, are
led in procession round the church, preceded by drums, fifes,
standards, etc. These animals are afterwards disposed of for
the benefit of the patron saint, who, it is believed, will pro-
tect the other animals on the land of the person w^ho makes
the offerings, which are devoted by the procession and cere-
monies of the Pardon!^

An authentic account in modern times of the offering in
sacrifice one animal for the saving of others occurs in Pro-

' Pp. 185-186. case of burning a calf to death ahout

^ N&rlh Wales, Historical a lul ToiM)- the year 1800; the calf being the

graphical^ by the Rev. J. Evans. In fanner's finest one, and the ol\jcct of

The BcaxUics of Eiujland and Wales, the sacrifice being to arrest the ninr-

vol. xvii. part 1. p. 36, 1812. rain. — Hone's Eimjday Book, i. 431.

Hone, quoting from Hit»'liin's ( 'orn- ^ PcU'rinngt's dc B/rtatj/ie-Morhihan,

vail, gives the details of a rcvoltin^c ]»arHin|>olytc Violcaii, 1855, pp. 95, iK>.

80 EEL:»,I'>5 of EAta.Y LEITOXS — THE L'Kni'S.

fessor J. Y. Simj-r 'D* A«i-irvrs-5 U^ tLe S»-:iety of Aiit!«4uarie:>
of 5v,-otlarj<l in I'^Ol. In it he informs us that within twenty
mi]<rs of Elinbiuvh a cow was biiTi»r«l alive as a sacrifice to the
fipirit of the murrain. The Pp 'f^rs^jr is not an old man, and
hLs informant, frfjin wh',»in he had often htard the jarticulars,
Iia/1 taken part in the sacrific-e. In a most interesting i»a[>er,
Tf^sul Uj the Society of Antiquaries in Scotland on the 13th
May 18C1 by Dr. ilitchell, he shows that in Kirkcudbright
the practice of sacrificing bulls prevailed in the twelfth cen-
tur>' ; tliat in the seventeenth century bulls were sacrificed at
Applecioss, in Koss-shire, as a propitiatory health-ofiFering ;
and that in Morav, within the last ten vears. an ox was
buried alive as an offering to presene the rest of the herd-
He also mentions a late instance of the sacrifice of a cock as
a health-offering ; and refers to the adoration of wells and
stones ; also pouring libations of milk on hills, as denounced
by the presb^iery of Dingwall in the seventeenth centuiy.
From Cafsar we learn that it was forbidden to the Britons
to eat the cix;k, the hare, or the goose.^ In this case also it
ap[jear8 that heathen rites or restrictions of the ancient
Britons, existing before the Christian era, have been main-
tained by their descendants until a late period or the present
day. In another chapter the sacrifice of cocks is more par-
ticularly referred to ; so that it is unnecessary here to do
more than notice that two well-authenticated instances of such
rites — viz., one in the most southern, and one in the northern
division of Britain— occurred so lately that it brings the prac-

' ('}»?>«ir, Hon. Hist. Brit. xxxi.

THE COCK, THE HARE, THE GOOSE. 87

tice up to the present day, showing an enduring belief that a
cock offered to some god or spirit may yet be a sacrifice ade-
quate to procuring restored health to the individual for whom
the offering is made. The goose was worshipped in Eg^^pt
700 years b.c. In Burmah it is the national emblem, and is
a sacred one used in many parts of Hindostan and in Ceylon.
The glorification of the goose in the West was by no means
confined to the Britons, who did not derive this feeling from,
although they shared it with, the classical nations of Europe.^
Meeting a hare is still in many parts of Britain considered
an unlucky presage,^ and that witches can assume the shape of
hares is still believed by many old and superstitious people.
In the extraordinary delusions and confessions of Isobel
Gowdie in 1662, she describes, that having been sent by the
devil on an errand to Aulderne, in Nairnshire, and having
assumed the form of a hare, she was seen and cliasedby dogs ;
that after being long hunted and greatly tired, she at length
got sufficient time to repeat the formula by which she was
restored to her own shape, and thus bafHed the hounds. Had
they seized or bitten or scratched her when in the form of a
hare, she said the marks would have remained when she re-
sumed her human form. In these remarkable confessions are
to be found formulae both for assuming the likeness of a hare
and for regaining the human shape.

* Some curious particulars regarding proved by many authors quoted in
the estimation in which the goose was Brand's Popular Antiquities by Sir
held will be found under the head of Henry EUis.

** The Henza," in Sir J. Emerson » Pitc^airn's Vriminal Triahy 4to,

Tennent's Cctjion. 1S33, vol. iii. pp. 607 to 611.

• That it was so in earlier tinie.s is

88

RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — ^THE DRUIDS.

The British queen Boadicea, in the presence of her own
and the Eoman army, took from her bosom a hare, which she
released ; and a favourable augury being deduced by the
Britons from the course in which the animal started, the
queen ordered her army to commence an immediate attack on
that of the Romans.^

I have known an instance of a man firing with a crooked
sixpence at a hare which he believed to be a witch.^ He
missed, but insisted, and his neighbours believed, that he had
hit ; for although the hare was none the worse, an old woman
in the neighbourhood, who about that time was attacked with
some acute rheumatic pains, was considered to have been the
hare, and to be sufifering from the wound inflicted by the silver
sixpence.^

The last of three animals which Caesar mentions as pro-
hibited to be eat<5n by the Britons is the goose. The connec-
tion of this bird with the witchcraft and superstitions of our
ancestors is not so clear and continued as that of the cock or
of the hare. In the trial of Bessie Aitkyn in 1597, however,
it appeared that she had been consulted by James Johnstoune,

* Xiphiline, Mon, Hist. Brit, \y\\.

• At Abcrgeldie, Aberdeenshire.

' Pennant, in his Tour in IVales^
says that in the ancient laws regard-
ing hunting in that country, noxious
animals had no value assigned to
them, as all persons might kill them.
Neither was any value set upon a
hare, ** because it was believed every
other month to change its sex. " — Vol.
ii. p. 282 ; I/ondon, 1810.

In treating of the animal remains

discovered in the ancient and long
obsolete Swiss lake-dwellings, Sir
Charles Lyell remarks — " The almost
universal absence of this quadruped
(viz., the hare) is supposed to imply
that the Swiss lake-dwellers were
prevented from eating that animal by
the same superstition which now pre*
vails among the Laplanders, and which
Julius Csesar found in full force amongst
the ancient Britons." — Lyell's AiUi-
quUyofMan, 1863, pp. 23-4.

THE GOOSE. 89

who was suffering from severe illness. Bessie recommended
him to procure a green goose, which was to be stuffed with
four or five kittens. The goose was then to be roasted, and
James was to be anointed with the juice and drippings. The
effect of this prescription upon the patient is not recorded ;
but the woman, and three others tried at the same time, were
sentenced to be strangled and burnt on the Castle Hill of
Edinburgh.^

The lady Eufame Makcalzane, whose horrible fate is above
noticed, was, in the nineteenth of the series of long charges
urged against her, accused of sending to one of her familiars a
wax figure inclosed in a goose, that it might be enchanted by
the devil. The indictment alleges that the figure " was en-
chanted by him," and then returned to the accused.

At Kelso, in the last century, it was a custom amongst a
society of young men to hang up a goose by the feet, then to
march past, one after another, and each person to take a pluck
as he passed, until some one pulled off the goose's head. Pre-
vious to attacking the goose tlie same fraternity first tormented
and then killed a cat.'^

We may w^ell believe that our heathen ancestors in
Caledonia venerated a bird to which, at least to some species
of it, such a mysterious origin was assigned as to the goose.
Eminent divines, scholars, and historians ^ of the sixteenth and

* Pitcairn's Criminal TrialSf vol. Bocce, doctor of theology, the his-
ii. p. 29. toriaii ; also the historian Bishop

* lAmnd* a Popular AiUiquUies hy Sir Leslie, bishop of Boss, afterwanls of
Henry Ellis, vol. iiL p. 4. Constance ; Sir Robert Sibbalil, Nat.

' Bishop Gawin Douglas, the tmns- History of Scotland ; Wallace's Ork-
lator of Virgil ; Principal Hector neys^ etc.

90 REJLIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

seventeenth centuries describe the solan goose and barnacle
as fonned in shells that grew on branches of trees or drift-
wood immersed in the sea. Camden^ says he would not
have recorded the following circumstance unless he had
received the relation from several very credible witnesses —
viz., that wild geese attempting to fly over the territory of
Whitby Abbey fell down upon the ground These descents
of wild geese were ascribed to the sanctity of St. Hilda. The
reverend author of the statistical account of the parish of
Kirkwall in 1793 says, " The ember goose is a bird of a laige
size and an elegant form, which is never seen on land, and
which is supposed to hatch her eggs under her wing, where
there is a hole which nature, it is thought^ has prepared for
the purposa"

We are told that the Druidesses of Sena, on the coast of
Armorica, could assume the shape of animals. This also was
a privilege which witches were believed to possess ; and that
the form they most commonly assumed was the hare or the
cat. I have already referred to the hare ; as to the cat,
witches, it was alleged, could change themselves into the
likeness of that animal for nine times, but not oftener. In
1590 Agnes Sampson confessed that she had christened a cat,
and afterwards cast it into the sea ; also that the sacrifice of
" the said christened cat," and other ceremonies, impeded the
voyage of King James VL from Denmark, and caused the
loss of a boat in the Firth of Forth, in which were rich gifts
and jewels intended as presents for the queen on her arrival.

* Camdai, by Bishop Gibson, folio, 1772, vol. ii. p. 113.

WITCHES AND CATS. 91

At the same time, and with the same object, another cat was
cast into the sea at another place on the shore of the Foi-th.^ .

Amongst other articles of accusation, Beigis Tod, in 1608,
was alleged to have christened a cat by the name of Margaret,
after having passed it nine times through the iron gate of Sea-
toun, and then to have cast it to the devil Such were the
nature of the charges on which Beigis Tod, one man, and
three other women were committed to the flames.

In the delusions and confessions of Isobel Gowdie, already
referred to, she gives the formula by which a witch could
change herself into the likeness of a cat, and also tliat by
which she could regain her human shape.^

In 1607 Isobel Grierson was tried, convicted, and burnt
as a witch on the Castle Hill of Edinburgh ; and one of the
acts of which she was found guilty was, that at Prestonpans,
in the likeness of her own cat, accompanied by a great many
other cats, she entered at night into the house of Adam Clerk,
and there made such great and fearful noises and trouble
that through fear Adam and the other inmates were nearly
driven mad.*

If the " Extracts given from the Church Book of Bottes-
ford," in the Everyday Book,^ be correct, two women at least
owed their execution for witchcraft at Lincoln in 1618 to the
same gross superstition as existed on the north side oif the

» Pitcairn's Criminal TrialSy vol. L ' Pitcaim's Criviiiial Trials, vol. iii.

pp. 218-237. p. 607.

' Pitcairu's Crimitud Trials, vol. ii. * Pitcaim's Criminal Trials, vol. ii.

pp. 542-4. pp. 523-4.

• Hone's Everyday Book, vol. ii. (March 12), p. 186.

92

RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

Tweed. lu this case the Earl and Countess of Rutland and
their family were the alleged sufferers ; and Rutterkin, the
icat, was an accomplice of the real sufferers — ^viz., two sisters
of the name of Flower, who suffered as witches at Lincoln on
the 12th March 1618.

The earliest Roman "writer on geography^ alludes to the
great influence exercised by the Druids in Gaul, and mentions
the GaUicenae, nine priestesses attached to the oracle of a
GktUic deity in the island of Sena, on the coast of the Osismii.
These Pythonesses claimed to exercise power over the winds
and waves — to change their shape and assume the form of
any animal — to foretell future events — ^and to cure the most
.malignant diseases. In this account, also, it will be perceived
that the powers attributed to the Gallicense were the same
as those commonly urged in the accusations against the
witches, the Ban-Druidh of the Caledonians.^

^ Pompoiiiiis Mela, in the middle
of the first century.

•Now Ile-de-Sen, near Point de
Raz, in the department of Finistere.
It stUl possesses Cyclopean remains
of its heathen inhabitants.

• In the confession of Isobel Gow-
die, accused of witchcraft 1 3th April,
and 3d, 15th, and 27th May 1662, are
to be found the formula by which she
says witclies, including herself, raised
the wind, or caused it to abate — by
which they assumed the form of hares,
cats, or crows, or regained their own
shape — also the contrivances by which
they cured some persons and killed
others. — Pitcaim's Criminal Trials,
4to, 1833, vol. iii. pp. 602-616.

In 1792, in the parish of Gigha,
county Argyle, there were still living
two women who were said to have the
knowledge, and appear to have been
sometimes applied to for fair winds to
persons about to depart, or friends ex- .
pected to arrive at the island. — Old
Statistical Accownl of SeoUand, vol.
viii. p. 52.

In the third century a Druidess of
Gaul foretold, when Diocletian was a
private soldier, that he would ascend
a throne. The prophetic powers of
Druids and Druidesses were perpetu-
ated in the ** second-sight" of Gaelic
seers, and the divination of sorcerers
and witches.

DRUIDESSES. 93

The Gallicenae professed to be vestals ; not so the
Dniidesses of an island at the mouth of the river Loire,
of whom some account is given by Strabo ; and the general
impression to be derived from ancient authors is, that the
(>(4tic priestesses were unchaste and cruel In the case of
priestesses of this island off the mouth of the Loire it would
appear that they annually sacrificed one of their own number.
The women dressed in dark funereal garments, who are
described,^ with hair streaming to the wind, running like
furies, with torches in their hands, along the British ranks in
Anglesea, were probably Dniidesses ;^ for, at the same time,
the Druids are said to have stood, with hands spread to
heaven, uttering imprecations against the Eomans who were
crossing the strait to attack the Britons. Their bravery and
the prayers of their priesthood were unavailing, and the
conquest of this Druid stronghold was followed by the level-
ling of its sacred groves, in which prisoners taken in war
had been sacrificed with barbarous rites on the Druidical
altars.

In Brittany some ancient but still existing ceremonies,
which are lascivious and obscene, can be connected with
heathenism by means of its monuments. Of this an ex-
ample will be found in the description of the Menhir of
Kerloaz, and in the following notices of a granite statue, of
rude design and coarse workmanship, that has in turn been
called a Roman Venus and Eg}^ptian Isis. The original
object and name of this statue is unknown, but in later

• T.nitns, }fon. Ilisf. /inf. xxxviii. - In Celtic, Bnn-Druidh.

94 RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE l^RUIDS.

times it has been distinguished as the Venus of Quinipili,
and is still preserved at Baud, fifteen miles from Hennebon.
It seems to be admitted tliat the figure intended to be repre-
sented is a female, about seveii feet in height, and scantily
provided with raiment. For ages this idol was worshipped
with indecent rites by those calling themselves Christians.
In the seventeenth century the Count de Lannion, instigated
by the clergy, determined to put an end to the scandal, and
caused this representative of obscenity to be thrown into the
river Blavet. But the wrath of the Bretons was raised at
the loss of their cherished idoL They defied both the tem-
poral and spiritual authorities, rescued the Groah-Goard^ — the
name by which this statue had been known to the inhabitants
— ^replaced her on a pedestal, and renewed the impure orgies
of which she was the patroness. The original site of this idol
was on the hiU of Castennec, at no great distance from its
present locality, and in the country of the Celtic Veneti,
whose large, vessels and maritime adventure had probably
originated in Phoenician influence. The ceremonies practised
by the Bretons in honour of this so-called Venus of Quinipili
were akin to those used by the Phoenicians in the worship of
their Venus.

Although in Brittany Christianity has failed to annihilate
all immodest emblems and lascivious ceremonies, it cannot be
justly charged with having introduced rites that are offensive
to decency and prejudicial to morality ; still it must be con-

* Or ** Grouech-Houam, the iron- Fremenville gives it the name
woman." — Weld's VaaUion in Brit- ** Vieille-couartle" in his AntiquUuJt
tany^ p. 241. of MctrhUmn, p. 144.

NOTRE DAME DE LA HAINE. 95

sidered an unworthy compliance, as well as a mistaken policy,
that substituted " Notre Dame de la Joie," " Notre Dame de la
Liesse," ^ and their churches, for objects of heathen worship and
pagan temples. A small and very ancient chapel near Baud,
the town where the Venus of Quinipili retains her place, is
dedicated to Notre Dame de la Clarte ;^ and although Notre
Dame has here a less objectionable designation, it is no doubt
equally derived from a heathen deity. There is also a church
to which Christians — baptized heathens would be a more ap-
propriate name for them — are said to steal in the shades of
evening or in the darkness of night. There they repeat three
aves, in the full i>ersuasion that they will thus ensure the
fulfilment of their evil desires of death or misfortune w^hich
they imprecate against, it may be, some strict guardian, jealous
husband, or hated neighbour. It is believed that such were
the powers and attributes of the Celtic deity Tutates, whose
f{in(i has been superseded by the cliurch, and whose malignant
influence is supposed to have descended to Notre Dame de la
Haine, near Treguier.'

The spirit of malignity and heathenism that attracts wor-
shippers to Notre Dame de la Haine at Treguier would appear
still to linger in some parts of North Wales. A clerg^'man,"*
writing of that district in 1812, says, that in some obscure
parts persons on their bare knees make offerings before the

1 Frcmonville, AtUiq. FiniMcrr^ * ^oxwQHtret Dernirrs Breton ffVeniSj

l?rest, 1844, pp. 91, 92. 1854, vol. i. p. 92.

* N(yrth IValcs^ by Rev. J. Evans,

* Fivnienvillc, Antiq. Aforbihan ; vol. xvii. ; Beauties of England ami
Rmst, 183.5, p. 143. Wales, 1812, pp. 124^ 125.

96 RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

altar iii a Christian church, at the same time uttering virulent
and dreadful imprecations on any individual with whom the
blasphemous devotee is at variance — calling down curses and
misfortunes, not only on the person with whom he is at en-
mity, but also on his family for generations to coma The
same heathenish spirit of revenge is sometimes exhibited, and
the same effects expected, by making oflferings and using im-
precations at certain weUs. These acts of paganism are called
" offerings of an enemy." ^

It would appear, from traditions connected with the church
of Bimie, in Morayshire, that its site had probably been occu-
pied in days of paganism by the fane of a heathen deity, Math
attributes similar to that of the predecessor of " Notre Dame
de la Haine." Bimie was the original seat of the bishops of
Moray, and its ancient church is held in great veneration.
In that part of the country there is a superstition that prayers
oflfered up there on three several Simdays will surely be heard.
There is also a common saying equally applicable to a person
in sickness or to one of bad character — viz., " You have need
to be prayed for thrice in the church of Birnie, that you may
either end or mend."^ This evidently implies amendment or
death as the result of the prayers. In the immediate neigh-

* In the parish and church of St as a place eqoaUy eligible for cures or

Aelian, Caernarvonshire, says Pen- curses as his church. Thq genii of

nant, some persons repair to the saint the well were probably the prcde-

** to imprecate their neighbours, and cessors of St. <£lian. — Pennant's Tour

to request the saint to afflict with in jyales, 1810, vol. iii. p. 158.
sudden death, or with some great

misfortune, any persons who may * Old Statistical Account of Scot-

have offended them." St. Aeliau's land (Parish of Bimie, by the Rev.

Well seems to have been considered J. Anderaon), vol. ix. pp. 160, 161.

CELTIC DEITIES.

97

boiirhood of the church, on a granite boulder-stone, is graven
the emblem, which 1 believe to be a fire-altar and double-
angled sceptre surmounted by the hawk. ^

There is no distinct information to be found regardinfi: the
principal objects of Celtic worship, or even their names. As
the Greek and Roman authors appear to have given the names
of their own gods to those of the Britons and Gauls whose
attributes they most resembled, — Bal or Belenus is probably
noted as Apollo ; Astarte or Adraste as Venus Urania,^ Min-
erva, or Diana ; Vitucadrus or Bitucadrus as Mars ; Dis as
either Pluto or Jupiter ; and Tutates as Mercury, the inventor
of useful arts, god of travellers and traders, also a god of
secrecy, the patron of thieves, and protector of villains in
general.

There were also many inferior objects of worship, animate
and inanimate. Among the latter Gildas mentions moun-
tains and rivers, forests and fountains. Various inscriptions
of the period when South Britain was occupied l)y the
Eomans mention even the names of local deities.^ Yet it is
probable that the Roman auxiliaries who erected the altars,
like the Roman authors, had in view the names of such deities

' In the same imrish is another stone
with the emblem which 1 have called
the comb-case, but there it is Mieved
to represent a book, and thus has got
the name of ** the Bible-stone."

' Urania, the Varuna of the Hindus?
( )uranos of the Greeks ? The Ouranus
of the Phoenicians, who devised the
worship of Bactulia, nide stones.
See reference to Varuna, under the

VOL. I.

head of ** Sculptured Elephant" As-
tarte, the Venus of Syria, the pro-
tectress of mariners, was adopted by
the Etruscans, as by the colonists of
Tyre. — Sir Gardner Wilkinson in Jour-
nal of ArchfTological Associatio}*, vol.
xii. p. 32.

■ Wright's Celt^ Rmnan, and Saxon^
l)p. 256-299.

H

98 RELIGION OF EAIILY BKITONS — THE DRUIDS.

in their native land. Even fi-oni a most distinct inscription
found near tlie wall of Antoninus, on the limits of Caledonia,
where a prefect of a cohort of Gauls dedicates an altar to the
deities and field deities of Britain,^ no information is derived
regarding these minor Celtic deities. Under the head of " Bel-
tane" will be found notices of rites, from which something may
be inferred regarding deities who protected, and malignant in-
carnations that injured the flocks and herds of the Caledonians.
One circumstance finds continually new points of support in
all investigations regarding the ancient religion, the Cyclopean
fanes, and sculptured stones of Celtic countries — viz., that in
the introduction of Christianity there was much of compro-
mise. Christianity was introduced, but paganism was not
discarded : — it is not yet extinct. It is remarkable that there
are no remains of the hideous images which Gildas describes
as mouldering beside the ancient heathen templea It may be
that, like the Baliya, planetary images of Ceylon and India,*
they were purposely formed of perishable materials, or of clay,
like the earliest statues of the gods at Home.

In the varied and contradictory attributes assigned to the
principal deities of the Boman Pantheon there could never
have been difficulty in finding some resemblance to them in
any object of worship in other systems of paganism. The
Di-uidical religion, however, notwithstanding Caesar gives the
names of Boman gods to Celtic deities, must not only have
been different from, but antagonistic to, that of the Eomans, as

' Stewart's Caledonia Roma/na^ p. 309.
* Of earth, clay» or cow-dung.

BELENUS OR APOLLO. 99

well as to the dominion of that people. This is proved by the
Druid religion and rites being prohibited by a nation so
tolerant as the Eomans in matters of religion.^

Passages from various ancient authors seem, when com-
pared, to point out that the Celts, the Gauls, sacrificed human
beings to several of their gods, including Belenus, or whatever
may have been the name of the god of that nation whom
Caesar calls Apollo. Besides the national sacrifices, indivi-
duals exposed to great dangers or suffering from malignant
diseases sacrificed human victims, the sacrifices in the case of
individuals being also perfonned by the Driuds.^ The victim
was sacrificed because the Gauls believed that the life of one
man could only be redeemed by the sacrifice of another.
They also believed that Apollo had power to avert diseases.
A circumstance to be learned from Ca>sar and from Strabo is,
that the Milesians and Delians associated the sun and moon
with Apollo and Artemis, as they rendered the air salubrious
or brought pestilence and sudden death. The Leucadians,
according to Strain), annually sacrificed a human victim to
Apollo at the promontory on which stood liis temple of
ApoUo-Leucatas.

The temple of the Didymean Apollo, in the teiTitory of
the Milesians, had this resemblance to the Celtic fanes, that

* Now, or not long since, Breton them ; and learned expositions and
peasants might be found teaching accurate translations prove that it is
their children the sacred and mys- unintelligible to others, — in fact, that
terious chaunt which was believed to it has become in transmis^^ion, if it
be the same that was taught by the were not originally, absolute non-
Druids to the rising generation of a sense.

fonner era. The Bretons admit that • Cajsar, Afon, Hist. Brit, xxxiv. ;

its meaning is incomprehensible to Cicero's Oration for Fonteins.

100 KKLIGIOX OF EAKLY BKITONS — THE DltUlDS.

it was without a roof. It also contained a magnificent grove
which extended beyond the sacred enclosure.'

Lucan, in his Pharsalia, refei's to the revoltmg sacrifices
offered on the altars of the Celtic deities Teutates, Hesus, and
Taranis ; for the passages which follow regarding the Bards
and Druids, and their tenets, as well as the commencement,
naming the Ligurians and Gauls, seem to leave no doubt that
Teutates, Hesus, and Taranis were objects of Celtic worship to
whom human victims were offered.^ In the isle of Skye there
is Tempul-na-Anait (the Temple of Anait).' In the Western
Isles is the small island of Calligray, attached parochially to
Harris, in the north end of which are the remains of a very
ancient building called TeampuU-na-h-Annait (the Temple of
Annait). Near this temple is a well, at which the worship-
pers purified themselves, called Tobar-na-h-Annait (WeU of
Annait), and tha point of land on which it is situated is called
Ru-na-h-Annait* It may be worthy of consideration whether

* Strabo, b. xiv. c. 1. ** Various places in the Hebrides
' The shrine of Taranis is here said and on the opposite continent are

to be inhuman as that of the Scythian called Annaid, and supposed to have

Diana. The altar of this goddess was been dedicated to the goddess Annat."—

at Tauris, in the land of the Getse. It Highland Society's Gaelic Dictionary.

was originally of white stone, which ThereLsalsoAnnat-bumandAnnat-

became ivd by the blood of human glen in the jmrish of Kilmadock,

victims. All strangers seized in the Perthshire.

land were sacrificed to this sister of In North Uist, a lai^r island
Phcfibus by the priestess, who was contiguous to Calligray and Ber-
a viiigin of noble descent, and the neray, ** is a church called Team-
weapon she used in their immolation pul-na-Trianade, or Trinity Temple,"
was a sword. — Ovid's EpiMJes^ b. iii. which, the clergyman of the parish in
Kpistle 2 to Cotta. 1794 goes on to say, ** tradition gives

* Pennant's FoyoffA to Scotland^ vol. out to be the oldest building of the
i. p. 342. kind in the Highlands. What corro-

* Old StatiMicnl Account nf Scotland^ Iwrates this tradition is, that from the
vol. X. p. 375. fin'nmstanoe *>f its being d«*tlioated to

THE GODDESS ANAIT.

101

we have not in this paragraph of the statistical account of the
parish of Harris, written by the clergyman in 1794, the name
of one of the heathen objects of Gaelic worship ; and if so,
whether we can, with any probability, define the nature of
that worship, or identify Annait of the Western Isles with
Anaitis, a deity whose worship extended from Persia to the
westward in various countries of Asia — in Assyria, Cappado-
cia, Armenia, and in the Phoenician colonies in Africa.

Strabo had himself witnessed the worship of Anaitis in
Persia, and describes some of the ceremonies of the Magi in
its performance, adding that there was a shrine within the
temple. He also mentions another temple to the same
divinity, but calls her the goddess Antea. He describes
a temple reared by the Persians to Anaitis on an artificial
mound, which they heaped over a rock in the plain where
they had defeated the Sacte near the Euxine ; and he adds
that the Persian deities Anaitis, Omanus, and Anadatus^ have
a common altar.

Pliny says the first solid statue of gold was erected in the

the Trinity, it seems to have l)eeii
built l)efore the Romish caleiular was
made kiionm in tliose parts ; all
churches built since that period ))e-
ing deilicate<l to saints."

It seems not improbable that here
was, prior to Christianity, another
temple of Annait. From the time of
the first iutrotluction of Christianity
there was always a supj)ly of saints'
names ready for churthes, viz., of
those zealous missionaries who con-
verted the ]»cople from heathenism.

The word for the Trinity is usually
written Trionaid, not Trianade, and
was of course introduced into the
Gaelic by the Christians. Hut the
above tnulition and the name Team-
pul-na-Trianade are ea.sily reconcil-
able with its beinf^ the site of a
Teampull-na-h-Annait, like that on
the neighbouring isle of Calligray.

In his fourth chapter Richard of
Cirencester mentions Andate as one
of the gods worshippeilby the Britons
}ind the l)rui«ls.

102 RELIGION OF EARLY BRITONS — THE DRUIDS.

temple of the goddess Anaitis, and he mentions a district and
a lake which probably derived their names from this divinity.

The Temple of Nanea, in Persia^ and the priests of her
temple, are mentioned in the Maccabees.^

Nania, the moon goddess, is one of the most ancient objects
of worship in the Indian peninsula.^

Some of the Greek writers identified Anaitis with their
Artemis, and Artemis with the moon,^ and with Hecate as a
goddess of the moon.

These remarks have reference to that remnant of antiquity,
the temple of Annait, in the islet of Calligray ; the follow-
ing regards another ancient monument in the neighbouring
islet of Berneray. This monument consists of a circle some-
what less than ten feet in diameter, defined by long sharp-
pointed stones. In the centre is a stone about five feet in
height, of a conical form, but inverted, the narrow end being
fixed in the ground, and the top being broad and flat " It is
to this day," says the reverend author of the statistical
iccount of the parish, " called Clach-na-Greine, the Stone of
the Sun."^ In the same parish of Harris are other two
circles of rather larger size, the centre stones being also
of a different form — ^long, flat, and raised eight feet above the
ground.^

* 2 Maccabees i. 13, 1 4, 15. ** Artemis," aud ** Hecate " in Smith's

* Mao, the moon god ; Nania, the Mythological Dictianary.

moon goddess. * In Jura there is Bein-an-Ghrian-

Mani, a male, the moon ; in the an, or Mountain of the Sun. — Pen-

proso, Edda. — Mallet's Northern An- nant's Voyage to Scotlandf vol. i. p.

tiquUics, p. 407. 330.

•See also the articles "Anaitis," ^ Old Statistical Accottnl of Scotland^

TANITH OR ANAIETIS. 103

From these circumstances it might be inferred that the
temple of Annait was connected with planetary worship. The
rites of Anaitis have generally been considered to be of an
obscene nature, and her worship is acknowledged to be of
Indian origin.^

The name of the goddess Tanat-Tanith or Tanas appears in
nearly every inscription on Punic monuments. Tanitli was
looked on as the Greek Artemis — the Oriental Artemis,
Anaietis of the Lydians.^

A common form of commencement in the inscriptions
found at Carthage on votive tablets is ** To the Goddess — To
Tanath, the countenance of Baal," etc. etc.,^ and the circle and
crescent are the commonly- sculptured emblems on such Car-
thaginian monuments.

vol. X. p. 374. Compare these with Archwlogia, vol. xxxviii. Artiix-

nioiiuDieuts still existing in Persia, erxes II. set up the image of Aph-

and alluded to in the chapter on ro<lite Tanais in Habylon, Susa, and

** Asiatic and Celtic Monuments." Ecbatana.

' Smith's Mytholoijiatl IHcMoiutry. ■ Da vies' Reacardvcs in Cartfui/jf*'

* Article by Mr. Fnmks in the p. 267.

CHAPTER V.

SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN AND CALEDONIA.

The Sun, Baal, BEL*--General Worship of Light— Solar and PUuietary
Worship — Sacrifice of the Cock — Philological affinities — Baal and Bel
in yarious Eastern Languages, as well as in the Celtic Dialects — Great
heathen Festival of Yeul — Its Ceremonies — Passing Children through
the Fire, or exposing them on the House-tops — People and Cattle passing
through the Fire — Ordeal by Fire and Water — Pre-eminence of the East
— Illustrated by the great rock -cut Temple of Karli — Buddhist Services,
Practices, and Ceremonies — Position of Temples originally referred to the
Worship of Light and the Sun— Bel-Tein, Fire of Bel— Bel-Tein day—
Beltein Ceremonies — Offerings to Inferior Deities — Fastem Even a Celtic
Festival, also a PhoRuician — Game of Ball — Soule — Other Ceremonies —
Cam Fires— Hallowe'en a Celtic Festival — Ceremoniea practised then,
and Fires lighted — Tin-Egin — Midsummer Eve a Celtic Festival —
Peculiar Ceremonies — Flannan Isles — Deasoil Processions. — Astartk,
AsHTORETH, Thk Moon — Worship of the Moon — Superstitious Rites not
yet extinct — Homage to ** the Queen of Heaven" in various forms.

FROM Dondera-head in Ceylon to the Himalaya Moun-
tains, and from the borders of China to the extremities
of Western Europe and its islands, we find clear evidence of
the former prevalence of the earliest form of false worship,
viz., the adoration of light, the sun, and " the whole host of
heaven." In the Eajpoot state of Mai'war,^ in its capital

1 Baal, Bel, Belus, Belenus. In in Rajasthau 1 remarked a beautiful

Celtic, Beal, Beilf Beul {Gaelic Uic- rei)resentation of the sun-god in his

ti(riiary) ; Abellion (Smitli's Mytho- car, drawn by seven horses. The

Iwjical Dictionary). sculpture was in alto-relievo.

* In a niiue<l and desoi-ted mai'blc Asa took from the cities of Juduli

temple near the base of Mount Aboo the sun images (2<l Chron. xiv. 5),

RALI, PLANETARY WORSHIP. 105

Utlayapoor, " the City of the liisiiig Sun," the pi*ecedence of
Surya, the sun god, is still maintained. The sacred standard
of the country bears his image, and the Raja, claiming to l)e
his descendant, appears as his representative.^

In a complicated form the Parsees of British India still
retain that worship of light, symbolised in the sun and fire,
for which they became exiles when their fire-altars were
oveithroAvn and their faith was proscribed in the land of
their ancestors.^ More than twenty centuries have passed
since the religion of Gautama Buddha was generally and
enthusiastically received and firmly established in Ceylon,
where it has ever since, with short interniptions, remained the
religion of the state and the people. It then superseded,
although it has never been able to eradicate, the Bali, planetary
worship, which co-existed with the Naga or snake worship in
that country. There also, besides a veneration for ancestors,
the aborigines believed in invisible i)owers and controlling
spirits of limited influence and local celebrity. Fountains
and streams — trees and forests — rocks and mountains — ^had
their genii, and various fonns of pestilence were attributed
to the malignant influence of demons. From notices in
ancient authors, Eoman inscriptions, and remaining super-

l)ut the idolatry remained. Chariots noticed under the head of ** Monu-

and horses given by the kings of nients in Persia."

Judah to the sun were removed and ^ Referred to in the chapter on the

destroyed by Josiah (2 Kings xxiii. ., g^^^^ Religion of the Inhabitant.

1-11). For the continuance of this ^^ Hritain "

idolatry see Jeremiah viii. 1-2.

* Tod's Anmils of Raja^tJian. * Stewart's Calcdi/nia Romana ;

* Remains of these temples, similar Wright's tV//, Roman, mid Saxonx ;
to ('ycloiH>an remains in Britiiin, are Earhj I ixhAihiUml^ of Britain, c. i.\.

106 SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

stitions/ it would appear that the heathen inhabitants of
Britain worshipped an equally numerous and nearly iden-
tical accumulation of objects.

Ceylon having escaped Brahmanical usurpation and Moham-
medan conquest, may account for the primitive false worship
being there found in general estimation ; for although openly
disowned, it is secretly practised, not only by persons who are
Buddhists, but by many who profess themselves Christians.
Buddhism, as already observed, has been the religion of the
Cingalese for. upwards of two thousand years ; and from the
numerous relics of Gautama brought to Ceylon it is considered
a holy land by his followers. Christianity, in various forms,
has been long introduced into the island, and numbers those
who have received the initiary sacrament by hundreds of
thousands ; yet it is remarkable that neither the Buddhist
priest nor the Christian pastor has succeeded in eradicating from
the minds of their professed adherents a belief in the efficacy
of the Bali rites. Forbidden to the followers of Gautama
Buddha, and opposed to Christianity, the tenacity with which
it has maintained its hold on the minds of the Cingalese is,
however remarkable, not without a parallel, as similar super-
stitions continued to exist in Britain despite of edicts, civil
and ecclesiastical, and of penalties more severe than any
tolerated by the religion of Buddha.^ The policy of new reli- "i

' In the article ou " Customs and until the fourteentli century, when the

Superstitions" these are more fully ecclesiastical tribunals classed it as

explained. heresy, and obtained power of judg-

' Witchcraft is heathenism, yet its ment in such cases. After that, acts

tricks were practised by early Christian blazoned by ecclesiastics as miracles

saints. It was not punisheil with death when practised by themselves, were

SACRIFICE OF COCKS.

107

gions that excluded preceding objects of worship from their
schemes has usually been to denounce former deities as
demons. By so doing, the new religion having admitted the
entity, has perpetuated a belief in the continued existence of
these beings, and given them a duration commensurate with
the system by which they were superseded.

Bali is the word used in Ceylon to express the adoration of
the heavenly bodies, and the propitiatory offerings and sacrifices
that form part of the ceremonies in that worship. The victim
sacrificed is generally a cock. In Sale's Introduction to the
Korart} he states that the idolatry of the Arabs, as Sabians, pre-
vious to Mohammed, chiefly consisted in worshipping the fixed
stars and planets ; also that at their various places of pilgrimage
the Arabs sacrificed a cock. Cocks were the objects which
witches in Great Britain were generally accused of sacrificing ;*^

found heathenish and heretical when
attributed to ignorant and unprivileged
laymen ; and against them the halter
and the fagot were decreed by beings
who professed themselves Christians,
and were acknowledged as the teachers
of Christianity.

» Sale's Koran f p. 11.

' See trial of Dame Alice Kvteler in
1324, who was accused before her
enemy the Bishop of Ossory of sacri-
ficing nine red cocks at cross-roads
near Kilkenny (published by Camden
Society in 18-13).

See also tlie trials of Christian Sad-
leir and Christian Livingstone in Pit-
cairn's Criminal Trials, vol. ii. p. 25,
etc.

** In Scotland burying a live cock
is describetl ns a remp<lv for iiisanitv "

(Sir J. Graham Dal5'eirs Darker Suj)er-
stUions of Scotland, p. 190). The same
remedy has, cvcti in late years, been
resorted to for epileptic fits both in
the north of Scotland and in Corn-
wall. Pennant, in his Tour in Wales,
vol. ii. p. 15, mentions the sacrifice of
a cock, along with the procession of
an epileptic patient three times round
a consecmted well at Llandegla, in
Denbighshire. The patient had also
to wash and leave an otfering in the
well. The bird to be sacrificed was
not only carried thrice round the well,
but thrice round the neighbouring
church. In it the i)atient had to ptiss
the night under the communion-table,
with his he4ul resting on the Bible,
and to depart in the morning, leaving
an olfering of six]>enre.

108 SOLAR AND PLANETAUY WORSHIP IX BRITAIN.

and it may be here well to repeat that the cock was especially
sacred to Helios, the sun.

Baliya^ is the Cingalese name of images of clay, made for the
occasion, and generally destroyed at the conclusion of the in-
cantations in Bali ceremonies.^ The image is supposed to
represent the controlling planet of the individual for whom
the rites are prepared, and which, from their nature, are directed
by the astrologer to whom the votary has confided his horo-
scope.

Coesar refers to the Druids of Gaul and Britain as teaching
many things concerning the motion of the heavenly bodies.
Pomponius Mela says the Druids professed to know the mo-
tions of the heavens and the stara and the intentions of the
immortal gods ; and Pliny mentions how intensely addicted
these priests were to magical aits of the same nature as those
practised by the Persians. Thus we have a concurrence of
direct testimony to the planetary worship and divination
which afterwards in Britain successively bore the names of
sorcery, heresy, witchcraft, and superstition.

Since the modern discoveries in comparative philology
have been made generally available,^ I feel no doubt that
an attempt to identify expressions in planetary worship
that are common to the language of Ceylon and to the Celtic

* Baliya seems to be very similar to Pliny, Natural History ^ b. xxxiv. c.
the Teraphim. 16, and b. xxxv. c. 45.

* It would apjiear that the earliest • By Professors Wilson and East-
images of the Roman gods were formed wii;k's translation of liopp's Compa-
of wood or earthenware, an<l that the mtivc Grammar, and Pritt^hard and
statue erected to JupittT in the Capitol Latham's Eastern Oriijin of the Celtic
by Tan[uinius Prisms was (»f clay.- Kati<mH.

BEU

109

dialects of Europe will not l)e regarded with unreasonable
scepticism/

Bel,' in Cingalese, signifies power, might, authority ; Baal,
Bel, Belus, in Assyria, Palestine, and PhaMiicia, implies do-
minion, and became equivalent in use to supreme god, ruler.'^
In all these countries the expression is also connected with

* Very many words arc nearly iilenti-
ral in their application and in their for-
mation in the Cingalese and the Celtie
languages. This, considering that the
former is so much derived from San-
scrit and Pali, will not be thought,
after recent philological discoveries,
to retjuire explanation — neither to be
a matter for wonder — notwithstanding
the relative geographical jwsition of
the countries in which these languages
are spoken. I may merely mention a
few words having a derivation common
to the Cingalese and Celtic languages —
(fod, death, king, virtuous, triumph-
ant, light, the sun, the moon, the
stars, a man, a loixl, a woman, water,
a tree, a cave — almost all the |)ersonal
relations, and the numerals.

The numerals, as exj^ressed in San-
scrit, have unmistakeably a common
origin with those of the Celtic dialects.
But the question has been asked,
** May not the numerals have been
intro«luced into Britain subsequent to
the Christian era ?" No one can give
an authoritjitive answer to this ([ues-
tion, which, it is presumed, is meant
to imply that the numerals were im-
posed on the Celtic language after the
Koman invasion. Tliis appears to be
most improbable ; for it cannot be
supposed that the Dniids, with their
knowledge of tiie heavenly bodies,

and using alphabetical characters,
were without woi*ds to express the
common numbers. Neither have we
any reason to supjwse that the Irish,
whose country was never as.sailed by
the Romans, nor the Caledonians,
whose country they were unalile
thoroughly to subdue or to retain,
received from them the words for
those simple numbera, which must
be amongst the first requirements of
beings endowed with the faculty of
siMjech.

The numeraLs, as expressed in the
Sanscrit and Celtic languages, an-
evidently derived from a common
source. The figures now in u.se to
represent the digits in Europe were
derived from the Arabs, who ac<[uired
them fromIndia(Prinsep's IiulinnAn-
liquitks, by Thomas) ; and it has been
lately advancetl that the Hindus
derived them from the Chinese. —
Wilson's /7i//jVf Three Thousand Years
Ago.

In the tablets found in the cam]) of
the Helvetii when thev were defeatetl

ft-

by Ca\sar, B.C. 58, the jK^ople were
numbered up to 368,000, of whom
92,000 were fighting men.

* Bel, plural of Bela, power, strength,
force, dignity, might, authority.

» Kenrick's Phoenicia, pp. 298, 299,

no

SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

light and the worship of the heavenly bodies, more parti-
cularly of the suiL^

Bel or Belinus— -Apollo,^ was a principal divinity of the
heathen Britons and their Celtic kindred in Gaul, as well as
of the Assyrians and Phoenicians. In Brittany there is the

' Bhd and Bhdla, light, effulgence,
excellence ; Bali, sidereal worship ;
Baliya, image made to represent any
particular planet to which the sacri-
fice is offered. The Baalim of the
Assyrians and Canaauites appear to
have been the same as the Cingalese
Baliya (see Judges ii. 11, 13).

■ ** Belinns, the same as Apollo "
{Lexicon of Petrocus) ; Belinus, a
divinity of the Gauls (Ausonius), the
same as the Apollo of the Greeks and
the Horus of the Egyptians ; Orus
or Horus, the emblem of the sun
(Lemprifere's i>w;/Mmary, "Belenus");
Orus, they say, is, by interpretation,
Apollo (Diodorus Siculus, b. L ) ; Orus,
whom the Greeks call Apollo (Herodot.
Euterpe, cxliv.) ; Apollo, Cei*es, and
Diana, the Egyptians call Orus, Isis,
and Bubastis (Herodot. EiUerpe, clvi.)
** Bel is confounded " (Jer. iv. 2).
** I will punish Bel in Babylon"
(Jer. xli. 44). Vossius says Axk>11o
was called Belinus, and quotes Hero-
dian and an inscription at Aquileia,
viz., ** Apollini Belino." — Brand's
Popular Antiquities, by Ellis, p.
184).

On the reverse of a coin of the
BritiBh king Cunobeline is a figure
of Apollo playing on the lyre. On
this coin Alford remarks " that the
Britons worshipped Apollo under the
name of Belus or Belinus. This king,
Cunobeline, is by Dio and Nennius

called Belinus (see also " Abellio " in
Smith's Mythological Dictionary).

** That the ancient Gauls wor-
shipped Apollo under the name of
Belinus is confirmed by Dioscorides,
who expressly says that the Herba
Apollinaris (in the juice whereof the
Gauls used to dip their arrows) was
called in Gaulish " Beliinuncia."
— Camden's Britannia, 4th ed. p.
58. See also Samme's Ancient Bri-
tain, p. 130, 1676, folio, where, he
adds, the plant is still called Veleno
by the Spaniards. By Pliny it is
called ** Apollinaris, in the Greek
Hyoscyamos," henbane (Pliny, Nat.
Hist. h. XXV. c. 17).

Beli is the sun in the language of
Assam (see Latham's Ethnology, vol.
ii p. 396).

From Ausonius to Patera : —
*' Tu Baiocassis stirpe Druidarum satus

(Si fama non fallit fidem)

Belini sacratum ducis h templo genus :

Et inde vobis nomina ;

Tibi Paterse (sic ministros nuncupant

Apollinaris mystici)."

Baiocasses, a Celtic people ; believed
to be the same as Bodiocasses of Pliny
(iv. 18). Bayeux is supposed to re-
present Baiocasses. — Smitii's Dvction-
ary of Oreek and Roman Geography .

Ausonius has also to Phiebitius : —
" Qui (Phffibicius) Beleni iEdituus,

stirpe Satus Druidum

Gentis Armoricw."

WORSHIP OF LIGHT. Ill

commune of Belz ; and the great tumulus there, although
now crowned by the chapel of St Cedo, is, by tradition,
pointed out as being once the chief seats of the worship of the
god BeL It is situated in the immediate neighbourhood of
the Cyclopean remains of Carnac and other wondrous monu-
ments of heathen worship. Belich is a word still used by the
Bretons for a priest ; and in Cornish, Belie (priest), Belein
(priests), Beal tine ^ (fires lighted to Belus), show that the word
was in use in other Celtic dialects.

The name and the worship of Baal or Bel^ can be traced
in many intermediate countries, as well as in Ceylon and
India, Gaul and Britain, and was also used as an honorary
addition to the names of kings and great families or indivi-
duals. It is common in distinguislied names of the Phoenicians
and Carthaginians, and forms part of the names of the two
earliest British kings known to history, viz., Cassibelan and
Cunobeline — both of whom, by two early authors, are simply
called Belinus.^ Bellovesus, nephew of Ambigatus, the king
of the Celts in Gaul in the reign of Tarquinius Priscus, is
mentioned by Livy.

From the Rig Veda we learn that light, the sun, and fire,
were amongst the earliest objects of Arian worship."* In an-

* Borlase's Cornish Vocabulary. authority, there waa a third Bri-

* Baal, the Lord, waa used for the tish king Belinus. In the British
true God until confusion arose from Bards ** the victorious Beli " is in-
the same epithet being applied to voked.

pagan gods worshipped by Jews and

Canaanites. — Hosea ii. 16 ; Prideaux, * ** The sun is the soul of all that

etc. etc. nioves or rests." The sun is also called

•ByDioandNennins. If Geoffrey ** tlie vital spirit."— Max Miiller's

of Monmouth is admitted as an Anx^i^nU Sanscrit Literature, p. 20.

112 SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP JN BRITAIN.

other chapter are notices of the adoration of the sun that still
prevails amongst some, possibly among all, of the aboriginal
tribes of India.^ Some additional proofs will now be offered
regarding the worship of the sun, and fire, its representative,
by our heathen ancestors in Britain, whose ancient rites,
although they have gradually declined into quaint customs
and vulgar superstitions, have possessed such tenacity that
they not only continued in despite of power and punishment,
but have not been effaced by time and civilisation.

It is important, as a prelude to the description of rites in
a worship common to the early inhabitants of the Indian
peninsula and to the Celtic population of Gaul and Britain,
to refer to the cognate expressions which they employed for
the objects of their adoration. In Cingalese, Ja, Jwala, signi-
fies light, lustre, flame ; Jwalana, light ; also Agni, or per-
sonified and deified fire. Eliya is also Cingalese for light ; in
Welsh, Ueuer and Lleuad, the moon ; in Gaelic, Eibhle, any-
thing on fire. In Sanscrit, Jwala or Jwala signifies light,
flame ; in Cornish, Gwawl ; in Welsh, Goleu ; in Armorican,
Goleu. In Gaelic, Geal and Eallaidhe is white ;^ Soillse,^
light, sunlight ; Suil,^ the eye. In Cingalese, Haili and Hel,
and in Sanscrit, Heli or Helis is the sun. In W^elsh it is
Haul, pronounced Hail ; in Armorican, Haul and Heol ; in

* Viz., CusUnns and Superstitions from Sanscrit and Celtic. The wonl
comnum to India and Cakdonia. written Suil, in GaeUc is pronoun-

* Also ** the moon." ced Huil. — Paper on an old Gaelic
' H is not used in Gaelic as the ini- Poem, by the Rev. Thomas M'Lauch-

tial letter of any word. In these two Ian, in Proceedings of the Society of
words S occupies the place which is Antiqttaries of Scotland, vol. iii. p.
filled by H in the words that follow 368.

FESTIVAL OF YEUL. 113

Cornish, Hoiil and IleuL The great festival of lieathen
Britain — viz., Yeul — was celebrated at that period of the year
when the sun, having obtained the greatest distance from the
earth, commenced his return to restore warmth and to revivify
nature. Although Christmas superseded the heathen festival,
not only the ancient name of Yeul, but many of the customs,
evidently connected with the heathen rites, are not yet obso-
lete in South Britain ;^ and in Scotland, at least in the more
remote parts, and in agricultural districts, Yeul is still the word
in general use for Christmas Day.

From the Penitential of Theodore, Archbishop of Canter-
bury, in the seventh century, and the Confessional of Ecgbert,
Archbishop of York, in the early part of the eighth century,
we may infer that homage was then offered to the sun and
moon ; for women are forbidden to practise passing their
children through the fire, or exposing them on the house-tops,
to restore or insure their health.^ It is curious to compare
these restrictions and penalties to be enforced by English

^ The Yeul feast and Yeul log can obsolete English word ** to teend."

be clearly traced to their original Herrick, speaking of the Christmas

source. The blaze of lights, and the brand, says ** part must be kept

kindling of the great Yule log on wherewith to Uend the Christmas by

Christmas Eve by a i>ortion of the next year." — Hone's Evcry-day Booky

Yule brand of the former year, is vol. i. p. 204.

as clearly a heathen ceremony, and Changing pagan festivals into Chris-

for the same object of worship, as tian holidays was practised and ap-

the fires on Midsummer Eve. As to proved, ** the better to draw heathens

the feast, in times comparatively to the religion of Christ." — See Dr.

recent the Oreenlanders held a sun- ConyersMiddleton'8Z<^r/ro7/ii2o7;u',

feast at the winter solstice, to rejoice particularly p. 126.
in the commencement of returning ■ ** Si qua mulier filium suum vel

light and warmth. filiam super tectum i)ro sanitate po-

From Teinidh and Tein, Irish and suerit, vel in fomace, vii. annos poeni-

Oaelic for fire, is probably derived the teat." — Theodori Arch. Cant. Lib. Pa-

VOL. T. 1

114

SOLA.R AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

ecclesiastical authorities with the denunciation of the same
heathen practices by the prophet Zephaniah ^ — !' I will cut
off the remnant of Baal, and them that worship the host of
heaven upon the house-tops."

Edmund Spencer, in his Dialogues from Irdand, written
about 1596, states, that at the kindling of fire and the lighting
of candles the Scots and Irish use superstitious rites, which show
that they honour fire and light.^ From another authority we
find that the Irish, when they put out a candle, were in use
to say, " May the Lord renew or send us the light of heaven."^

In Scotland there was a practice, described by an eye-
witness, that after a child was baptized, and on the return of
the party from church, the infant was swayed three times
gently over a flame ;* or, according to another authority, the
child was handed three times across the fire.^ In Perthshire,
in cases of private baptism, there was a custom of passing the
child three times round the crook which was suspended over
the centre of the fire.*

enit. xxvii. 14; Ecgberti, Arch. Ebor.
Confession, xxxiii. ; Thorpe's Ancient
Laws of England, vol. ii. pp. 83, 167.

^ Zephaniah i 4, 5.

' £dmand Spencer's Dialogues on
Ireland, p. 4.

» Sir H. Ellis' Notes to " Candle
Omens," Brand's Popular Antiquities,
iii. 95.

* Dr. Moresin, quoted by Sir. H.
Ellis in Brand's Popular Antiquities,
u. 48, 49.

• Pennant's Tour in Scotland, ii. 46.
In Sardinia, we are told by Forester
that on St. John's Eve great fires wen*

lighted, over which alliances were
formed by passing the hands of the
parties, each holding a sti(5k, three
times through the flame. These are
supposed to be remnants of Phoenician
rites, introduced by them when thi?y
established themselves in the island
thirty-five centuries ago.— Forester's
Sardinia, p. 834. See also La Mar-
mora's and Tyndale's works on Sar-
dinia.

• Old Statistical Account of Scot-
land, ** Parish of I-x)gierait, Perth-
shire," vol. V. p. 83.

PURIFICATION BY FIRE.

115

In many parts of Ireland, in the last century, on Bel-tine
(lay, men, women, cliildren, and cattle were passed through a
fire lighted for that purpose/ O'Brien says that " Beal-tine
(May-day) was so called from large fires which the Druids
were used to light on the summits of the hills,^ into which
fires they drove four-footed beasts, and also made use of
various ceremonies to expiate the sins of the people." He also
states that the ceremony of lighting these fires in honour of
the god Belus gave name to the month of May, which is to
this day called in the Irish language Mi-na-Beal-tine.

Dr. Keating, speaking of this fire of Beal, says that the cattle
were driven through it, and not sacrificed ; and that the chief
object of the ceremony was to preserve the animals from con-
tagious disorders for that year. He also states that all the
inhabitants of Ireland quenched their fires on Beal-tine day,
and kindled them again from the fire of BeaL Dr. Keating
adds, quoting from an ancient glossary, that the Druids
lighted two solemn fires every year, through which all animals
were passed to preserve them from disease. Tlie circum-
stances thus recorded by Irish authorities will be found cor-
roborated by similar customs which existed in Scotland, and
are noticed under the head of " Bel-tein."

With the Jews and Canaanitea passing through the fire

* Collect, de Rchus Hihcnu vol. ii.
p. 65. Toland, an eye-witness, de-
scribes tlie people in Ireland passinj;;
throHgli the fires lighted on St John's
Eve (Midsummer). The people, he
says, believed themselves in a special
manner blest by this ceremony, but

were entirely ignorant of its heathen
origin. — Toland's Hiatory of the DiniuH^f
p. 112,. edit. 1815.

* For more particulars regarding the
fire of Baal or Bel, and festivals and
customs connected with that worship,
sec the article '* Beltein."

IIG

80LAB AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

to Baal or Moloch may sometimes mean an act of purification
or expiation ; but it undoubtedly expressed the act of sacri-
ficing human victims by fire as a religious rite to that god.^
That abomination in the case of the Jews, with their actual
knowledge and high pretensions, was infinitely more heinous
than the same acts committed by their heathen neighbours, or
by our predecessors in Britain.

Ordeal by fire and by water was generally practised in
many countries of Asia and Europe, and would appear to be
derived from sun and fire worship. It was not abolished in
the law courts of Britain until the reign of Henry IIL ;* and
the barbarous ignorance of some of our countrymen has
refused, even in the present age, to sanction the wisdom of
that act. In England to this day there are many persons who
believe that some infirm .old woman of their neighbourhood
possesses supernatural power and malignant influence. They
next defame her as a witch ; and lastly, the ferocity engen-
dered of fear and ignorance would lead them — did not a timely
vision of the gallows bar their path — to commit murder by the
ordeal of water.*

The position of religious temples — both Christian and
heathen — has generally reference to the east as preeminent

« Dent xii 81 ; Ps. xvi. 37 ; la
Ivii. 6 ; Ezck. xvi. 20, 21 ; xxiii. 87 ;
Jer. viL 8 ; xix. 5. From this last
chapter we find that it was to Baal
the Jews sacrificed their children as
burnt-ofTeriiigs. It was not to Baal,
or Moloch, that Jephtha sacrificed his
daughter.

* Cowel'sZai/J Tenna, article ** Or-

del ;" Skene's De Verb, Siffnif. article
** Mahamium."

• See article on ** Fountains " for the
connection between the worship of
the sun and water. See account of
proceedings at Great Paxton in Hunt-
ingdonshire in 1 808, in Hone's Every-
day Book, voL ii. pp. 91, 92.

UOCK-CUT TEMPLE OF KARLI.

11'

over other points of the compass. The position of the Chris-
tian churches, extending east and west, with the altar or
special object of worship in the east, is an arrangement that
may be recognised in many heathen temples — even those
erected prior to the Christian era. Tlie Cyclopean fanes
have generally reference to the east ; but as they are treated
of in a separate chai)ter, another illustration is now given in
the great rock-cut temple of Karli in the Dekhan of India, ^
This work, from the peculiar nature of the rock, and its
imperishable form of construction, has withstood the usual
decay incident to the works of man executed twenty cen-
turies ago, and desecrated and neglected for more than a
thousand years ; — that is, from the time when a compara-
tively pure system in Buddhist morality ^ succumbed to vile
superetitions urged by the energetic priestcraft of Bralunans.

In the Temple of Karli, hewn from the hard and solid
rock, we find not only a position but a form nearly identical
with that of the choir in most of our Christian cathedrals.
Entering from the west, you find yourself beneath the music
gallery, and see extended before you a nave, separated from a
surrounding aisle by a line of laboriously-sculptured columns,
apparently supporting a lofty arched roof^ terminating in a
circular apse, under which, in the cast, is the receptacle of the

* The opening of the Gre^it Penin-
sular Railway will bring this won-
tlerful monument of labour and of the
Buddhist religion within two hours'
journey of Bombay. It is only a mile
from the railway.

' Buddhism, weak and inope^^tivp

as a religion, is unimpeachable as a
system of morality.

■ The arches are of a very peculiar
form, like an elongated horse-shoe.
They are lined with ribs of teak-wood,
said to be coeval with the excavation.
This .««<'ems improbable, but not im-

118

SOLAll AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

relic. In the early days of Buddliism, B.c. 543, at the great
convocation of priests held at Rajamahl, after the funeral
obsequies of Gautama Buddlia had been completed, the high-
priest occupied a throne on the north side of the hall of
assembly ; and the pulpit for the preacher wa^ raised in the
centre, and faced the east.^

If we turn from more material arrangements to the reli-
gious services of the . Buddhists, we find that portions are
chaunted and the prayers intoned ; and that in the Buddhist'
ritual they have a ceremony when a i)enitent, after reviewing
his former actions, vows future adlierence to the command-
ments and moral laws of Buddha.^ Confession was also
practised. Lectures were given in the temples ; and besides
the daily service there was a weekly assembly for religious
purposes. There was also a season more particularly de-
voted to religious teaching, during which daily homilies
were delivered.* Censers and incense were used in the tem-
ples, and holy wat^r was sprinkled on the worshippers. Tlie

possible, if Pliny is correct in stating
that the beams in the temple of
Apollo at Utica were in perfect pre-
servation in his time, although they
had then endured 1178 years. These
teak-wood ribs at Karli being utterly
useless as a support, were doubtless
placed there that cloths or other
objects of decoration might be at-
tached. This would fix the date of
the erection, or last renewal of these
timbers, as previous to the period
when the Brahman asceudancy was
re established in the Dekhan.

Since these remarks were written
the extraordinary exemption of teak-
wood from mildew or decay has been
pointed out by Dr. Calvert, F.U.S.,
at a meeting of the British Associa-
tion.

* The Mahaiav^isOf in Pali and Eiig-
lish, by the Hon.' G. Tumour, Cey-
lon, pp. xxix. and 12.

* Called Sil or Scela in Ceylon.

* In Cingalese called Poeya.

* Called in Cingalese Wtiij.

PRE-EMINENCE OF THE EAST. 119

Buddhist system included religious of both sexes, dedicated
to sacred rites, and enjoined a rigid morality so long as
they chose to retain the peculiar and honourable yellow
robe by which they were distinguished. These priests and
priestesses made vows of celibacy, and had separate places of
residenca

in the history of this religion of peace and morality, which
in so many of its forms preceded Christianity, there does not
appear any satisfactory explanation w^hy the east was se-
lected* as the most sacred point. Neither has any sufficient
reason been given why Christian churches are usually ar-
ranged with regard to that point of the compass.

In treating of peculiarities in forms of interment, and the
position of the skeleton found in ancient places of sepulture,
it has been asserted that the bones being disposed at length,
with the head to the west, prove the remains to be those of
a Christian ; placed thus " that he might look to the point
from whence he expected the Saviour at his second coming."
Even in Britain such a position of the skeleton found in
ancient cemeteries is not a sufficient proof that the bones
were those of a Christian, and various heathen nations bury
their dead with the body extended from west to east.^

In the absence of any better reason, it may be presumed
that the preeminence accorded to the east is owing to its
being the quarter whence the light of day first appears, and
the early and general prevalence of the w^orship of light and
the sun, to which Gildas no doubt refei-s when, in treating of

' The BiuldhistH of CVylon, anion^st otlu'is.

120

SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

the paganism of the Britons, he mentions " those ancient
errors common to all the nations of the earth."

In Scotland Beltane/ " the fire of Bel»" was also the name
of a festival usually celebrated on May-day, old style. In
other Celtic countries of Western Europe the same expression,
with slight variations in sound, was also used for the great
heathen festival which was held about the beginning of the
month of May. Beltane is also used to express the fires that
were kindled in honour of Bel on that and other days connected
with his worship,* as on Midsummer Eve, afterwards called
the vigil of St, John, on All-Hallowe'en, and on Teule, which
is now Christinas. Of the ceremonies practised at Beltane,
and continued almost to our own times, the most remarkable
and general were the fires lighted in honour of BeL Ofierings
made and superstitious ceremonies performed at fountains.

^ Beltan or Beltane is mentioned
as a festival in Acts of Scottish Par-
liavietit, A.D. 1424 and 1427, vol iL
pp. 6-51. Beltane-day on 4th May
1865. — Oliver and Boyd's AlTnanac

' La Beltein, in Gaelic, day of Bel's
fire. Bel is a name of the son in
Gaul {Herod, lib. 8, xxx. ; Rev. D.
M'Queen of Skye in Pennant's Scot-
land, ii. 436). In Irish, La Bel-tine,
the month of May ; La-na Bel-tina,
May-day ; Neeu-na Bel-tina, the eve
of Bel's fire ; Bel-tine, Bel's fire.
Beal-tine, Bel's fire (Jamieson's Scot-
tish Dictionary). Beltane, from Baal
or Belis, the sun, and tein, fire ; Bel-
tan, fire of Bel (Polwhele's Com-
trally vol. i. jip. 49, 203). Fire in
Welsh and Cornish is Tan ; in Irish,

Teinidh ; in Gaelic, Tein. Bell-tine, or
Bell-taine, fires made with great in-
cantations by the Druids, between
which the cattle were passed to secure
them against disease. — Ancient Irish
Glossary in Petrie's Bound Towers of
Ireland, pp. 37, 38.

On the 1st May, in Caithness, Bel-
tein ceremonies were performed Bel-
tein was also kept inMoray. — Pennant's
Tour in Scotland, voL iii pp. 206,
811.

On Beltane-day (3d May 1860) Mr.
Robertson was elected Convener of the
Trades of Canongate in Edinburgh
{Scotsman daily newspaper, 4th May
1860). On Beltane-day (3d May 1861)
the weavers, dyers, etc., of the Can-
ongate re-elected their office-bearers.
— Edinburgh CourafU, 4th May 1861.

BELTANE TIRES. 121

are also rites of our pagan ancestors which have descended to
the present day, not being yet extinct either in Great Britain
or in Ireland. Fountains will be treated of separately, and
Beltane ceremonies will now be noticed, which, although more
evidently, are not more certainly connected with sun-worship
than the adoration of fountains.

Kindling fires at Beltane, on the hills and conspicuous
places in level districts, was so universal in Scotland —
also in Ireland and Cornwall — that it is unnecessary to refer
to records for proof of events which may still be witnessed
in this year 1865. Conjoined with Apollo in the inscription
on a Eonian altar found at Inveresk is an epithet bearing a
considerable resemblance to the name of the sun in Gaelic.
ApoUini-Granno^ is the commencement of the inscription.
Grian or Greine is the sun in Gaelic, and Grianach is " the
simny."^ This resemblance it is as well to notice, for epithets
not similar in sound but identical in meaning are used for
Apollo or the sun by classic authors and the Scottish Celts ;
as Gruagach, the fair-haired. Enclosures called Grianan or
Greinham, **the house of the sun/'^ where the people wor-
shipped the sun, are to be met with everywhere. On the
Gruagach stones libations of milk were poured.^ A clergyman
of the Western Isles says that about a century ago (this was
in 1774) Gruagach got credit for being the father of a child at

* Caledonia Ronmna, folio 1852, p. Ireland, called Carig-croith, or ** sun's
159. house" (p. 217).

* Strabo says that Gryneus is a name

of Apollo. * Ilev. Donald M*Queen in Pen-

* llig^ns, in his Celtic Druidtt, nant's Tcnir in Scotland, vol. ii. pp.
mentions a Kistvaen near Cloyne in 437, 438.

122 SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

Shulista, near Dimtulme, the seat of M'Donald. Gruagach,
the sun, was represented by certain rude stones of large size.
On the island of Bemera, in the parish of Harris, a circle, de-
fined hy long sharp-pointed stones, has in the centre a stone
in form of an inverted pyramid, called Clach-na-Greine, " the
stone of the sun."^

At Tillie Beltane, the eminence or rising-ground of the
fire of Bel, there are the remains of a Druidical temple, con-
sisting of eight stones, where it is supposed the fire was
kindled.. At some distance is a smaller temple, and near it a
well, still held in great veneration. On Beltane morning
superstitious people go to this well and drink of it ; then
make a procession tound it nine times. After this they in
like manner go round the temple. So deep-rooted is this
heathenish superstition in the minds of many who reckon
themselves good Protestants, that they will not neglect these
rites even when Beltane falls on a Sabbath.^

In tlie old statistical account of the parish of Callander,
which was written -towards the end of the last century,* the
author has given an account of two ceremonies of peculiar in-
terest, which he says " are fast wearing out, and therefore
ought to be taken notice of whilst they remain."* ** On the
first day of May, which is called Baltein or Beltan-day, all the

^ Old statistical Account of Scot- ' In 1794, by the Rev. James Robert-

laiid, X. 874. son, the minister of the parish, vol.

^ Janiicson's Scottish ZHctioiuiry, xi. pp. 620, 621.
article "Beltane;*' and account of the * For similar customs -still in use

]»arishe8of Cargill, Callander^ Logic- in Sanlinia, and supposed to be of

r.iit, I^udotis, et^'., in Ofd Statisticul Phrenician origin, see the article on

Account of Scotland. the rh<enician».

PKOPITIATORY CEREMONIES TO BAAL. 123

boys iu a township or hamlet meet in the moors. They cut
a table in the green sod of a round figure, by casting a trench
in the ground of such circiiniference as to hold the whole
company. They kindle a fire and dress a repast of eggs and
milk in the consistence of a ciistard. They knead a cake of
oatmeal, which is toasted at the embers against a stone.
After the custard is eaten ' up, they divide the cake into so
many portions, as similar as possible to one another in size
and shape, as there are persons in the company. Tliey daub
one of these portions all over with charcoal until it- be pei^
fectly black. They put all the bits of cake into a bonnet.
Every one, blindfold, draws out a portion. He who holds the
bonnet is entitled to the last bit. "Whoever draws the black
bit is the devoted pei*son who is to be sacrificed to Baal, whose
favour they mean to. implore in rendering the year productive
of the sustenance of man and beast. There is little doubt of
human sacrifices having been once offered in tliis country as
well as in the East, although they now pass from the act of
sacrificing, and only compel the devoted pei*son to leap three
times through the flames, with which the ceremonies of this
festival are concluded."

Pennant, in his Tour in Scotland , gives an account of a differ-
ent form of sacrifice pi-actised by herdsmen at Beltane,^ the super-
natural beings addressed being apparently demons or deities
of an inferior order. Tlie herdsmen formed a square trench,"^

* Tow ill Scot laml, vol. iii. pp. 110, * In some jmrts of Hritaiii, juirticu-

111. Set' also " Parish of Loj^ierait, larly Corn wall, there are remains of

Perthshire," OM Statist ical Account ancient stone enelosnres of a s(|nare

nf Srottnuff, vol. v. p. 84. fonn. In sonic parts of the Dekhan

124

SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

leaving the turf in the middle. They next lighted a fire
and cooked a dish composed of eggs, butter, oatmeal, and
milk. They had also oatmesd cakes, on which were raised
nine square knobs.^ The ceremonies then began by spilling
as a libation some of the dish prepared with eggs and milk.
Each of the knobs on the cakes was dedicated to some parti-
cular being,* the supposed protector of their flocks and herds,
or to some particular animal, the real destroyer of them.
Each person, turning his face to the fire, broke off a knob
fix)m his cake, and flinging it over his shoulder,* said — ** This
I give to thee ; preserve thou my horses — ^This T give to thee ;
preserve thou my sheep," and so oa After that they used
the same ceremonies to the noxious animals, saying — " This
I give to thee, Fox ! spare thou my lambs — This I give to
thee, Hooded Ci-ow ! — This to thee, Eagle," etc.

of India the primitive temples, marked
by rude monoliths, are also of a square
or oblong shape.

^ The belief that the number nine
is influential appears in many of
the superstitions of Scotland. The
same idea prevails in various Asiatic
countries. Various proofs of this
are quoted in Sir John Grahame Dal-
yell's Darker SuperstUi/ms of SooUand^
pp. 893, 394.

Nine is also a common number of
the columnar stones in the best pre-
served cromlechs of certain localities.

' It is unfortunate that Pennant has
not also recorded tlie names of the
lieings supposed by the herdsmen to
be the tutelary deities of domestic
animals.

* In Scotland throwing salt over
the left shoulder is still practised in
order to propitiate certain inferior
spirits, which superstitious persons
imagine they may have unintention-
ally offended.

The custom of lighting a fire in the
fields on Beltane-day, and baking a
consecrated cake, was not extinct in
the parish of Kirkmichael in Perth-
shire in 1795, and the primitive stone
monuments in that parish were then
of great extent and variety. — See the
chapter on ** Rocking-Stones."

Lighting fires on ** Twelfthday-
eve" in the fields was practised in
the parish of Pountley in Gloucester-
shire to preserve the wheat crops from
disease. — Hone's E very-day Book, ii.
14, quoting Rudge's Gloucester.

BALL-PLAYING ON FASTERN'S EVEN. 125

Fasteni's Even, or Shrove-tide/ appears to have been an-
other of the heathen Celtic festivals which were Christianised.
The ceremonies peculiar to this day may, I think, be traced
to a heathen origin ; and of those that still remain, or endured
until the present century, the three following were most
generally practised — viz., playing ball, tormenting and killing
cocks, and making a certain kind of cakes, accompanied with
various forms of divination. It would also appear that this
was one of these eves on which ceremonial fires w^ere lighted.^

The playing ball was not originally foot-ball, for no one
was allowed to kick it. In the parish of Scone ^ in the last
century it was thus practised. TTie opposite sides consisted
of aU the married men of the parish opposed to the bachelors.
The ball was thrown up in the middle between the parties,
and struggled for from two o'clock until sunset. If any mar-
ried man, sufficiently strong and swift, could seize the ball,
break away from the mass, and before being overtaken could
put it three times into a certain hole in the moor, his party
were successful In like manner, if a bachelor could bear
away the ball, reach the Tay, and dip the trophy three times
in the river, the bachelors triumphed. If the struggle was
undecided at sunset, the ball was divided between the
parties. Towards the end of the last century this game
was abolished, for it was never unattended with violence ;

' It is the i>eriod fixed for the Phoeni- quoted in Sir Henry Ellis's Notes to

cian festival at Tyre of the awakening Brand's Popular J lUi^uitieSf vol i.

of the sun. — Kenrick's Phamicia, p. 62.
p. 858. • Old Statistical AccaiuU of Scot-

* lAvaterus on "Walking Spirits." land, xviii. 87, 88.

126 SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

whence originated the proverb, " All is fair at the ball of
Scona"^

On Shrove Tuesday 1863 was observed at Dorking the
ancient custom of processions with music, the persons being
grotesquely dressed ; the ceremonies terminated by foot-ball
played with a roughness extremely dangerous to the limbs
of the competitors.*

This strutwle for the ball at Scone closelv resembles the
Soule of the Britons in the Morbihan, where the contest was
carried on by two communes, one against the other, with a
violence and ferocity which caused its prohibition, but only
in the present century. Souvestre, who gives a most interest-
ing account of these encounters,^ says it is a vestige . of the
sun-worship — ^the name Soule* being little varied from that of
the sun in all the Celtic languages.

In regard to the cruel amusement of cock-fighting and
killing of cocks, I shall only here repeat what is more parti-
cularly noticed in another section — viz., that the cock was the
usual sacrifice offered to the sun, and also that such offerings
are still made in some parts of Britain.

The preparing of certain cakes (in England they are
called pancakes, but in Scotland scair-bannocks^ or sooty-

* The hill of Einnoul, which rises ■ IFesi Surrey Times newspaper,

immediately on the east of Scone, •Souvestre'sZ>rniiVfrs5rc/a»w,Tol. i.

was frequented by great numbers of „_ 125-132.
people on Beltane-day for the prac-

tice of superstitious games. After the * SoiUse, Gaelic; Soul. Seul, Cor-

Reformation this was prohibited under "^^ » ^^^» Armoncan.

heavy {icnaltiea — Old SUUistical Ac- * Scair or Sgair is the Gaelic for a

coniU of Scotland^ xviii. 560. knot or knob on the surface, and pro-

DIVINATION.

127

bannocks^) on Fasteni's Eve is connected with various fornis
of divination. These cakes are forjned of milk, oatmeal or
flour, eggs, and sugar. The white of one of the eggs, presented
by each person, is separately dropped into water, and from the
forms it assumes the fortune-teller traces the future career of
the inquirer. This is one form of divination. Another is by
a portion of the custard being separated from the rest and
mixed with soot ; into tliis a marriage-ring or piece of gold
or silver was dropped, and the mess was baked into a cake
or bannock, and divided into as many pieces as there were
persons. Then each one, being first blindfolded, drew a por-
tion ; and special good fortune attached to the person wlio
got the ring. During the whole operation the person who
prepared the bannock had to preserve silence, else the virtue
of the charm W6is lost.^

An expression in tlie Gaelic language,^ used by the Scotch
Highlanders, to signify a man placed in extreme difficulties is
translated ** He is between the two fires of Bel." Shaw, in
his history of Moray, says that to stand for a limited time
betwixt two contiguous fires, or to walk, barefooted, thrice
over the burning ashes of a cam-fire,* was an expiatory punish-

bably refers to the knobs which were
raised on such cakes ; each knob, when
broken ott", being thrown as an offering
to some one of the inferior spirits. Ban -
nach is tlie (Jaelic for a cake ; Baunag,
a Yule-cake.

* Suitlieit'h or Suitlieach is tlie
Gaelic for sootv.

" These pnictices and ceremonies —
viz., the <livinations used in preparing

the bannocks, I have repeatedly wit-
nessed.

« ** Edir da hin Veaiil or Bel."—
Martin's Western Isles, p. 105.

* Cam -fires was another name for
Bel-fires, and may have been derived
from tlie elevated piles of stones, earns
or cairns, on which they were lighted.
With such a probable derivation, it
• is hardly worthy considering another,

128

SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

ment for criminals. A Gaelic scholar in the last centnry^ in
regard to the expression " He is betwixt two Beltein fires,"
gives as an explanation that the Celtic tribes in their sacred
enclosures offered sacrifices, commonly horses, that were burnt
between two large fires. On this it may be remarked that
horses were sacrificed to the sun by the Arian race from the
earliest times ; and this continued to be practised by Hindus,
Persians, and other nations. In Britain it is probable that
our heathen ancestors sacrificed horses ; and it is certain that
they ate them.^

Beltane fires were, and still are, lighted on Hallowe'en
(31st October), as well as on May-day. Hallowe'en was parti-
cularly devoted to the practice of various forms of divination,
and these are still maintained in some parts of Scotland. The
following remarkable ceremony of the Hallowe'en mysteries
is described in the statistical account of the parish of Cal-
lander in Perthshire.' The Bel fires were lighted on rising
grounds and in villages.* When the materials of the fires
were consumed, the ashes were carefully collected in the form

viz., that Cameas was a name of
Apollo. But it must be remembered
that Faire in Gaelic signified a watch ;
thus, Cnoc-Faire, the Watch-Hill ;
Cam-na-Faire, the Watch-Cairn.

» The Rev. D. M 'Queen of Kilmuir
in the Isle of Sky.— Pennant's Tour
in Scotland, ii. 436.

« See the article on " The Horse." ,

■ Old Statistical Account of Scot-
land, vol. xi. pp. 621, 622.

♦ Jamieson, in the article ** Bel-

tane,'* in his Scottish Dictionary, is
mistaken in saying that Beltein is
unknown to the inhabitants of the
counties to the north of Perthshire.
At Midsummer and Hallowe'en Bel-
tein fires still blaze on many an emi-
nence in Aberdeenshire ; and but a
few years since, on moors that are
now corn-fields, green spots that had
been raised and surrounded by cir-
cular trenches were pointed out as
places in which Beltane ceremonies
had been performed.

TIN-EGIN. 129

of a circle. Near the circumference of this a stone was put
for every person of the several families interested in the bon-
fire ; and whatever stone was moved out of its place, or was
injured before next morning, the person represented by that
stone was devoted or Fey, and it was supposed would die
within twelve months from that date. The same rite practised
on the same day prevailed in North Wales, where white stones
marked for each individual were put into the great fire called
Coel-coeth.^ These ceremonies confirm more direct evidence,
from which it is probable, if not proved,^ that the number of
stones tliat define the area of monolitliic fanes has reference
to the number of individuals, families, villages, or tribes
who erected or worshipped in these temples. The following
passage in Tsaiah would seem to apply to similar practices
prevailing among the Jews : " Behold, all ye that kindle a
fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks : w^alk in the
light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye kindled. Ye shall
lie down in sorrow'* (Isaiah 1. 11).^

Tin-Egin in Gaehc signifies fire produced by friction, to
which mysterious and important properties were assigned by
the heathen Celts. In another chapter it is noticed that in
Ireland on certain festivals all the fires w^ere quenched, and
relighted from the fire of Bel.* The same ceremony was

* Braud's Popular Antiquities by hist baille-fire night she wjis at a

Sir H. Ellis — ** All Hallowe'en." meeting at which the devil was ])n»-

■ See article ** Circular Columnar sent, and wliere she agi-eed to he his

Temples" for additional proofs. servant. — Pitcaim's Criminal Tnais,

'In the confession of Janet Wat- vol. iii. p. 601.

soune, accused of witchcmft, she ad- * See under the head of ** Passing

mitted that about the time of the through the Fire."

VOL. I. K

11^0 SOLAR AND PMNETARY WOIISHIP IN BRITAIN.

])i'actise(l by the Scots : Martin states^ that all the fires in a
parish having been extinguished, were aftenvards relighted
from the Tin-Egan. A vessel was then filled witli water, and
))laced on the fire ; and with this water all the people and
their cattle were sjnnnkled, that they might be preserved from
plague and nmrrain.

On Midsummer Eve, which has been adopted by the
Christian church as the vigil of St. John the Baptist^ many
rites were practised, whetlier in accordance with ecclesiastical
permission or in defiance of its interdicts, that can only have
had their origin in the days of paganism. They appear more
distinctly applicable to the worship of the sun, as the Bel
fires were lighted at* the moment of the solstice ; and passing
, through or leaping over the fires of Bel seems to liaye been
practised as generally at this festival as on Beltane-day.^ . The
ceremony most characteristic of solar worship that was prac-
tised on Midsunmier Eve may })0ssibly be connected with one
of the figures on the sculptured stones of Scotland — viz., '* the
double disc and sceptre ;" for the wlieel seems to have .been an
emblem both of the summer and of the winter solstice, or Yeul.
The wheel to be used in this rite was covered and
twisted round with straw and other inflammable materials*
It was taken secretly to the top of a mountain, and having

* Martin's Western IsIm, p. 113. • Braml's Popular Antiquiii^t by "

« Souvestre says that the first Chris- Sir H. Ellis, vol. i. pp. 166, 167, 176-

tian niiHsionaries of Armorira siibsti- 216, etc. etc. ; also Polwhele's Histtrry

tuteil tiivs of St. Joliii lor those of Cunimill^ 4to, vol. i. pp. 50, 61.
previously li^liti'd in honour of the

.sun. — Sonvcstre's IkruirrH Jtrctims, * Hmnd's Pojmlnr Antiquities by

vol. i. p. i^l. Kllis— ** SumnuT Solstict'."

WIDDERSITINS. 131

been set on fire, was rolled down, and tlius represented the
sun descending the heavens. One authority says this ceremony
was to represent the sun, which from that period until Yule
was to have a receding course. The wheel was also int-ended
to bear with it existing or impending evils, and in this was
an auxiliary to the fires that blazed on the hills and in the
villages, portions of which fires, as also those lighted on
Hallow-e'en, borne aloft on poles, were carried through the
streets to prevent disease and avert misfortunes/ Another
custom on Midsummer Eve was bearing a dragon in proces-
sion,^ and is one of many circumstances that prove the con-
nection of the worship of the snake with that of the sun.; for
wherever planetary worship has prevailed, the snake, as an
emblem or object of worship, may generally, if not universally,
be tiuced."^

The ceremonies i)ractised at Yule or Christmas, and parti-
ticularly lighting the fires from the last year's brand, after all
other fires had been extinguished, seem to have been counter-
parts to the rites practised at Beltane, Midsummer, and Ilal-
low-e'en ; only so far modified as to suit the interior of a house
and severe weather, instead of being exhibited in open fanes,
and at more favourable seasons. The two movements called
Widdershins and Deasil clearly owe their importance to sun-
worship. The first, Widdershins, implies a movement made

» See also ** Parish of Logierait," ' On one of the sculi)tiire(l stones

Old Sfofi'ifiml Account of Pcrlfishire, of Scotland, fij^ureil in the Spalding

V. j>p. 84, 85. Club work, the snake and sceptre are

- IJniJid's Poinihir Antiqui.fic^s hy seen in conihination with the douhle

Sir H. Ellis, vol. i. p. 1(38. * disc .

132 SOLAR AND PLANETARY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

contrary to the apparent course of the sun. It was alleged
that it was thus wit<;hes approached sacred places, and ad-
vanced towards the demons whom they served. This was
done in defiance and opposition to what at one time must
have been an established and religious duty — viz., to perform
all actions in accoixlance with the sun's apparent motion.
Tliis in Celtic is called Deasil or Dossil.

The Flannan Isles,^ although uninhabited, are believed by
the people of the neighbouring islands to be places of inherent
sanctity. When visited by persons from the Isle of Lewis the
boatmen, on reaching the summit, uncover their heads, make
a turn round sunways, and give thanks to Grod for their
safety. In Ireland when any one falls, he springs up and
turns al)Out three times to the right. On Martin's arrival in
the Island of Eona, one of the inhabitants gave him a blessing,
at the same time going round him sunwise. This was in
Martin's visit to the Western Isles in the end of the seven-
teenth century. He mentions that it was then a practice to
carry fire Deasil sunwise round persons or property in order
to preserve them from any malignant influence. For the
same reason boatmen rowed their boat round sunwise before
proceeding in their direct course. The same author' informs
us of the practice in those islands of religious processions
moving simwlse round cairns and stones reared for some
object that was unknown to tradition. It was sunwise that

* Buchanan calls them ** Insula} * Martin's Western Tsles^ j>p. 16-19.
Saori© : " they arc about twelve miles * Ibid. pp. 20, 85, 97, 116, 117, 118,
from the Isle of Skye. 119, 277.

DEASIL. 133

tlic Celts appruaclied a consecrated place, and all their religious
processions moved in that direction. To ensure happiness
in marriage it was thus the bride was conducted towards her
future spouse ; and it was according to the same rule, Deasil,
that the corpse was conveyed to the grave or funeral pyre/

The direct testimony of an eye-witness to the continuance
of such ceremonies towards the end of the last century in the
lowland district of Moray will now be quoted. Shaw, in his
history of that province, mentions the Deas-soil processions,
which he had often seen made round the church at marriages,
churchings of women, and burials ; as well as processions with
lighted torches made in like manner around the corn-fields,
in order to obtain a blessing on the crops. The same author
mentions the people ha-ving feasts, lighting superstitious fires,
and forming Defts-soil processions on ^launday Thursday.
When a contagious disease occuiTed among the cattle the
people qji the villages where it prevailed extinguished all the
fires. Then a fire was produced by friction, and on this a
vessel was placed in wiiich juniper branches were boiled.
With this decoction all the cattle were sprinkled ; and on the
conclusion of the ceremonies the household fires were relighted
from the friction fire.^ On May-day (Beltane) Shaw was yTe-

' Tlio remains of deceased per- the Catliac — if sent three' times Dei

sons brought for intennent to the Siol round the army of the Cinell

ishmd of Hi (lona) were placed on Conaill before battle was believed to

the mound called £ula, while the ensure victor}'. — Reeves' Adamnan^s

funeral party thrice performed the St. Columha, p. 250.

Dei Siol arouiul tin' si)ot. — Dr. * Compare these ceremonies with

Reeves' ^/(^(;/in/?«/ Vita St. CoIumlMv, what are described by Ovid in his

p. 423. Fourth liook of the Fo.sti rej^arding the

The chief relic of St. Coluniba— viz., Palilia festival in honour of the* tute-

134

SOLAK AND PLAXETAKY WOHSIIIP IN BRITAIK.

sent at cei-eiiioiiies which he prunouiices to be undoubted
remains of the worship of Baal Tliese ceremonies were pro-
pitiatory, to i)reserve cattle from accidents or disease.^

Ashtoreth — tlw Moon {in Scotch^ Monc or Mcen)^

m

Tlieixj are many piX)ofs, dii-ect and circumstantial, tliat
phice it beyond all doubt that the moon was one of the ob-
jects of heathen worship in Britain. But under what name
the moon was invoked is not discoverable, unless it may have
been as Andraste, the goddess to whom the British queen
Boadicea, with hands outstretched to heaven, appealed when
about to engage in battle with the liomaus.^ In the earliest
periods of Indian history we find Mao, the moon-^od ; Nania,*
the moon-goddess. But Ashtoreth^ or Astarte^ was the name
imder which she- was most commonly worshipped by the
Israelites and Assyrians, and by Phcjenicians as well as the
Carthaginians snii other colonists from Tyre and Sidon. In
the received tmnslation of the Old Testament there are many

lary divinity of sliephenls. We may
also reinumbiT the Celtic element in
the earliest Italian population, and
that Pales appears to have been a
deity of the race previous to the foun-
dation of the city, and the origin of
the Koman name.

* Shaw's History of Moray, pp.
230, 232, 241, 242, 249, edit. 1775.

' In Pontus and Phrygia, Men (Stra-
bo, b. xii.) In Sanscrit, Chandra,
brightness. In Cingalese the moon is
Handa. In Cornish the full moon is
i'ann.- Polwholcj CorviraUj i. 156.

* Xiphiline, Mon. Hist. Brit. p. Ivii.
*Nania, Anaites; Naneas, temple ;

Naneas, priests (2 Maccab. i. 15).
The first sUitue made of solid gold was
to the goddess Anaites. Her worship
prevailed in Annenia, Assyria, Pereia,
etc. — ^ii\\l\ih Mythological Didionary,
" Anaites."

* Judges X. 6 ; 1 Samuel viL 3 ;
xii. 10 ; 1 Kings xi. 5-53 ; 2 Kings
xxiii. 13 ; etc. etc.

*' Mooned Ashtaroth,
Hea> oii'h queen and mother both." — Milton.

* Kenrick's Phaniciat p. 301.

WOHSHir OF THE MOON. 135

notices of tlie worship of the moon, " tlie Queen of Heaven/* ^
— -even without referring to marginal additions or notes of
orthodox divines on the epithet commonly translated ^'the
groves''^- — or the word Meni, which is interpreted number.^
T refer more particularly to the worship of Baal and Ashtoreth
in these countries as tending to prove that where circular
Cyclopean temples, dolmens, and kistvaens are found, there
planetary worship prevailed.**

We are not left in doubt of the worship of the Queen of
Heaven l)y pur heathen or semi-Christian ancestore, as by an
Archbishop of Canterbury in the seventh century they are for-
bidden to do homage to the moon ;*' and in the early part of
the eighth century an Archbishop of York interdicts the prac-
tice of augury by sun, moon, and stars.^

An ancient belief, adhered to by the ignorant after being
denounced and apparently disproved by the learned, is now
admitted to be a fact — viz., the influence of the moon in certain

' To the Queen of Heaven the iiithei*s, (jrove in the house of the Lord. — 2

kmgs, and princes in the cities of Kings xxi. 7.

.fudali and in Jerusixh-ni, hui'ned in- VeJiStln nuoir for Baal aud for the

•'•Mise, poured out drink-olferings, an«l (jvove.—'l Kings xxiii. 4.

made cakes. — Jeremiah xliv. 15, 17, 19. Ashera, tninshited grove^ Wiis a

■*The children of Israel ** set up deity whose image was of wood, not

images and groves in every hill, and fashioned into a human fonn. — Ken-

nruUr eirnj gn'cn tree'' (2 Kings xvii, rick's Phvnicia, p. .*H)2.

10, and notes in D'Oyley and Mant's ' Isiiiali Ixv. 11.

Hiblo). Josiah brake down the altars * See the article on Cyclopean re-

of Baalim. The (sun) images he cut mains in countries from India to tlio

down. Tlie groves^ carved images, and «'xtreme west of Kurope.

molten images he brake in piccesy nmde * Theo<l. Liber PoenitrntialiSy xxvii.

du.st of them, and strewed it on the 18 ; and Arch, Ebor. sec. 23 ; Ecgbert

graves of them that sacrificed unto Pitcniteut iale^ lil). ii. sec. xxiii. ;

tliem. — 2 Chron. x xxi v. 4. Tliorpe's Ancinit Laws of England^

Manasseh set a graven imngr of the vol. ii. pp. 34, 191.

i:^6

SOLAR AND PLANETAUY WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

diseases. This, from various cii*cumstances, is more apparent

in some of the Asiatic countries,* and may have given rise

to the custom which extended into Britain of exposing sick

children on the house-tops.^

It would be sujieriluous to refer to all the superstitious

rit(is, extinct or extant, that show how deeply rooted in the

minds of our ancestors was the belief in the control exercised

by the moon over the affairs of men ; nor is it necessary to

accunndate proofs that the belief in its supposed influence

had not ceased with the termination of the eighteenth cen-

tur>'.^ In every department of witchcraft and sorcery the

|K)sition of the moon and planets was an element of special
consideration. The ill-luck of having no silver money — coins

of the moon, which, says the author,
** ever since bleeds a fresh drop at

* The year 1843, when Siude was
seized by the British wa.s very un-
Iiealthy, and the troops were neces-
sarily without sufficient barracks.
The ^eat and certain increase of
fever cases at changes of the moon
then bn^ame convincing to the most
sceptical.

' Theod. Arch. Cant. Lib. PoaiUcn-
fUiiuif xxvii. 14 ; Ecgbert, Arch. Ebor.
Confessioiuile, xxxiii., in Thorpe's An-
cieiU LaiCH of Emjland^ 1840.

Astartc, the Queen of Heaven, was
worshipped on liigh -places*, in groves,
a:ul upon the roofs of houses. — Cm-
den's Cwia/rdance.

■ In the SUUudimI Account of Scot-
Invd may be found abundant proofs
of the superstitious reverence with
which the moon was regarded.

An early tourist mentions the name
< f n man in the island of Lewis who
;u- .iclentally cut his toe at the change

every change of the moon.*' — Martin's
Western Islands^ p. 18.

In Devonshire, in this century,
nurses warned tlieir children against
pointing their fingers at the sun,
moon, or stars.

In the end of the eighteenth cen-
tVLvy a streamlet or well in the cave of
Uchtrie Macken, near Portpatrick,
Wigtoushire, continued to be held in
reverence, and invalids, and persons
supposed to be suffering under the in-
fluence of witchcraft were brought —
jMirticularly on the first Sunday of
May — to be bathed in the water.
This ceremony took place **at the
change of the moon, which is still
(1791) considered with superstitious
reverence." — Old Statistical Account
of Scotland^ vol. i. p. 47 ; Sir John
0. Dalyell's Darker Svperstitions of
Scotland^ p. 80,

THE QUEEN OF HEAVEN. 1^7

of otlier metal being of no avail — when you first see or hail a
new moon, is still a common belief from Cornwall to Caith-
ness, as well as in Ireland.

A clergyman of Edinbui-gh, writing in the present cen-
tury, says — " It is strange that in a land so long favoured
with clear gospel light some should still be so much under
the influence of the gi'ossest superstition that they not only
venture on divination, but in their unhallowed eagerness to
dive into the secrets of futurity, even dare directly to give
homage to the ' Queen of Heaven.*"^ One of the " heathenish
acts" of unhallowed eagerness thus refcn*ed to is the desire
of a maiden to see the likeness of the person who is to become
her husband. For the purpose of gratifying her curiosity it
was necessary to place herself on a yerd-fast (earth-fast)
stone,"' with her back leant against a tree — in this position to
receive the light of the first new moon of a new year, and
then to acknowledge its presence and its power by the invo-
cation, " new moon ! I hail thee." This was the Scottish
fonn. In England the salutation was " All hail to thee, moon :
all hail to thee !" In both countries this address was followed
by a request that the moon would be pleased to reveal the
apparition of the person to whom the devotee was thereafter
to be married.^ The position to be assumed by the person
doing homage to the moon is remarkable. Earth-fast stones —

* Dr. Jaiiiiesoii's Scottuth Didioiianj^ > Tin* success of tliis form of diviiia-
** Mone." tion isvouclicd for, in two instances,

* In Vorksliire they kneel on a V)y Aubrey in his MiscdlankSy pp.
ground-fast stone. — Aubrey's Miscd- 132, 133 ; oii«^iually imblished in
hmirs, p. 132, edit. 1857. 169G.

I'AH SOLAR ANIX PLANETARY WOKSIIir IN BRITAIN.

i,e. natural altars with inherited sanctity — were connected in
South Britain, as well as in Scotland, with the heathenism of
the earlier Christians. In a homily preserved fCt Cambridge
oflerin^^s to earth-fast rocks are denounced.^

In Ireland, when the new moon is first seen i)eople com-
monly bow the knee and say the Lord's Prayer. When the
moon is nc^ar the wane, the address to her is " Leave us as
well as thou found us."^ In some parts of England the people
had a custom at full moon of saying, ** It is a fine moon, God
l)loss her." In the Highlands of Scotland the women make
a curtsey to the new moon.^ The aboriginal tribes in the
Dekhan of India also acknowledge the j)resence of the sun and
moon by an act of reverence.

Kiiistid on a plain in North lionaldshay, one of the Orkney
isles, is a large upright stone, nine or ten feet high and four
broad, at M*hich it was a practice for the people to assemble
on tlie first day of the year, and to dance by moonlight, with
no music but their own singing.'* This is mentioned in the
statistical account of the island, where it is added that there is
no tradition regarding the origin of the monument* The festival
would probably come under tlie description of the " heathen
songs and devil's games" that were prohibited by King Edgar.^
The women of Croisic, in France, dance round a menhir (up-
right stone).^'

^\^n^ii\Supcrsti(ioiisofEnglmui, ]>iiri.sh ha<i bi'vii an eye-witness. He

vol. i. p. 242. writes in 179.3.— 0/rf Statistical Ac-

* (tiljson's Caimffn, vol. ii. p. omnt of Sotthnuly voL vii. p. 489.
^^^^' •'^Thorj)o*s Ancient Laics of Eng-

* Brand's Popular Antiqnitiis h\ hnuf^ vol, ii. p. 249.

Sir H. Kllis, vol. i. p. 72. " Wrif,'lit's A'«/7y Lihakitants of

* To this the eh'rgj-man of thr Jiritnin, p. 6.3.

HEATHEN OBSERVANCES. 1,S0

To similar customs Strabo may have referred when lie says
— *' It is reported that the Celtiberians, and their neighbours
to the north, sacrifice to a nanu^less god every full moon at
night before their doors, the whole family passing the night
in dancing and festival." The Sixth Council of Constantinople,
in A.D. G80, interdicted the lighting of fires to the new moon,
and leaping through these firc^s. There was a subsequent in-
hibition in A.I). 742 against sacrilegious fires. Of the orighi of
such ceremonies we are not left in doubt ; thev are described
a.s ancient and pagan ()bser\'ances.

The following (quotation is from Kenrick's Phcenicia : —
" Astoreth, or Astarte, whom the Greeks sometimes identify
with Juno, sometimes with Venus, appears physically to re-
prescmt the moon. Her relation to 15aal (Baalsamen, the sun)
was expressed by tlie feminine form Biuilith. She was the
chief local deity of Sidon." "^

Tn the chapter on the " Ileligion of Early Britons" are
noticed the remains, in one of the Western Isles, of a mined
temple of Annait, a deity whose worship seems to have
been connected with that of the moon."

* Sir H. Ellis's iioU'S to ** Summer Cuut the worsliip of the sun is men-
Solstict^" in Hrund's Popnldr Anti- tioned ; but in that cilsc the king may
q •itit'fi. more ]>artic'nlarly have referred to his

* Kenriek's iVm'w<V//e, i»p. 298-301. suhjeets of Seandinavian deseent. —

* Among the forbidden points of ThoriKi's AncioU Laws of Emjhiiul,
heathenism enunierak'd in the laws of vol. i. p. 379.

t •—

• ■

••I. r..

f •- ^. —
■• r -

r

. y

- ♦

«l .

r V -^.-'

//,y , '-.'/

A < i , ,

' f «•

. ' ,*<.".* fc.: ::.• >" _n r_i . i ^' i : -r 7r-«r-

i % - . t- ■

HEATHEN INVOCATIONS AND OMENS. 141

In the miildle of the fifth century, about a.d. 462, it is
stated by the early Irish annalists that King Laoghaire, having
violated the oath he had sworn — viz., by the sun, the wind,
and the elements — was the next year slain in battle. Having
outraged these powers by which he had sworn is the cause
assigned for the king's death by all the monastic annalists,^
even to a period so late as the seventeenth centur}^

In the Fcdh Fiadha^ the Lorica or Hymn of St. Patrick,
which was believed to protect those who recit-ed it from evils,
bodily and spiritual, there is, along with the prayer for pro-
tection against " women, smiths, and dniids," the invocation
of the power of the sky, the sun, fire, lightning, wind.^ Tlie
Lorica of St. Columba enables us to distinguish some methods
of divination and heathen omens in use at King Diarmait's
Court at Tara in the sixth century. The saint maintains
that his fate did not depend " on the voice of birds, nor on
the roots of a knotted tree, nor on the noise of the clapping of
hands, nor lots, nor sneezing, nor a boy, nor chance, nor
women ;" and continues, " Christ is my Druid." ^

Sjnnt of Ethereal Fire.

The exemplifications of the power of the female deity
Cailleach Vear occupied in the end of last centur}^ — possibly
stiU occupy — a conspicuous place among the marvellous

* Dr. Toild's St. Patrick, p. 437. the author, he had not yet fully shaken

off aU pa^n prejudices.

^ "This proves,'" says Dr. Todd, » Dr. Todd's St. rairkk, p. 122;
** that notwitlistanding the undoubted f)r. Reeves's Adav\nnvs Life of St.
piety and fervent Christian faitli of Columht, p. 74,

1^2 SPIKTT WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

legciuls of the Western Highlands of Scotland. Her residence
was believed to be on the highest mountains ; and a great
stone, in a remarkable and elevated position on the high hills
which separate Strathlachlan from Glendaruel, still preserves
the name of Cailleach Year or Vera. To her is attributed,
among' other wonders, the formation of Locheck in Cowal,
and Lochaw in Lorn, the waters of which now cover what
tradition affirms to have been extensive vallevs and fertile
plains.*

The submerging of these lands, and the formation of the
beautiful expanse of Lochaw, is, in the English translation of
Gaelic poetry, attributed *• to the neglect of the aged Bera,
daughter of Griannan." According to this version Bera had
charge of the mysterious foimtain on the summit of the lofty
Ben Cruachan, and omitted her duty of closing the fountain
with a stone of magical power before the last rays of the sun
should leave the mountain . peak. The fate of the plains
below depended on the due performance of this ceremony.
One evening, overcome by fatigue, Bera fell asleep before
simset, arid. only awoke on the third day to see that the race
and the lands of which she had been guardian were over-
whelmed by waters from the fountain that ought to have been
sealed with the fated stone.

Tlie Eev, Mr. Stewart^ says " the allegory of Cailleach Year

* Old Statistical Accmint of Scot- deities that control the elements and
land, vol. iv. pp. 559-60. those to whom, were assigned similar
' Old Statiatical Accouvt of Scot- powers by the Gaels. Indra and
land, vol. iv. p. 500. Vnta of the Hindus, in aerial con-
There may possibly be a Conner- flict, pro(hice efftMts like those attri-
tion between the ancient Hindu ImtM to the Gaelic Vear or Hera ; thus

ETHEKEAL FIRE. 14:^

can be eavsily traced : Beir is the Gaelic for a thunderbolt, in
the ohlique cases pronounced Veir, as Bein or Ben Veir, a
higli mountain in Aj^pin, signifies ' the mountain of thunder ;'"
and he adds, " everything said of Cailleach Vear literally ap-
plies to the effects of lightning." This appears the more
certain when we consider that in Gaelic Veither or Beither^
is the thunderbolt, another word for which is Tein adhair,
" ethereal fire." In the translation of Ossian we need not

•

doubt that " the aged Bera, daught<ir of Griannan," " is the Cail-
leach Vear or Bear of ^Ir. Stewart ; for in Gaelic Cailleach is
an old woman, and Griannan the sunny mountain peak.

Another well, called Tobar-llath-Bhuathaig, to which were
attributed virtues somewhat similar to those of the fountain
on Ben-Cruachan, exists in the island of Gigha in the Hebrides,
and even in the very end of the last century had not entirely
lost the fame which it had probably acquired in periods of
remote antiquity. It was believed that, by performing certain

--** Inilm sti-ikes the earth-shaking an emblem in connection with the

Vritra with his rain-causing hundred- worship of the heavenly bodies and

spike<l Vagra thnnderliolt " (Scuiia- atmospheric phenomena in Asia, as

K(r<^u of Stevenson,]). 251). The close well as in heathen Europe. Tein-

conJicction of the Sanscrit and Gaelic Speur is another name for lightning,

words for plahetary bodies and at- and of similar imjwrt to Tein-Athair.

mospherie ])hen()mena has now been May not the name of the Celtic god

fully proved by philologists. The re- Taranis be derivwl from Torrunn or

presentatives of these heavenly bodies Tarnach, Gaelic words for thunder ?
and phenomena may al.so have had a

commoji origin." ' Wc see that the wight called Gow-
* It is remarkable that in Gaelic macmorn by liarbour, and the giant
Beither not only signifies the thunder- Fyn M*Kowle of Dunbar, have be-
bolt, but also a dra>^'on, a serjM'nt. come in Ma<'j>herson's translation
Tciu Athair, liglitiiing, ethereal fire, Gaul, son of Morni, and Fingal. — See
is also a synonyni of IJeitlier. The the quotation in Mr. C'osuio Inues's
sorjMiit socms to ln\ and to have been, Scof/an/f in the MuhUc AtjcSy p. 250.

144

SPIRIT WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

ceremonies at this fountain persons initiated in its mysteries
could cause the wind to blow from whatever quarter they de-
sired ; that afU^rwards, if the fountain were not properly
closed, a storm would arise, and the whole island be over-
whelmed. The reverend author of the statistical account of
the parish in 1792^ mentions that two crones, named Galbreath
and Graham, were then said to possess the secret, and if re-
quired would practise the necessary rites.

Spirit of thr Wafers. — JFafrr Kelpie.

The great spirit of the watei's is said to have been called
in Gaelic Neitlie, which name the reverend author of the
statistical account of the parish of Kilmichael derives from
the Celtic word to cleanse or purify.^ The same authority
names other two spirits — viz., '* the Marcach-Shine, or rider of
the storm," and Anvona. Tlie former, from the description,

' Rev. Mr. Eraser's Old Stntistkal
Accomit of Scotland J vol. viii. p. 52.

• The Dniidessos of the islainl of
Sena, arconling to Pomponius Mela,
could fn^iiit fair winds or raise tem-
pests. Thus, at an interval of eighteen
centuries, we find identical sorceries
and impositions practised hy the
Druidesses of Armorica and the Celtic
sybils of the Hebrides.

• Nigh is the Gaelic to cleanse ;
Nighte, cleansed, purified ; Nigheidh,
purifying. Tliere are streams called
Nith, Ne<l, or Neath, or other slight
Tarieties of the same word, in England
and Wales as well as in Scotland.
The Rev. Mr. Grant, from whose ac-

count of the parish these names are
derived {Old Statist iral Accomit of
Srnttandy vol. xii. p. 464), from the
wild, and tlien (1794) inaccessible
district in which he resided amid a
Celtic population, must have had the
best opportunities of collecting ves-
tiges of ancient legends and supersti-
tionM connected with the Gaelic race,
Chalmers, in his Caledonia, gives a
different derivation to the word
** Nith," where he points it out as
the name of manv streams. He de-
rives the name from a Brito-Celtic
word not fonnd in the Gaelic {CaU-
donia, vol. i. p. 47) signifying a
stream with manv eddies.

SPIRIT OF THE WATERS. 145

would appear to be identified with hurricanes, and the latter
with less furious tempests.

To this " angry spirit of the waters " are assigned qualities
essentially opposite to those beneficent attributes with which
superstition endowed the genii of the fountains. From un-
recorded ages to the present day, the virtues of the health-
giving springs — the benefits of pilgrimages to their sites, the
pure air, and the effects of imagination, heightened by the
ceremonies practised at these wells — have in Scotland, prior to
Christianity, been credited to local deities. Very different is
the Water-kelpie, the name by which the spirit of the waters
is now most generally known in Scotland. This demon seems
to be a compound of various fiends possessing different forms.
Sometimes it is described as whoUy or partly human, as mer-
man or mermaid ; but more commonly the shape assigned
to it is that of a horse or a bulL^ Tlie sounds of the kelpie
when heard in the storm, whether as the wild neighing or
hoarse bellowing, is reckoned a sure presage of misfortunes.
In form of a horse the kelpie is believed to emerge from the sea
or a lake, and to tempt the unwary to mount on his back,
that he may dash with his rider into the depths of the flood.
Legends regarding the Bull of the Waters, in some districts
called the Water-cow, are less poetical, but the fiend is gene-
rally unamiable, whether he assumes the form of a handsome
young man, of a horse, or of a bulL

In Scotland the belief in the existence of the Water-kelpie
was very general in the last century, and is by no means

I Each-ULsg, horse of the water ; Tara-Uisg, bull of the waters.
VOL. I. L

146

SPIRIT WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

extinct in the present generation. There are few lakes re-
garding which there are not legends and traditions of the
appearance of this fiend in its waters or on its banks, and
many persons were asserted to have seen the Horse or Bull of
the Waters.^

The following notice of an event which took place so lately
as 1736 may almost be considered as a conflict in the last
century between latent heathenism and Christianity in the
minds of the inhabitants of a parish in the lowlands of Scot-
land, and in the neighbourhood of a considerable town. The
church of St. Vigeans is situated in a romantic deU about a
mUe from the town of Arbroath, and occupies the summit of
a steep mount, which is partly artificial There the spirit
of the waters, called in the narrative written by the clergy-
man of the parish in 1794^ the Water-kelpie, must, in this
case, from the nature of the labours attributed to him, have
been considered as of human form The reverend author states
that from the year 1699 untU 1736 the sacrament of the Lord's
Supper had not been dispensed in the church of St. Vigeans ; and
in the neighbourhood a tradition prevailed that the stones for
the erection of the church had been carried by the Water-

* The reverend author of the Statis-
tical Account of the parish of Kilmuir,
in Ross-shire {Old Stalistical Ac-
coutU of Scotland, vol xii. p. 275),
states that the- inhabitants in tlie
neighbourhood of the small lake of
Pitlundy ** allege that water-cows
have been seen in or about this lake. '*
** But," he adds, *' it is of too small
an extent to give any shadow of credi-

bility to such an assertion ; " the
clergyman thus justifying his incre-
dulity in regard to water-kelpies in
his parish, not by the non-existence
of such monsters, but from the want
of sufficient room for them in the loch
of Pitlundy.

« The Rev. Mr. Aitken, in the Old
Staiistical Account of Scotland^ vol.
xii. pp. 173, 174.

ST. VIGEANS.

147

kelpie, and that the foundation rested on bars of iron placed
over a lake of great depth. In the latter year — ^viz., 1736 —
when the administration of the sacrament was to be resumed
in the church of St. Vigeans, the people believed that when-
ever it would be attempted the church, with all the congre-
gation, would sink into the mysterious abyss. So firmly were
many persons persuaded that this would happen, that on the
day fixed for the administration of the sacred ordinance
hundi'cds of the parishioners placed themselves on an emi-
nence at the opposite side of the ravine, momentarily expect-
ing to witness the anticipated catastrophe. In so remarkable
a detail of recent superstition it is well to know that the
author may be considered as contemporary with the fact
which he describes, for he was the schoolmaster before he
was the clergyman of St. Vigeans.^

It is also a fact of some importance connected with Cale-
donian hieroglyphics, that on the sculptured stones of St.
Vigeans there are heathen emblems along with the symbol of
Christianity. AU these circumstances, considered in connec-
tion with the site of this ancient religious establishment, its
monuments and traditions, seem to suggest the probability
that the mound on which the church stands was once occupied
by a heathen fane, and, as in many other instances, was there-
fore chosen for a place of Christian worship. There also was
a holy well at St. Vigeans. In the foundations of such ancient

* Mr. Chalmers says tliat Mr. Aitken, Plate I. of his work on the Scidptured

was schoolmaster at St. Vigeans nearly Stones of Angles and Mcftnis, pub-

a luindrcd years ago. This was w^rit- lished for tlie Bannatyne Club,
ten in 1848. — Mr. Chalmers' notice of

148

SPIRIT WORSHIP IK BRTTAIX.

churches — ^in this case also in the formation of the mound on
which St. Vigeans stands^ — future antiquaries may possibly
find sculptures or inscriptions to throw a clear light on sub-
jects which we at present can only investigate by a glimmer
that is but too likely to mislead.

At a place called Toft-hiU, in the parish of Clatt, in Aber-
deenshire, formerly stood a circle of columnar stones which
have been broken and removed. This circle was called ** the
Sunken Kirk," and there was a tradition that it occupied the
site of a place of worsliip which had sank with the whole
congregation. Numerous cairns, containing urns and other
sepulchral deposits, were discovered near ** the Sunken Kirk."

Out of many recorded, as well as traditional, accounts re-
garding the appearance or exiatence of a spirit of the waters
in the form of a bull, it is sufficient to quote one which is
neither legendary nor traditional It belongs to the nine-
teenth century and the present generation. This proof of a
long-enduring superstition is now given in the words of the

* In several mounds in Britain cir-
cular columnar monuments have been
discovered ; and in one which was re-
moved in the formation of the Great
North of Scotland Railway at Kin-
tore there were found, ten feet from
the summit, stones on which were
sculptured some of the figures in the
Caledonian hieroglyphics. A large
and remarkable Cyclopean monument
of a circular form, over which the
earth had been heaped, was discovered
near St. Heliers, in the island of Jer-
sey, in 1785. This monument was
removed by General Conway, and re-

erected at his seat. Park Place, in Berk-
shire. At that time the general
opinion was, that it was a Druid fane,
which its guardians had covered with
earth, to preserve it from the profana-
tion of invaders (Britton and Bray-
ley's ^crAw^irc, p. 130). Such monu-
ments, however, when not turned
into places of sepulture, and included
in tumuli by later generations, were
more likely to have been covered over
by order of the early Christian autho-
rities, to prevent the people, who were
nominally converted to Christianity,
from persevering in heatlien worship.

SPIRIT OF THE EARTH. 149

author.^ " This imaginary being, the Water-bull, is still be-
lieved to inhabit a small lake named Mikley or Mechely,
about seven miles from Loch Ness. The owner of a calf pro-
duced in the neighbourhood in 1832 assures the author that,
owing to some peculiarity of conformation, it was firmly
credited to be the progeny of the Water-bull.*'

Spirit of the Earth,

The Celts believed in a " spirit of the earth " as well as in
spirits of the waters ^ and ethereal fire. The tradition attach-
ing to some buildings of the earliest ages — viz., that a human
bemg was buried alive under the foundation in order to
ensure its stability — has evidently reference to the Spirit of
the Earth.^ There was a current tradition that St. Oran, the

* Sir J. Graliam Dalyell's Darker and the Spirits of the Earth, in the
SuperstitioTis of Scotland, addenda, p. note on " Glenfinlas," in the same
682. work.

' Referred to nnder the head of The sprinkling of human blood on

** Customs and Superstitions, etc." the foundations of a building, to ap-

• "The Picts, to whom works of pease the earth -spirits, seems to have
great strength and unknown antiquity been common to the Celtic race — to the
are attributed, are said to have bathed British as well as the Gaels and Picts —

the foundation-stone with human „ ^hat mightie king, which rashly

blood, in order to propitiate the spirit nndertooke

of the soiL Similar to this is the A gtrong-waird tower to rearo, those

Gaelic tradition according to which e^^hly spirits that shooke

o.^i 1. jxu e J The great foundation still."

St. Columba is supposed to have found

it necessary to bury St. Oran alive This extract is from Drayton's

beneath the foundation of his monas- Pohjolbimtj p. 158. In Selden's note

tery, in order to propitiate the 8i)irits on this passage, p. 164, he explains

of the soil, who demolished by night that Vortigijni, having caused the

what was built during the day." — Sir erection of a strong fort to bo com-

Walter Scott's Minstrelsy of the Scot- menced in Snowdon, what the work-

tish Border — note to **The Court of men built in the day was always swal-

KeeUlar." See also further particu- lowed up in tlie earth next night,

lars regarding St. Columba, St Oran, The king consultiMl the magicians,

150 SPIRIT WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

companion of St Colomba, was thus buried in lona under the
first church which that saint was successful in rearing in the
island. In the account of the death of St. Oran, quoted in
Thomas Innes's Ecclesiastical History, he refers to this as '' a
fabulous story current in the island." At the same time,
however, he quotes details which, if taken into consideration
along with the ancient superstition, favour an impression
that not until one of the fraternity had been buried in the
island was their right of gift and possession considered as
fully ratified. St. Columba is said to have declared to his
followers, on his first arrival in lona, that whichever of them
should choose^ to be the first to die should procure a twofold
advantage — viz., the one of profit to himself by going more
quickly to Christ ; the other to his brethren, by confirming
their right to the island by corporal possession. Oran, wearied
of the miseries of the present world, "joyfully accepted the
option ;" and St. Columba on this occasion not only assured
Oran of future happiness, but also that he should enjoy a pre-
rogative before men — ^viz., that whoever came to ask for favours
from the Almighty at his (St. Columba's) sepulchre, should fail,
unless he first paid his respects at Oran's tomb. St. Oran
died soon after, having been but a short while sick. In this
account there is something mysterious, and two questions are
naturally suggested by the narrative : the first, Did Oran

wlio advised that the stones and mor- ' Innes's Civil and EedesiastuxU

tar should be sprinkled with the blood History^ p. 192.

of a child that had no father, and that The words are " shaU choice and

the foundation of the castle would be content to Imj the first that dica and

then stand firm. See also Nennius, is buried in this island."

Mivn. Ilust. Jin't. p. 67.

TIIE liUDEMAN'S CROFT. 151

hasten his own death ? the second, Was he encouraged
or induced to do so ? We see that he " accepted the
option " (of death ?) because tired of this world ; and there-
on obtained promises of heavenly blessings and posthu-
mous honours on earth. The latter he certainly enjoyed
The words show that Oran had an alternative, and the
result proves that he accomplished the lot which he had
chosen ; for *' he soon after died, having been but a short
while sick."

This narrative is at least a sufficient excuse for the " fabu-
lous story,' which does not involve any conclusion that might
not be in some degree deduced from the explanation of this
ecclesiastical event in Innes' Ecclesiastical History, and tlie
Life of St, Columba by Adamnan.^

Among the Celtic population of Ireland, ** when any one
gets a fall he springs up, and turning about three times to the
right, digs a hole in the ground with his knife or sword, and
cuts out a turf, for they imagine tliere is a spirit in the earth."^
Tliose minute portions of untilled land, once so numerous in
Scotland, and usually called ''the gudeman's croft," have in
later times, it is assumed, been offered to the deviL His
right, however, may be disputed ; and as possession cannot
be proved, the law of prescription will not avail " The
spirit of the earth" I believe to have a better title than " the
spirit of eviP to these petty lairdships. Many green places

* The story of St. Oran wiU also be * Camden's Britannia by Gibson,
fo\ii\i\ in VennanVfi Voyage to Scothjid, vol. ii. p. 378,
vol. i. pp. 286, 287.

152 SPIRIT WORSHIP IN BRITAIN.

in fields or on moors were, and some still are, left undisturbed
by cultivation as the domains of a heathen spirit. The
latest instance of the dedication of land to a spirit is
contained in Professor J. Y. Simpson's address to the
Society of Antiquaries at Edinburgh in 1861, in these
words : "In the same district" — ^viz., within twenty miles
of Edinburgh — '* a relative of mine bought a farm not veiy
many years back. Amongst his first acts after taking pos-
session was the enclosing a smaU triangular corner of one of
the fields within a stone-walL The comer cut off, and which
still remains cut off, was 'the goodman's croft' — an offer-
ing to the spirit of evil, in order that he might abstain from
ever blighting or damaging the rest of the farm."

Besides more important objects of worship, the Celts,^
judging from a few recorded facts, and the remains of many
superstitions, had an infinity of local and inferior genii Of
these some were supposed to be benevolent, but the majority
were considered mischievous. The numerous names of elves
or imps in Gaelic is of itself a proof of a Celtic belief in a
crowded inferior pantheon. Xot only mountains and hills,
rivers and fountains, had their peculiar deities,^ but even
in the present day many a green mound in the vales,
or bright sequestered spot in the mountains, is shunned
by sturdy peasants who would not fear the hostility of any
mortal.

* These remarks are equally appli- to Ireland, Cornwall, Wales, and
cable to the inhabitants of the Celtic Scotland,
parts of Gaul ; to Brittany as well ns * Gildas, section 4.

FIELD DEITIES OF BRITAIN. 153

The prefect of a Gaulish cohort, who erected an altar on
the limits of Caledonia, has summed up in small compass the
whole invisible heathen world of the country. His alt^r is
dedicated " To the field deities and deities of Britain."

* It was found at Castle-hill, on the wall of Antoninus, and is described in
Stewart's Caledo7iia Haniana,

CHAPTER VII.

WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, LAKES, AND RIVERS.

Fotrntains, Lakes, and Rivers worshipped by Eastern Nations as well as by
the Celts — ^Fountains dedicated to the Son — Worship of Foantains not
yet extinct — Sacred Wells and Heathen Temples often contiguous—
Elzamples of each Sites chosen for Christian Churches — Heathen Rites
and Christian Ceremonies at Wells — In Persia, as in Caledonia, Trees
near Springs hung with Scraps of Clothing — Joan of Arc accused of
attending a Meeting of Witehes at a Fountain — Belief that certain Indi-
viduals or Families have the Power of bringing Rain when required — ^The
Water-Cross and Relic of St. Columba — Well in Strathfillan used in
Cases of Insanity — Certain Lochs with Sanatory Powers — Superstitious
use of Water teken from Fords where Funerals had crossed the River
Avon — Worship of Trees — Trees general Objects of Worship — ^The
Worship of the Oak in Britain — Joan of Arc and the Fairy Oak — Sacred
Trees — Tree at Anuradhapoora in Ceylon — All-sufficing Tree of Buddhist
Cosmogony — Groves in connection with Primitive Stone Monuments —
The Rowan-tree.

IN early ages fountains were sometimes, if not generally,
dedicated to the sun ; also to ApoUo.* Water was wor-
shipped by the ancient Persians, and still is by the Hindus.
The river Indus was a god ; the Ganges remains an object of
profound veneration. Besides water and the ocean personi-
fied as gods, many streams and fountains in India^ and also
in Ceylon, have their individual deities or genii, of various

* Herodotus, Melpomene^ clviii.-clxxxii. ; Pliny, Nat. History j b. ii. c. 106 ;
Quiu. Curt. b. iv. c. Wi.

WORSHIP AT WELLS.

155

degrees of power, who receive proportionate adoration or
homage. The same worship of rivers and fountains prevailed
in Britain and other countries of Western Europe.

Besides the testimony of Gildas ^ to the worship of rivers
and fountains by the inhabitants of Britain, laws, civil and

2

ecclesiastical, fulminated both in Gaul and Britain against
such practices, leave no doubt of their prevalence amongst
the Celtic inhabitants of these countries. Pagan ceremonies
connected with this worship exist in the present day in various
parts of the United Kingdom, and in the last century were
more particularly cherished in Scotland, Ireland, Wales, and
Cornwall, and not less so in Brittany : that is to say, in all
those places where a Celtic population had the most enduring
and predominating influence.

There are various circumstances connected with the super-
stitious practices retained by the Celts that may be cited in
proof that their worship of fountains was connected with the
worship of the sun. Beltane Day and Midsummer Eve* were
the times particularly chosen for the resort of invalids to holy
weUs. At these seasons mothers carrying their sick children,^
and crowds of people afflicted with every kind of bodily ail-

* Gildas, Afo^u Hist. Brit. vii.

• Liber Poenilentialis of Abp. Theod.
XX vii. 18 ; Canoiis of King Edtjart
No. 16, in Thorpe's Ancient Laws of
Enfjinndy voL ii. pp. 34, 249; Canons
of Saint Ansel m.

Making otrcrings to wells, trees, and
earth-fast rocks is denoiinec^d in a
Sftxon lioniily pres(Tve<l in Cambridge

Library. — Wright's Superstitions of
England^ vol. L p. 242.

■ ^onyQHtrGS DemiersBrHoiiSy vol. i.
pp. 23, 24, 90 ; Finisteref by Chevalier
de Fremenville, pp. 104, 131, 135,
227, etc. etc.

* See article " Baal and Beltane.'*

* Brand's History of NcwcastU-o^i-
Tijne, vol. ii. p. 54.

156

WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETC.

ment, resorted to these fountains to drink or to bathe. Others
came to fetch water for those who were unable to attend, or
brought a portion of the vestment of the afflicted absentee to
be dipped in the waters. Every one in their approach ad-
vanced deasU (sunwise), in which direction they went three
times round before reaching the fountain ; and aU, before
leaving, deposited an offering, however trifling, and whether
or not there was any person to receive it on behalf of Christian
saint or heathen deity. At St. Fillan's Well at Comrie, in
Perthshire, numbers of persons in search of health, so late as
1791, came or were brought to drink of the waters and bathe
in it. All these walked or were carried three times deasil
(sunwise) round the welL They also threw each a white
stone on an adjacent cairn, and left behind a scrap of their
clothing as an offering to the genius of the place. These
ceremonies were supposed not only to be effectual in restoring
health, but also in curing barrenness.^ The principal day for
these rites — ^viz., the 1st May, old style (Beltane Day) — and the
deasil procession, show the connection of these ceremonies to
be with the worship of the sun, not with St. FUlan, whose feast-
day is the 9th January. There are few parishes without a

1 Old Statistical Account of Scot-
landf vol. xi p. 181.

To give details or even lists of the
wells to which pilgrimages were made
on days of heathen festivals would be
occupying space unnecessarily. At aU
these fountains the invalid used the
same ceremonies, approaching them
sunwise, and leaving a scrap of hia
clothing and an offering of metal, how-

ever small ; even a pin was a common
tribute. The water of some of these
wells was considered effectual in curing
the diseases of cattle as weU as of
human beings, and in the case of
cattle a portion of their harness was
left as an offering to the genius of
the fountain, or his successor, the
Christian saint.

FOUNTAINS NEAR CYCLOPEAN FANES. 157

holy well to which, in most instances, the name of a Christian
saint has been attached. There is little room for doubt that
these wells were Christianised when the people were con-
veiled from paganism to a spurious Christianity, and the
Cyclopean fanes of the heathen became places of worship to
the early Christians of Britain.

In another chapter^ it is shown that the actual sites or
immediate vicinity of monolithic temples have been generally
adopted as the places where Christians first assembled
and Christian churches were first erected. Contiguous to
these, in numberless cases, are the fountains now known by
the names of early Christian saints. Unless we charge Chris-
tianity with the introduction of the heathen customs which
were generally and continuously practised at holy wells,^ it
must be admitted that they acquired their sacred character
when modem superstitions were ancient religious rites.

The Druids held sacred certain fountains, and if it were
under their direction that the monolithic fanes were raised,
may have been actuated by the same policy as the Christian
teachers, who fixed their religious establishments in places
previously consecrated to unseen power by an earlier people.*
At all events, the holy well, the heathen temple, and the

* See chapter on the ** Circular (Druids) at a weU in the county of

Columnar Temples." the Picts. He exorcised the heathen

-m t . , e . . demon of the well, which thereafter,

' The worship of fountains was con- -, ^ r ! • -,

1 J I, *!. -1 r A 1 • as a holy fountain, cured many

demned by the councils of Aries m ,. •'^ ^, ,:. ., . , , "V

Atn A erv • c^f diseases. On the little island of

442, and of Tours in 5G7. n t • r» .lx ^t •

Gavr Innes, in Bnttany, there is

* In Dr. Reeves' Adamnani Vila a well of very fine water. In this
St. ColumbcCf p. 119, we see how island is a large tumulus containing a
St. Columba strove against the Magi chamber of Cyclopetui architecture.

158

W0B8HIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETC.

Christian church were very often, contiguous in Scotland,
and many similar instances in other Celtic countries may be
pointed out. At Lanmeur in Brittany, in the low and mas-
sive crypt of the church of Saint Melars, i3 a sacred fountain,
to which crowds of pilgrims still resort The practices as well
as the tradition connected with this spring point to the days
of pi^anism, when the place derived its ancient name of
Kerfeunteun from the fame of its waters. A small and very
ancient chapel, erected on the edge of a fountain near Baud in
Brittany,* is dedicated to Notre Dame de la Clart^; this,
although a less objectionable style to Notre Dame, is equally
derived from a heathen original as Notre-Dame-de-la-joie,
Notre-Dame-de-la-Ldesse, or Notre-Dame-de-la-Haine, imder all
which names churches are dedicated to the Virgin in Brittany.'
In the most celebrated Christian place of pilgrimage in
Brittany — St Anne of Auray — the devotees, after confession,
are in the practice of walking three times roimd the sacred
well, and then returning to the church to fimsh their devotions.
" Le culte des fontaines existait chez les Celts. Charlemagne,
dans ses capitulaires, et les 6vSques en concile, se plaignent
de la t^nacit^ de ce culte ; ils anath^matisent les insens&

> In a small island in Loch Maree, in
the parish of Gairloch, in Ross-sliire, is a
burying-place still used, a well which
fur ages has been resorted to by in-
valids, and a circular columnar fane
{Old Statistical Account of Scotland,
vol. iii. p. 90). Here also heathen sacri-
fices of bulls were continued at least till
late in the seventeenth century. — Dr.
Arthur MitchcH's i»apcr on '* Supersti-

tion," in Proceedings of Sockty 0/ Scot-
tish AntiquarieSf vol. iv. pp. 257,
258.

' Near Baud is the rude statue called
the Venus of Quiniple, which, with its
obscene rites, is noticed in another
chapter.

• Fremenville's Morhihan, p. 143 ;
his Finist-erCf p. 92 ; Souvestre's /?«"-
niers BretonSf p. 92.

PLACES OF PILGRIMAGE. 159

qui vont allunier des chandelles au bord des eaux courantes,
et y pratiquer d'autres superstitions. Mais, en d^pit des
anathdmes et des ordres donnds pour ddtruire ces objets
d'une vdndration mysterieuse, il fallut arriver k composer avec
la persistance instinctive des peuples, et se borner k sanctifier,
en les consacrant au vrai Dieu, ces fontaines oil toutes les
misdres physiques de rhoinme avaient Thabitude de cher-
cher un soulagement. D'ailleurs, Saint Jean n'a-t-il pas
mentionnd dans son evangile la piscine de Jerusalem assi(5gde
par les malades, et oil le premier entrd, apr& que Tange du
Seigneur en avait remud Teau, obtenait toujours sa gudrison ?
Desormais toldrees parTindulgente sollicitudeduChristianisme,
les confiantes ablutions s'epur^rent par la prifere fervente, et
leur premier efifet heureux fut de multiplier les chapelles, les
eglises, oil la reconnaissance pour le bienfait du saint patron
de la source, dressait des autels afin d'y suspendre des ex-voto.
Quel lieu de p^lerinage n*a pas une fontaine k son origine ?"^

At Kirkoswold in Cumberland, at no great distance from
the great circular columnar fane called *' Long Meg and her
Daughters," a copious spring of pure water issues from be-
neath the west end of the church ; and in the same county
are several other instances of churches in connection with
fountains.^

In the last century, in the parish of Keith, in the coimty
of Banff, the people resorted to wells in the immediate neigh-
bourhood of two heathen fanes, and there performed the usual

* P^lcrincifjcsde Br€ta(fne {Miyrhihan) ' Brayley and Britten's Beauties of
par IIii)|X)lyt«.' Violrau, pp. 97-f«8, Eiufhind, vol. iii. p. 146.
I*aris 1S55. The oijj^iii;il < hiin]) at York, vhcrn

160 WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETC.

ceremonies and left the customaiy oblations, to a heathen
deity it must be presumed, for there was no Christian saint
to share in the fame which these waters had acquired. But
in the same parish there was the " Guidman's Croft," a small
portion of land dedicated to the spirit of the earth or to the
devU, and which, up to a late period of the last century, was
left in his imdisturbed possession.^ Whether this " guidman "
was our devU or an ancient Caledonian deity is immaterial, in
so far as the fact of a demon being allowed to retain landed
property in the parish confirms the heathenism which then
existed, and of which the offerings and ceremonies at fountains
was a portion. These oblations are described in an old Scot-
tish work ' as offerings " wherewith the people arle (ie. re-
tain) the devil with an arles-pennie of their health."

Well-worship, and the belief in occult healing powers of
fountains of pure water, being general in Ireland and the
remote parts of Scotland, is a proof that the ceremonies prac-
tised at holy wells were not derived from the Soman Fon-
tinalia, as the Romans never gained a footing in Ireland nor
retained a position in Caledonia. But various circumstances,
and the peculiar nature of the offerings made at fountains in
Ceylon, India, and Persia, point to a common origin with
ceremonies in the Celtic countries of Western Europe. In
the Indian Vedas, the oldest hymns in the world, it is said
" all healing power is in the waters."

the Cathedral now is, contained a * J. Robertson's ArUiquUiea ofAber-

spring. deen, and Banff Shires, vol. ii p. 240.

^ Old StatisiiecU Account of Scotland, * Quoted in the Book of Bon Accord,

Tol. V. pp. 429-430. p. 268. Aberdeen 1889.

REMAINS OF GENTTLISM. 161

Whether under sanction of the history of the Pool of Beth-
esda, or on what other authority, a Christian Church encouraged
a belief in miraculous cures performed at fountains, I am not
aware. But so it was. Even in England, in times compara-
tively modern, holy wells were decorated with garlands of
flowers and boughs of trees ; as well as garnished with rags,
scraps of the garments of votaries who came to be healed.
This was not all done in defiance of the Church, for tliere is a
re(!ord of tlie custom in some parishes of praying and singing
psalms at certain wells,^ and tliese not always medicinal ones.
Aubrey, in his Kemains of Gcntllism, says that they used to
read a gospel at the springs to bless them ; and that this
practice was discontinued at Sunningwell, in Berkshire, in
1088. A circumstance which occurred but a few years ago in
Aberdeenshire will show witli wdiat tenacity tlie worship at
wells still maintiuns its hold ; and in this instance it was
combined with the superstitious ceremony of passing the puny
sick person through a narrow aperture beneath a stone. A
farmer took his son, a boy who had been long ill, and after
dipping him in the holy well,^ drew him through beneath " the
shargar st(me" where the water flowed out from the spring.

Laws and records of judicatories of every kind and degree,
both civil and ecclesiastical, bear testimony to the persever-
ance with which, in defiance of injunctions and disregard of

* lii^and's popular Antiquitiatf by vie, in Aberdeeiisliiro. The Sliarp^ar

Sir H. Ellis, pp. 223, 229. stone has been removed. Sharg or

^ The father, and, strange to say, Shargar, the I-.owland Scotch word for a
after such an operation, the son also, blighted child or any puny or blighted
are both alive. The well was Paul's animal, is synonymous witli, and de-
Well ut Jackston, in the ]»arish of Fy- rived from, the Gaelic Searg or Shearg.

VOL. I. M

102 WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETC.

penalties, the people of Scx)tland in the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries made pilgrimages to consecrated foun-
tains — whether bearing a heathen or a Christian name — there
to invoke the genius of the place or the intercession of the
saint. ^

A piece of money or of metal, if it were only a pin, was
usually thrown into the water, or was deposited on a stone
that ser\"ed as an altar of oblation. But the most important
part of the offerings, as regarded the devotee who sought to
regain health, was a scrap of his clothing, which was left sus-
pended on some neighbouring tree,, or on some bush or briar,
in default of any more prominent sylvan representative. These
superstitions have in some places survived to the present day.
In the end of last century it is recorded of a well at Mont-
blairie in Banffshire,^ that " many still alive remember to have
seen the impending boughs adorned with rags of linen and
woollen garments, and the cistern enriched with farthings and
bodies, the offerings of those who came from afar to the
fountain."^

In the province of Fars, in Persia, Sir William Ouseley
observed a monolith, ten or eleven feet in height, surroimded

* In the eighteenth century people votaries to this well always left an

frequented St. Colman's WcU in the offering of cloth on the overhanging

parish of Kiltearn, in Ross-shire, and bushes.— Old Statistical Account of

after drinking of the water, hung Scotland, voL i p. 316.

shreds of clothing on the branches of • » t> v ^ » ^ *•_•*•-../• .#1.—
^, ,. ^ ^,. ...... , * J.TiohGTtaonBAnt^qu^t^€SofAb€r'
the8UTTouTlalnat^ee9. — Old Statisttcal , , „ ^ «. • _ „ i a ^« om
J A j-c Tf J 1 • 00 i deen and Banf Shires, vol. u.T^^.SlO,
Account of ScoUand, vol. 1. p. 284. «- -

At Killallan in Renfrewshire, St.

Fillan's Well was frequented by in- » There were several circular tem-

valida until the clergyman caused it pies in the neighbourhood, and the

to be filled up with stones. The ruins of a chapel close to the well.

OFFERINGS AT WELLS. 163

by a fence of large stones. It was called by tlie natives
the ** Stone of the Fire Temple," and near it the branches of a
tree were thickly hung with rags, offerings of the devout.
This appears to have been tlie remains of a religion that had
been as long proscribed in Persia as paganism in Britain, and
with apparently the same imperfect success. Hanway, in
his Travels in Persia, mentions a tree to which were affixed
a number of rags, left there as health-offerings by persons
afflicted with ague. This was beside a desolate caravanserai
wliere the traveller found nothing but water. In the Dekhan
of India, and in Ceylon, trees and bushes near springs may
often be seen encumbered with similar offerings of rags and
bits of cloth. Compare this with a statement made fifty
years after the Reformation witli regard to the mineral wells
of Scotland — viz., "that they were all tapestried about with
old rags."^ So it was at the well of Craiguck, in the parish of
Avoch, in Ross-shire, in 1860.^ In the island of Skye, at Loch
Slant, there is a sacred well, and another in the island of
Jura, to which sick persons resorted. After having drunk of
the water the invalids went three times sunwise round the
well, and then deposited their offerings on a stone.* A copse
adjacent to the well at Loch Slant was deemed so sacred that
no one would cut the smallest branch of it.

One of the accusations made a^jainst Joan of Arc was, that

* This and other Cyclopean remains '' Procrrdings of the Society of Anti'
in that conntry are mentioned nnder qnnru's of Scotland, voL iv. p. 209.
the head of ** Persia." * Martin's IVrstern Isles, pp. HO-

* Book of Bon Accord, pp. 2H8, H2.
269.

164

WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETC.

she had attended meetings of witches at a fountain near the
fairies' oak of Bourlemont ; such like were the other charges
through which a base revenge was gratified by the cruel sac-
rifice of this heroine.^ In the middle of the fifteenth century,
along with other blasphemous impossibilities which some
churchmen of Arras invented or employed in order to destroy

their victims, was the assertion that accused persons passed
through the air to attend the witches' sabbath held at the
fountain in the wood of Mofflaines, near Arras.^

The inhabitants of the Isle of Bernera had a peculiar mode
of divination by means of the well of Shadar. To ascertain the
results in cases of violent illness, a person was sent from the
invalid with a wooden dish to be placed on the water. If the
dish turned round sunwise it was a sure sign that the person
would recover.^ In the legends recorded of Guatama in
Buddhist works, it is noted that a dish floating against the
stream was one of the miracles which proved the approaching
consummation of his aspirations, and of his having acquired
the position of a Buddha. Various circumstances, proving a
connection between the worship of the sun and the worship of

* Tried of Dame Alice Kyteler for
Sorcery^ A.D. 1324, published by the
Camden Societ)*-, introduction, p. 12.

In the parish of Monzie, in Perth-
shire, there is a well whose w^aters
were held in great estiraation until
the fall of two trees that grew over it.
With that event, which occurred
about 1775, confidence in the virtues
of the waters of this well appears to
have ceased. — Old St-atisfical Account
of Scotland^ vol. xv. p. 254.

• Wright's McLgic and Sorcery^ vol.
i. p. 78.

• Martin's Western IsleSy p. 7.
The force of the spring at Shadar,

in the Hebrides, and an eddy in the
stream of the Niranjara in Maghada
(Bahar), will easily solve the occult
powers attributed to the well, and the
miracle by which the waters of the
river acknowledged the presence of a
Buddha.

DIVINATION AT WELLS. 165

fountains, have been already mentioned ; and to these may
be added divination, which was commonly practised at many,
probably at all, fountains resorted to by the superstitious. At
the well of Shadar a peculiar form of divination was employed ;
but that most commonly used is to watch the manner in which
the coin or piece of metal, were it but a common pin, descends
when thrown into the well. Not only from the course it takes
in sinking, but also from the air-bubbles which it emancipates,
and the way in which they reach the surface and disappear,
did, and still do, superstitious persons draw auguries in regard
to tlie success of their aspirations and the reception of their
oblations. As several of the most famous of such fountains
have never been Christianised by receiving a saint's name, the
supernatural power relied on must be a heathen object of
worship ; and from what I have already stated prei)onderatiiig
evidence points to Phcebus, the fate-foretelling deity of Delphi,
the guide of emigrating races to their new abodes.^ In the
island of Barra are several columnar stone circles, near one of
wliich is a well, famous not only for curing, but also for pre-
venting the evil effects of fascination. It is called Tobar-
nam-buadh, the Well of Virtues.^

In Armorica, even more than in Britain and Ireland, are
retained all the superstitious practices that are noticed in this
chapter regarding fountains. Superstition upheld by artifice
has created and maintained the belief in coimtries of Asia
and in Europe that certain individuals or societies, tlirough the

* Lucaii's Phaisaliaf b. v.
* Ohl SUiiiMcal Account of Scotland, voL xix. p. 335.

^>3 WOE.-HiP OF F'j',NT.UNS, ET'.

ir.^'dijrii of*>:n of inariimate f/'-^n-ts, coiiIJ a: anv time brini»
down a 5;'ipl-y of rain. .Such sujj^niatirtl p->wirrs were, lioth
in the Rist and in the West, ljtli«:rv»rtl to be inherent, and also
h'-rr^^litan', in faii.ilit'S and fratemitirs. I shall limit my
exai/ipl*j« of tliiij sujierstirion to one from Ceylon in the ex-
treme .v>uth of In^lia ; one in the extreme west of Europe, in
I5ritt;inv : and one in the Western Isl»,'S of Sojtland.

()n the fiurnmit of Namina Koole, a moimtain which rises
to a h^ri'dit of n^-arlv seven thousand fetrt in the island of
Ceylon, there are s^fvr-ral small jxjnds which in the driest
W5a.vjns are never entirely without water. After long-con-
tinued droughts, when springs and streams are insufficient to
nourish the rice-crops in the plains below, the priests of the
Temple of Katragam at Badoola are occasionally prevailed
on to ascend the mountain and perform the ceremonies neces-
sary U) insure a fall of rain. Having reached the summit, the
priests sj^rinkle water from the ponds in every direction, and
on all the persons who have accompanied them. So effica-
cious are these rites, or so well chosen is the time for their
perfoniiance, that the rain never fails to set in before the
weather-wisr; imi>ostors and their dupes have reached the
lx)tt<jm of the nujuntain. The same belief prevailed in Brit-
tany, and the same ceremonies were practised at the fountain
of I'alanton, which is still supposed to possess its former
miraculous properties if there were individuals of sufficient
powers who knew how to turn them to account. Formerly,
in times of excessive drought, it was customary for the Lords
of Mont fort to s])rinkle water from the fountain of Balanton

FOUNTAIN OF BALANTON. IT)

)/

on Merliii's-stone, which is close to the water.* Tliis rite was
followed by an abundant fall of rain over all Ikittany, which
set in so immediately after the ceremony that the Lord of
Montfort had not time to reach his castle of Comper before
suflering from the storm which he had evoked. The fountain
of Balanton, or Bamnton, is situated in the forest of Broce-
liande,'^ in that valley where, beneath the shade of the white
hawthorn copse, the enchanter Merlin is still su])posed to be
detained by the spell of his pupil Viviane.^

I do not presume to give an opinion on the rival claims of
Wales, Cornwall, and Aimorica, to tlie " domicile " of King
Arthur and his Paladins, and Merlin with his magical i)owers.
AVliether the enchanter remains unseen, imprisoned in the
county of Caermarthen or in the country of the Morbihan —
whether King Arthur held his court at K^rdluel, and was
buried in the neighbouring islet of \Agalon on the coast (jf
Brittany, or was interred and re-interred at Glastonbury
in Somersetshire'* — whether the spot pointed out near the
banks of the Elorn in Finistere be the true site of the castle
of Lancelot de Lac, or whether "Her Majesty's fortress of
Benvick-upon-Tweed*' now occupies its place ; one thing must
be admitted — viz., that the memory of all tliese worthies is
far more vividly retained in Brittany than in Great Britain.

* Hip]>olytc Violi'au, Pdcrinagrs dc Perth.shire, wlicn proiwrly solioitod,
Bretagnr^ ]>. 289. and its saint's image wtuslied in llie

Souvfstre'.s Ldi BMiiijae d Ics Err- waters, wa.s capalilc of givint^ a niira-

to}U% vol. i. pp. 112, 113. culous faU of rain tis wt'U as the foun-

* Commune de Concoret, arron- tain of Balanton.
dissement de Ploermel, department

de Morbihan. * Which, to suit the tratlition, is

' St. Fillau's Well, at Strowan in declared to have been an island.

168 WORSrilP OF FOUNTA.INS, ETC.

Martin gives au account of a stone about five feet in
length/ in the form of a cross, which was called the ** Water
Cross," and supposed by the inhabitants of the Western Isles
of Scotland to have the power, when properly treated, of
bringing down rain. Wlien this was required the stone was
placed erect, and so retained until sufficient rain had fallen ;
then the ** Water Cross " was laid prostrate until its influence
was again to be put in force. Another way of procuring rain
by the Celts on the west of Scotland was to bring forth a cloth,
a relic of St. Columba, which being flaunted in the air brought
down a copious supply of water from the heavens.^

The wat^r of a well at Struthill, and of a pool in Strath-
fillan, it was believed, if used with certain rites, woidd cure
insanity. At Struthill the patient, after being bathed, was
bound to a stone near the well, and left all night ; and if the
cure was to be effected the patient was miraculously unloosed.
In 1688 evidence was given before the presbytery of Stirling
of a woman having been so bound and unloosed on two suc-
cessive nights at Struthill well, and of her having been cured
of her madness. The ceremonies at Strathfillan were of the
same kind ; only the patient was bound in a small neigh-
bouring chapel, the ruins of which still exist In the
eighteenth centuiy it is affirmed that about two hundred
insane persons were annually brought to be subjected to this
treatment at Strathfillan.

* Martin's irt'sUrn hles^ p. 69. ' Sir J. Graham Dalyell's Darker

^ Life of St. Coiumbaf hyAd&mnan; Superstitions of Scotland, quoting

the same thing is mentioned in the Sibbald's MS. collections, pp. 82,

saint's life by Cominius. 83 ; Pennant's Tour in Scotland,

vol. ii. p. 15.

SACRED LAKES. 169

Lakes and Rivers.

At Loch Slant, or Sliiant, which the Keverend Dr. Martin
calls also " the sacred lake," the water, the fish which it con-
tained, and the adjoining copse, were all considered sacred " to
the divinity of the place," in whose rites the Diasuil (snnwise)
procession w^as used, and to whom ofiferings were left of scraps
of clothing, coloured threads, small coins and pieces of metal,
down to pins.^ *' Dowloch is a small lake on the top of a hill
in the parish of Penpont, Dumfriesshire, and famous in the
days of superstition for curing all manner of discjises. Those
who resorted to it for relief left some part of their dress to
the guardian genii of the lake." ^

In Strathaven some of the mystical practices used on New
Year's Day have reference to the w^orship of rivers, which
Gildas accuses our countrymen of adhering to. Part of these
rites are evidently borrowed from the ceremonies commonly
practised on Beltane and Midsummer's Day, and are derived
from a period anterior to the introduction of Christianity.
For the protection of the family during the ensuing year a
person is desi)atclicd to draw water from a ford in the river,
where both dead and living had crossed ; and having filled
the pitcher, to return to the house, having all the time care-
fully preserved silence. Neither must the j)itcher have been
allowed to touch the ground, or the virtue of the w^ater would

* Martin's IVesUni Islcs^ p. 140. * Old Statist ical Account of Scot-

Kev. D. Martin's "Parish of Kil- /«?u/, vol. i. p. 206— " Parish of Pen-

niuir, Isle of Skye, 1793," Old Sfa- pont, in the county of Dumfries," by

tislkal Account of Scotlatid, vol. ii. the Kev. William Keyden.
p. 556.

170

WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETa

■ be withdrawn. Fire was then lighted, and the inmates were
sprinkled with this mystical water. Tliey were also fumigated
■ with the incense of burnt juniper branches. All the horses,
cattle, and sheep had also the benefit of sprinkling and fumi-
gation, which was intended to prevent any malign influence
that might have otherwise assailed them through the year of
which this ceremony was the commencement.'

The Worship of Trees.
" Hee that liath HKeae a great iHtke dry and <lead,
Yet cl«il with reliijue* at soiue Tropliets old.
Lifting to heaven her aged hoarie head,
Whow foote ou groiMiil hath left liut feeble licild ;
But liitir dUbowf I'd lies aboue the grouni).
Showing her wreathed rootes, and naktd BniitH,
And on her tnuike all rotten and unsound,
Onlj supports henelfe for meat for wormes ;
And though she owe her fall to the first wind,
Yet of the devout people is adored."

Rains 0/ lUniu, Edmund SpcTK'er.

Trees have not only been regarded with veneration as
emblems of religion, but in many countries were acknowledged
as objects of woi-ship,^ lu Britain the worship of forest trees,
particularly the oak, was a portion of the heathenism of our
ancestors, and was condemned by enactments of the civil and

' From Lectures an llie Moa}itaiit3,

to the InliabitanlB of Asia and the

OF Eighlnnda a,ui Ilujhiandera in

Celts."

18ti0, it would ap[.ear that tluae rites

are still observed.

British MusMiui lli"]i' j<n< iji:>uy »•

I'l' -' r^LiHoii^of t)ii' wor^blp at tNM.

wu practised Annually 011 a mag-

I'!i-ii-. i,.i-i'iii.Li« [ihufonnalaoip-

nificent aeale at the Candian capital

1 :.- -.11. .■...!.l,.,„„tkdclii.«iUon*f

in Ceylon, and is reftrrcd to iu

M. ,,... S,^. \,i;li./,.ple,ulldW0-'

the chapter on " Ciislom* common

M"<i^.M>Li).hi>liLdat l^Bdtf ''

I

TUE OAK AND THE MI8LET0E.

171

ecclesiastical authorities after the intixxluction of Christianity.^
The oak, although pre-eminent among triees held sacred both
in Palestine and in Britain, was not the only member of the
forest that was looked on with reverence among the Jews
and the Celts. ^ From various ancient authors we learn that
the Druids ofifered human sacrifices and performed other bar-
barous rites in sacred groves ; and Pliny informs us that the
Druids made use of the branches or leaves of the oak in all
their religious ceremonies, and considered whatever grew on
it as sent from heaven. The niisletoe in particular, when
found on the oak, was cut with magical ceremonies. The
priest^ clad in a white robe, using a golden sickle, cut off the
misletoe, which was received by those below the tree in a
white cloak. Two white bulls were then sacrificed, and
prayers concluded the ceremony of appropriating this auspi-
cious gift of the gods.*

At Loch Siant, in the Isle of Skye, there was an oak
copse which was deemed so sacred that no person would
venture to cut the smallest branch of it.* In the eighth
century St. Boniface found it expedient for the advancement
of Christianity to cause an oak tree to be cut down that was

* Liber Poenitentialis of Theodore,
xxvii. 18; of Ecgbert ; Caiwnsof Ed'
gar; Laws of Cnut ; Tliorpe's An-
cient Laws of England, voL i. p. 379 ;
vol. ii. pp. 84, 191, 249.

* Ajnongst the Celts the wych-elm,
elder, and mountain -ash seem to have
been regarded as possessing occult
powers. Under the elm, as well as
under the oak, appears to have been

a chosen place for the performance of
ceremonies, and burning incense to
idols, as practised by the Jews
(Hosea iv. 13 ; Ezek. vi. 4-16 ; Isa. i.
29 ; and Ivii. 5, 6.)

• Pliny, Nat. Hist. b. xvi. c. 95 ;
3fon. Hist. Brit. p. 104.

* Martin's Western Isles ofScotlandy
pp. 140-142.

172

WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETC.

dedicated to a heathen deity.^ Joan of Arc was accused of
having gone alone to make garlands, and crown the fairy oak
of Bourlemont^ It was on a fire made with oak sticks that
Dame Alice Kyteler in 1324 was accused of boiling hellish
compounds, in the skull of a felon, for objects of sorcery.^ To
protect himself from evil spirits the Highlander with an oak
sapling draws a circle round himself;* and on the eastern
coast of Scotland withies of oak and ivy are cut in March, at
the increase of the moon, and being twisted into wreaths or
circles are pivserved untU next March. After that period
consumptive jiersons were passed thrice through these circles
in the belief that they would be cured.*

In jMithraic coins a tree or plant is commonly represented
rising apparently from various terraces ; or it may be only
intended to represent an altar beneath the shade of a tree.
This is the more likely, as we know that to light and heat, to
the sun and moon, the devotees of Mithras in the East erected
their altars under trees and in groves ; and we find the wor-
ship of the groves used in the Bible as synonymous with the
adoration of Astarte or the lunar deity.*

On the continent of India various trees and plants are

* And hU example is said to have
been foHowe<l in lattT periods. — Uni-
versal UUflonjf jinrietiif vol. xviii. p.
665 ; vol. xix. p. 77.

* Trial of Danit Alice KyUler^ pub-
lished by Camden Society, p. xii.

* Wright's -Sararry a /k/ Mufjic, vol. i.
p. 29.

* Pennant's Tour in Scotland, vol.
ii. p. 46.

* Minstrclsij of the Scottish Border,
vol. IL p. 171. Edit. 1S21.

* Of the worship of Mithras and
Astarte in Britain there are proofs
from existing altars and other re-
mains, but these altars are all of the
Roman period. — See Wright's Early
IiihabitatUs of Britain, pp. 268-271,
etc. etc.

SACRED .TREES. l73

consecrated to different gods, and in Ceylon the B6, or sacred
fig-tree,^ is dedicated to Gautama Buddha. There a tree,
springing from successive terraces raised on each otlier, repre-
sents not only a religious emblem but a historical fact. Such
a tree now exists in the deserted but still highly venerated
city of Anuradhapoora, the ancient capital of Ceylon. Neither
is there anything incredible in the assertion, nor miraculous
in the fact, that this sylvan object of religious veneration has
occupied its present position for more than twenty centuries.
This alone would make it be regarded with interest, and its
liistory may fairly claim to be considered authentic. But
regarding the subject now under consideration it requires
notice as having been referred to as the probable original ^ of
the tree in the sculptured stones of Scotland. At the same
time I must express my dissent from that theory, although
the emblematic trees of Buddhist and Druid may have been
symbols derived from a common origin in periods of remote
anticpiity.

The sacred tree of Anuradhapoora is the principal object
of pilgrimage in that city which contains so many and such
vast monuments reared in honour of the relics of Gautama
Buddha, and as memorials of his visit to sites which are now
occupied by these mounts of masonry. The tree was originally
a slip from that under which Gautama reposed when he be-
came a Buddha, after his long sojourn in the wilderness, his
fast of forty-nine days, and his final victory over Marya and

* Ficus relin^osa.
* Trnnsactimui of Royal Soeirty of Scotland, vol. xxi. part ii. 1854-55.

174

WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETC.

a legion of demons — i.e. death, deadly sins, and evil passions.^
That slip is now represented by the sacred tree of Annradha-
poora, at which place it arrived RC. 307 in charge of the
priestess Sanghamitta.^ The representation of a plant' in a
vase, commonly seen in Buddhist temples, is intended to de-
pict this shoot in the golden flower-pot in which it was
brought to Ceylon,^

The sacred tree of Anuradhapoora may now with sufficient
accuracy be termed a grove; it occupies the terraces,. and
some of its limbs project through the masonry in the sides of
four square platforms raised on each other, each stage being
of so much less size than that on which it is built as to allow
of a path around, from which steps lead up to the higher
terraces. The tree stands in the centre of an enclosed space,
in which are remains of buildings reared in its honour, and
many trees or shoots that have sprung from its ix)ots or its
seeda The long-continued existence of this tree would appear
incredible, were it not for the self-renovating powers of the
Ficus rdigiosa. And those who have seen this venerated
memorial will acknowledge that to eradicate all its members
would b.e a task as difficult as it would be unworthy. None

* From Afara, death, hist, cupidity.

s Sent hy Dhannasoka, king of
India, to the king of Ceylon. In'
that island the, fonn of the leaf of
this tree, under the native dynasty,
was not allowed to be painted or
sculptured on any article which was
not royal property.
' • Vance describes the sculpture re-
presenting a tree in a flower-pot

which was found amongst the ruins'
of Hagar-Kim in Malta. This was
probably an emblem of Phoenician
worship, such as that still practised
in Sardinia, where the vase, and the
plant of com growing in it, represent
a part of the worship of Hennes, but
in ancient times was called the garden
of Adonis. — Sec Forester's Sardinia^
p. 334. .

•ji*?u#^^

TI:KKS as l;KI.ir.Tnls EMBLEMS. IT."*

of its many stems or limUs are (»f givat size, nor Jo thev aj>pear
to W of t:reat atxe. Still there it stamls, liavinLr maintained
itself for twentv-one centuries. It has also furnished shoots
not only to ever}' temple and village in Ceylon, but to many
places in other countries which profess the Buddhist religion.

The Fin's nli^jw.^a grows wihl in the forest, but any one
that has derived its origin fix>m the sacred tree at Anuradha-
poora is surrounded with a terrace, on which there is a
miniature altar, where anv one mav otter tlowere to the
Buddha. Many of its descendants far surpass in size any of
the stems of the parent tree, and it is usually under their
grateful shade, and impressed with its religious influence, that
the natives of Ceylon hold their village courts and councila
The Cim^alese also believe that in the ceaseless rustlin^j: of
the foliage of this beautiful tree thev hear the unintelligible
whisperings of the village ancestors, and that the leaves are
stiiTed by the spirits of " the rude forefathers of the handet."

The emblem now under consideration — viz., the tree on
the sculptured stones of Scotland — like that in the worship
of ilithras, Hermes, Brahma, Buddha, and others, may
possibly have been derived from a common origin, and
certainly as a Buddhist emblem existed previous to the era of
Gautama Buddha, or 543 years KC. The legends of Buddhism
even mention the particular trees that wefe consecrated as the
emblems of those Buddhas who preceded Gautama.^ It is

* A fiirtlicT proof of tlie aiitiijuity iiig and all-sufVu'inj^ trvp of RiuUlhist

of the tree as an rinblem or an objiM-t cosmogony, still tlourishes in a world

of mysttTV, is the Cingalese legend below or within the earth. There,

that the KHl]»awniksha, the all-]>ro«lue- it is said, also exists the race of Nagas,

ITo WOELSHTP -JF F'T-r.-yT-UXS, ETC.

therefore necessarr to 1«> 'k to earlier times for the establish-
ment of the tree as a reli^'iou? emblem, and it is a curious
fact that in Cin^ese oi>?m«>j?-^iiy there is the tree possessing
properties and ppxluoing events bearing an extraordinary
analoiTv to s<:»me of those desorib*:-d in the first book of Genesis.
This is the more remarkable fp>m other ci>inoidences in the
Cingalese account of the creation with that ijiven in the
Bible ; whilst, at the same time, the discrepancies on the
whole are too invat to admit of the Cinirilese beinjj deemed
merely a perverted d^py of the Scripture record. To explain
the place which the tree called Kalj^wruksha holds in
Buddhist cosmononv, it is necessarv to ijive an outline of
the present formation of the world as described in Cingalese
works.

The earth having been destroyed by fire, with its oceans
and atmosphere, formed one chaotic mass. Tlie fire was
eventually overcome by water, which covered the earth in
every part, until a great wind in part absorbed and dissipated
the flood, so that portions of land, the present visible world,
appeared. Then succeeded five extended periods, when
immortal beings visited, but were not restricted to the earth.
In the first of these periods there was no vegetation ; in the
second the vegetation was of the nature of mushrooms ; in

snakes possessing human intellect and whole, it is "the tree producing
the form of the Naga (cobra dicapello). whatever is desirable;" hut hilpa is
The supercession of the early snake- an immensely - extended period of
worship may account for part of the time, and ^rrul'sfia a tree, and pro-
legend, but the mystery of the tree bably relates to tlie cosmical mystery
remains unexplained. On considering of the progressive foundation of the
the expression Kalpawmksha as a world according to Buddhists.

SACRED GROVES. 177

the third there were various plants, but not those of the
fullest development ; in the fourth ai)peared the Kalpawruk-
sha, the tree which produced everytliing necessary or desir-
able for the beings then in existence, but on accoimt of their
wickedness, which had been increasing in each successive pe-
riod, the Kalpawruksha became extinct. Then commenced
the fifth jieriod, in which a variety of plants sprang up.
Having eaten of these, the beings then on earth became
mortal, and found themselves in darkness. It was then thev
were formed male and female, and lost the power of returning
to the heavenly mansions. These beings had theretofore been
liable to mental passions, such as en\'y, covetousness, and
ambition. Thereafter, in addition, corporeal passions developed
themselves, and the race, that which now inhabits the earth,
became subject to all the evils that afflict humanity. Before
these beings were reduced to the condition of mortals light
attended on or emanated from them. After their fall all was
darkness. Th^n arose in daily succession the sun, the moon,
and the fiVe great planets from which the days of the week
received their names.

It woidd be an easy task to accumulate evidence of sacred
groves existing in connection with the rude stone altars of
Britain/ as well as in many other countries. But the dis-
tinct account left us by Tacitus renders it unnecessary to
quote particular cases. In his condensed record of the attack
on the island of Anglesea by Paulinus Suetonius in a.d. 61,
and the proceedings of the Eomans there after vanquishing

' Sec Chalmers's Caledonia^ vol. i. p. 71, ii^>U:.
VOL. I. N

178 WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETC.

the Britons, we perceive the connection of the Druids with the
religious groves and the altars on which human beings were
sacrificed.^ From the agonies of these victims the Druids
pretended to divine the issue of coming events ; but they
failed to foresee their own fate in Anglesea, where they
perished in the fires which they had kindled for the immo-
lation of expected captives.

In the sculptured stones as yet discovered in Britain the
tree does not appear unless in those where the cross is part of
the design. Yet it is accompanied by other emblems that are
clearly of heathen origin. Mr. Penhouet describes, among
the figures sculptured on a dolmen in Armorica,^ the branch
of a tree, the other emblems being the circle single and con-
centric, the horse-shoe, and the harp. Unfortunately this
dolmen is no longer in existence.

In the volume of The Sculptured Stones of Scotland the tree
appears twice,^ in both cases raised on a terrace, and in one
the tree has a serpent on each side. On Phoenician coins a
tree entwined by a serpent is not an uncommon device. The
palm-tree is also a Phoenician emblem. But it is to be re-
marked that neither on Phoenician nor on Indian coins or sculp-
tures, where the tree is represented, is it in the form of a
palm ;* which is a proof that it was shade and not produce
that caused trees to be held in veneration. Yet the palms,
with the exception of shade, yield nearly all things necessary

» Tacitus, Afon, Hist Brit. p. 38. " Plates LXXXVl. and XC.

? ** Arch^ologic Armoricame," Ar- * The sacred tree in Assyrian sculp-

rhoBological Journal, vol. xxvi. p. turcs appears, howeA'er, to bo a palni-

233. tree.

CfOD OF SECRECY.

179

to man's existence, wliilst the i^eepiil and spreading banian
only afford delight to the eye and shelter from the rays of
the sun.

The Duw-Celi of Celtic bards has been translated by Welsh
scholars the " Hidden God." As the word Celi or Celli, with
little variation/ signifies a place of shade, a thicket, a grove, in
Welsh, Irish, Gaelic, and Cornish — may not the Duw-Celi be
the god worshipped in the groves?^ — the god for which "the
groves" is sometimes used in the Bible.^ Kelli, the Cornish
for thicket or grove,'* nearly resembles the Cingalese word,
which has the same meaning — viz. Kelai. This word is
sometimes in Scotland the name of a place, and is also used
in combination with other Celtic expressions in the names of
many places.

Like the grove, the connection of the word used for tree
in Sanscrit and Celtic is easily traced — in Sanscrit Bruh, in

' AVelsh, CeUi ; 1 rish and Gaelic,
Coillc; Cornish, KcUi.

* The Abudlio Deyio, the tiaiiulcss or
unknown (hul of the Cingalese was, I
have little doubt, akin to the '* un-
known God " mentioned in the xVcts.
The Abudho Deyio was the god of
secrecy, the patron of thieves ; and
it was in following the traces of stolen
proiKTty that his temple in the re-
cesses of a forest was accidentally dis-
covered by messengers of the judicial
court of Matiilai in Ceylon. Portions
of juoperty, the produce of various
robberies, were discovered which had
been offered to tliis god, the perpe-
trators believing that through his in-
fluence tln'V would avoid detection.

The real name of the god, if lie has
one, I could not discover ; but my
impression was that the witnesses were
afraid to pronounce it, and therefore
denied any knowledge of his being
called otherwise than the ** unknown
Go<l."

* Ashera, which our translators
render grove (1 Kings xviii. 19 ; 2
Kings xxiii. 7), has been supposed to
be an abbreviated form of Ashtoreth,
but is a different deity, whose images
were of wood, not fashioned in a
human form. — Kenrick's Ffuenkia,
p. 302, quoting Movers, vol. i. p.
566.

* Polwhele's Cornwall, vol. i. p.
168.

THE BRACKEN. 181

is not a cliurchyard without one of them planted in it. So on
a certain day of the year everybody religiously wears a cross
made of this wood."^

The Brakenfern is believed to have been esteemed by the
Druids ; no insect attacks its leaves ; it fades and withers
while its foliage is still perfect ; and in Brittany there is a
belief that if the root be cut across it shows the likeness of an
oak. Under the great dolmen on the heights above Loc-
Maria-Ker there is, among the sculptures, a figure of doubt-
ful signification called a fern-leaf Fern-leaves gathered on
Hallowe'en were particularly used for Beltane fires.

As we know that the Celts were addicted to divination,
it is not improbable that their sacred oaks, or the spirit
they represented, w^ere believed to possess fate-fore telling
power like the ancient sylvan oracle of Hellas, the oak of
Dodona.

Amongst the figures represented in a mosaic pavement
lately discovered by Dr. Davis under the ruins of Carthage
there is a plant in a flower-pot depicted on the ornamental
border, and i)laced at each of the four corners. It seems to
be disputed whether this mosaic be Phoenician or not ; but
even if it \vere executed after the conquest of Carthage, the
ornamental design may be of local origin. By whatever nice

» Evt'lyn's Silm, p. 219. Branches influences. There these branches re-

of the rowan-tree, decorated with maiued until replaced hy a similar

heath and flowers which had been protection the next season. — M'Pher-

thrife carried around the fires lighted son's Introduction to History of Great

at Heltane, were i>lace<l in the dwell- Britain and Ireland, pp. 164-166; Sir

ings of the Irish and Scots to pro- J. Graham Dalyell's Darker SajHTsti-

tect the inmates from all malignant tioiis of Scotlandy p. 9.

182 WORSHIP OF FOUNTAINS, ETC.

designed, the plant in the flower-pot is evidently not copied
from nature ; yet is so nearly identical with those on the
sculptured stones of Scotland in all their peculiarities as to
point to the probability of both having a common origin.

Plate Vm.

y

o o o

C'OiDparaltvr 5ixe of the lYmcipal Stone Circles of Great BritaJn.

Tier.

I'fo/yi "

r otcofi.i 6lnu- . "^lU/U.rt

/'Frw

m;-

K /i^o Ki.-/' fV^r^s

.

//^/ .

UJ^

w

C ('»T. t/V u'y A'f.f^r.'Jt

/OS .

.i%

1

H o^rnr/w-r,,;e

/fh'' .

^rr

»

1 . 'f.'rn^i ('\r,'f^. Ste/i/i^

/0(' ,

CHAPTER VIII.

PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS, AND THEIR ANTIQUITY.^

Monolithic Columnar Circles were of different kinds, and intended for different
purposes — Tlieir Form devised in wann climates — Their Origin previous
to any record — Varieties of Primitive Monuments — No rational Traditions,
but similar fabulous Legends reganling their erection — Kude Circular
Fanes now commonly reared in India — Proofs of the Antiquity of Stones
sculptured with Heathen symbols — Sculptured Stones found in the Castle-
hill of Kintore ; on the Rock of Diunacair ; Classeniish ; Stennis — Re-
mains in the Country of the Veneti — Silbury-hill.

PHILOLOGISTS of the i)resent century, with wonderful
perseverance and success, have developed affinities in the
languages of various nations from the borders of China to the
shores of tlie Atlantic. This renders more worthy of atten-
tion the fact, that over the same vast region, even in countries
where such links of common ancestry or early communication
have not yet been established, there is often a particular and
always a general resemblance in the Cyclopean memorials of
a remote era. As regards Persia, the identity of form in rude
monuments of that country with those of Britain was pointed
out long before the affinity of the Celtic to the Zend or San-
skrit was dreamt of ; and eighteen centuries ago Pliny re

* By primitive stone monuments I which in any country there is no
mean those of rude constniction and authentic record nor rational tra-
Hpparent antitpiity, of the orijin of dition.

184 PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS.

corded the siinilarity of the magical arts of the British Druids
and the Persian Magi.^

•Whether the columnar Cyclopean structures of Celtic
countries were erected as temples for the administration of
religious ceremonies, as courts of justice, as places for the
assembly of councils and the inauguration of princes, or as
sepulchres, has given rise to much discussion. But for whatever
they were originally destined, some of them were probably used
for each, and some for all these purposes, although not perhaps
by the same tribe, at least not in the same periods. If what
are called Druidical circles are carefully examined, it will be
perceived that many of them possess distinctive features that
clearly mark a diflference in the objects for which they were
intended.

In the rude fanes of other countries, as well as in those of
our pagan ancestors, we cannot expect to find that identity of
form in details which we shall look for in vain in the temples,
ancient and modem, of any religion existing or extinct. A
Hindu pagoda, Buddhist dagoba, Mohammedan mosque, or
Christian church, is never seen identical in size and form with
any other of its co-religious edifices ; yet the temples of each
of these religions have a distinctive character by which, in
their most extreme difference and in the most distant lands,
they may be still recognised. This is also the case with the
widely-extended Cyclopean monuments, and tends to show

* The similarity in " popular tales'* logical lore assumed a position of im-

iB another subject tliat bears upon the portance under the Brothers Grimm ;

early connection of the ancestors of and, as regards the Norse and Gaelic,

many nations that are now geographi- has been lately developed in the works

cally remote. This branch of ethiio- of Daseut and Campbell.

CIRCULAR FANES. 185

that they are derived from a coranion model. As regards
those of Caledonia, tliey are probably tlie earliest memorials
of religions of which the latest material evidences are the
" sculptured stones of Scotland."

The areas of temples, open, and only designated by masses
of rock, with their long avenues of unhewn columns of stone,
are well fitted for religious ceremonies and processions, and
for judicial and civil i)urposes, in a warm climate and under
the blue sky of tropical coimtries. The reverse is the case as
regards the cloudy atmosphere and uncertain weather so pre-
valent on the promontories of Armorica and in the British
Islands, and is a very strong argument for considering that
the i)agan fanes of these countries were modelled from Asiatic
originals. Nations, whether tempted or impelled onwards, or
migrating in obedience to some law of our nature which has
led to the diffusion of mankind, would doubtless preserve the
form of their ancient places of worship and assembly ; and
circular temples defined by small pyramidal-shaped stones,
such as may often be seen extemporised in the Dekhan of
India, could always have been prepared when the migrating
horde halted on a journey or rested for a season.

Not only is there an absence of any direct information,
but no data that would assist in fixing, even approximately,
the period when any of the primitive remains, the unhewn
colunmar temples or stone altars, w^ere erected in Britain.
But from the quotation in Diodorus Siculus of Hecatseus it
is probable that in the fourth century B.C. there was in Britain
a circular temple, the fame of which had reached to the shores

180 PRIMITrVE STONE MONUMENTS.

of Asia. Places of worship formed of rude monoliths, judging
from their remains, appear to have preceded, some of them
by very many ages, any monuments in which the columns
were shaped, however roughly, or sculptured, however rudely.
Yet no authority enables us to assign a date for the
erection of those that are sculptured with purely heathen
emblems ; but the connection, or — if the expression be ad-
missible — the descent of the hewn and sculptured stones
from their rugged ancestors can be established ; also the
continuance of the circidar columnar fanes as sacred places,
until they came to be used for and were superseded by
Christian churches ; and Christian symbols are found
mixed with heathen emblems on the sculptured stones of
Scotland.

Previous to tracing the sculptured stones in descent from
those that were unhewn it is important to distinguish the
varieties of primitive monuments, to which it will be neces-
sary more particularly to refer.

The most important are the circular or oval areas defined
by detached stones. These are commonly known as " Druid
circles" in Britain, and by what is a far more descriptive and
equally correct name in Brittany — viz. Crondech, or the
stone-circles. Cromlech in Britain is a term now only applied
to the raised altai*s, sacrificial or sepulchral, which by the
Bretons are called Dolmens,^ a word which has also an appro-
priate and descriptive meaning — viz. table-stones, from Taul

* From Ctibson's Camden it would Gronilech was formerly used in Wales
appear that the word Cromlech or for the circular eoUiniiiar fanes.

VAllIOUS KINDS OF MONUMENTS. " 187

or Daul, signifying table, and Maen, stone.^ The Menhirs —
from the Celtic words M^n, a stone, and Hir, long — are the
great unhewn columns, often selected of a pyramidal form,
and fixed upright ; Pulven, lesser-sized stones, but placed
upright like the Menhir ; Lichaven, two upright stones, sup-
porting one across their tops ; Galgals, great cairns or mounds
composed entirely of stones ; Barrows, mounds composed of
earth, or of earth and stones mixed ; Kistvaen, stone-chests,
is an expression now used to designate monuments that ap-
pear as different in the objects for which they were intended
as in their dimensions. The name has been sometimes indis-
criminately applied to stones that lined a grave, and to a
chamber formed of great slabs, fixed vertically, covered by
one of surpassing size, and which only differed from the dol-
men in being closed all round. Another variety is open only
at one side, but consists occasionally of one, two, or three cells :
Kits-Coity-IIouse, in Kent, has been taken as a specimen
of one of these with a single cell. If it is not a dolmen, it is
a double cell, being divided near the middle. Coity or Cotty
House, applied to this cell, may possibly be derived from the
Celtic word Coit or Coet, which in Cornish and Armorican
signifies a grove. From this word possibly the term Quoit,
still applied to many large stone monuments,^ has had its

^ In Britain tliere is also atiothor Haroourt, Oxfordshire ; Halkett's or

ft)rm of monument called Tol-men, Hautvill's Quoits, at Stanton-Drew

where there is either a jxjrforation in in Somersetshire; Lanion-Quoit,Chun-

the stone or a small passage through Quoit, and many others, in Cornwall ;

beneath a large stone supported on Quoits at Avebury in Wiltshire, etc.

others. Coit-Maur, a great wood in Somei-set-

^ The Devil's Quoits, near Stanton- shire ; Coid-Andred, in Sussex, a wild

188

PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS.

origin, as we are informed that the rites of the Druids were
performed and their altars erected in grovea This view is
supported by one of the divisions of the people in ancient
Britain^ being called Coitanni, who are described as inhabiting
a country overspread with woods.^ From Kent and Cornwall
to the northern extremity of Caledonia^ and in all the adja*
cent islands, from the Scilly to the Hebrides and the Orkneys,
there is a general conformity in the design of the primitive
monuments. That many of them, or their remains, should in
later times be found applied to other purposes than those
originally intended, is only what might be expected ; it there-
fore requires careful examination before attempting to decide
what is primitive and what has been subsequently im-
posed on, remodelled in, or removed from these ancient
monuments.

In the early and heathen ages, to which these notices re-
fer, the origin of all the primitive stone memorials, as well as
the argument in regard to the race by which they were
erected, is in Caledonia less complicated than a discussion on
similar remains in Gaul and South Britain. Caledonia did
not fall under Boman or Anglo-Saxon dominion; neither have

and woody region (Gibson's Camdeii,
Britannia, voL i. p. »182) ; Coet-
Maes, the wooded field {Ibid, vol. L
p. 419); Coed-Trath, near Tenby,
Pembrokeshire. There the stamps of
trees were seen when a violent storm
removed jwirt of the sands (Ibid. vol.
ii. p. 33) ; Koeten- Arthur, a dolmen
near Harlech, Merionethshire {[bid.
vol. ii p. 60).

In Borlase's Cornish Vocahvlary
Quoit or Koeten is translated " a
broad thin stone," a description by
no means applicable to the form of
some of the stones called Quoits in
various parts of England.

* Leicester, Lincoln, and Notting-
ham shires.

t " Coitanni in tractu sylvis obsito."
RicardiCicestrensisZ^SiSt^u Briiannicz.

PRE-CELTIC INHABITANTS. 189

there appeared any aiitlicntic records, sufficient reasons, nor
even weiglity arguments, to support the theories of other im-
portant intnisive elements on the Celtic race which indis-
putably, principally in its Gaelic branch, occupied North
Britain.

There is no historical nor other conclusive evidence of the
occupation of Caledonia by any race prior to the Celtic. But
an accumulation of facts may supply sufficient proof of that
which is now only a cogent probability — viz., that pre-Celtic
aborigines possessed the country, and may have reared some
of its primitive monuments.

Although some of the most prominent and peculiar forms
of Cyclopean monuments are common to countries in Asia,
Africa, and Europe, the only people in whose records we find
any notice of the erection of primitive stone monuments are
the Jews ; and from their narrations we perceive that the
Canaanites were previously accustomed to the same forms of
memorials and places of worship. Thus, even in Palestine,
the oiHgiti of such works is thrown back to indefinite antiquity.
Eude stones, regularly placed and defining sacred areas, with
altars enclosed or attached — devotional, memorial, and in-
augural stones — altars of unhewn stones ; — all these were
therefore in use before any details in the history of mankind
were recorded. Josephus refers to a pillar or pillars existing
in his time which had been erected by the children of Seth, to
preserve a memorial of the astronomical discoveries of their
race. It may be taken as evidence that these pillars were

> AiUiqiciti4is of ilu Jews, c. ii. b. i.

190 PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS.

of an unknown age when the Jewish historian calls them
antediluvian.^

In treating separately of the various kinds of primitive
stone monuments in Scotland, and in the Celtic countries of
Western Europe, reference will be made to particular instances
in the Hebrew records. This renders it unnecessaiy in this
place to examine the general resemblance of memorials erected
by Abraham and his descendants with those that are com-
monly, and may be correctly, called Druidical remains in
Britain, This part of the subject has been fully treated of by
a late^ writer, and touched on by many. 1 shall therefore
pass to other evidences and arguments that prove the great
antiquity of these mommients in various countries, more par-
ticularly in Britain and Caledonia.

The first circumstance that attracts notice is the fact, that
notwithstanding these monuments existed in all parts of this
country, and in some localities are still to be seen in great
numbers, yet there is neither record nor rational tradition
regarding the erection of any one of them. Tlie same
remark is applicable to similar remains in the Dekhan
of India, on the northern coasts of Africa, and on the pro-
montories of Armorica. In pointing to such monuments of
forgotten ages an inhabitant of these countries only accounts
for their erection by repeating legends all alike puerile, and
only so far profitable as they show that the antiquity of the

» Possibly such were the "stones of tine, had collected most of the facts
picture" referred to in Lev. xxxvi. 1. then known on this point in his

first volume, under two heads — \nz.
* Kitto, in his History of Pales- ** Druidical" and ** Stone."

lfx;ends. 191

relics lies beyond the reacli of local tradition. Possibly also
the similarity of these fabulous legends may be admitted as
an argument that they, as well as the forms of the monuments,
were derived from a common source.

On the plains of Central India you will be told that the
groups of monoliths are men, their flocks and herds, which were
changed into stone as a punishment for disrespect to a deity
and disregard of his priesthood. In Northern Africa an
assemblage of circular fanes is formed of stone })illar8, which
the inhabitants say were once giants. In Brittany the
avenues of Carnac are said to be petrified battalions, and tlie
detached menhirs to be the commanders of these heathen
soldiers, who were thus transfonned at the moment tliey were
about to seize and put to death St. Cornily. By this miracle
that devout Christian escaped from pagan violence, and re-
mains tlie patron saint of the place. In Somersetshire the
Druidical circles at Stanton-Drew are said to have been a
bridal party turned into stones. In the neighbourhood of St.
Clear, in Cornwall, remains of a similar kind are known by
the name of the Ilurlers, from the legend that the stones re-
present two parties who were transformed into pillars of stone
when engaged in the gjime of liurling on some unlawful day.
The circle called Dance Main, in the parish of Burian in
Cornwall, is said to represent nineteen maidens^ who were
tmnsformed into stone for dancing on Sunday. Two larger
stones on tlie outside are, by the same legend, declared to be

* ^V^^atever Dance is derived from, Main is from the Coniish and Breton
it may reasonably bo a.<sumed that wonl sif^nifying stones.

192 PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS.

pipers, who promoted the revelry and shared in the punish-
ment.

These examples will probably be deemed more than suffi- .
cient to show that eveiy where the monoUths of primitive
monuments arc, in legendary lore, said to have been creatures
endowed with life. There is another circumstance also that
may be remarked — viz., that where these monuments exist
there are legends more or less directly connecting them with
giants, and with a race that were dwarfs in size and giants in
strength. The ponderous materials of these monuments, and
low stone cells formed of immense slabs, may sufficiently
account for the legendary giants and dwarfs who were in-
vented by those who no longer reared such monuments or had
any recollection of the race to which they belonged.

In another chapter reasons are given for believing that a
fragment from Hecataeus, preserved by Diodorus Siculus,
carries us back to the fourth century before Christ ; and then,
not to record the erection of a great circiilar temple in Britain,
but to testify that the fame of such an establishment had
reached to the continent of Asia.

The next argument that may be adduced in proof of the
antiquity of the Cyclopean fanes of Britain is> that the original
and individual names of these places have in most cases passed
into oblivion. Many of those that have. Celtic names have
evidently received them at a comparatively late period^ being
general and descriptive epithets, not local and individual
names. Thus there are many places the Gaelic or British ap-
l>eUations of which are equivalent to The Circles — Circles — The

FIELD OF CIKCLF.S.

193

Field of Circles— The Stone Circles^— The Place of the Dniids '
— Giant's Circle — Gianfs Dance, etc. etc. On the contrary,
" Tamnaverie,^ the Hill of Worship," is one of the few which
may be considered as retaining its ancient name. This rocky
mount is of a conical form, about one hundred and fifty feet
in height. On the summit a small space and an earth-fast
rock were surrounded by a circular stone inclosure, now
almost obliterated ; this part of the rock itself being in pro-
gress of destruction by a quarry. Immediately adjoining is
a circle, about fifty feet in diameter, of columnar stones dis-
posed in the usual form — viz. having a recumbent altar-stone,

^ Stoneheiif^c, Stanton-Drew, Sten-
nis. Standing - stanes, Nino-stane-rig,
Seven -stiine-hill, and many such, are
evidently names given after the .irrival
of Saxons and Dano-s. Corthes, Acor-
thies, Acquhortliies— names so common
in tlie north of Scotland, arc evidently
from the Celtic. Cuirtich, or Cuairtich,
a circle or enclosure, and Auchin, a
field, although Celtic, it is equally
evident are not ancient and original
names. In the pirish of Kiltarlity
in Inverness-shire near the remains
of six columnar stone circles, there
is Bal-na-CaiTachan — i.e. the Place
of tlio Pillars or Ux>right Stones ;
Blar-na-Carrachan, the Moor of Up-
right Stones. In the same parish is
Ard-Druighnicli, the Druid's Height.
Another explanation of the meaning
of the name AclK[uhorthies ha« been
offered — viz., that it is derived from
Achadh, a field, and larrtas, prayer ;
but larrtas seems to be more appli-
cable to petition or solicitation than
to devotional sup}>lication.

VOL. I.

* Draid is a word used for circle in
Gaelic.

* Tamnaveric is in the ])arish of
Coull in Aberdeenshire. The trans-
lation — viz., the Hill of Woi-ship — is
given in the old statistical account
of the parish, but I am not aware how
the latter part of the translation is
derived, unless it be from Vaire, w* hich
signifies in Gaelic, "fate" — "the
hour of fate or death ;" or Vrradh,
** power ;" or Vrram, "reverence"
(Robertson's Antiquities of Ahcrdccn-
shire, vol. ii. p. 26). In the neigh-
bouring parish of Strathdon is Binnew
(or Binnuadh), the Holy Hill, so called,
perhaps, from a stone on its summit,
with a cavity, in whicb, from fre-
quent rains on that hill, water was
generally seen ; and in times of super-
??tition this water was believed to
spring out of the stone, and to possess
the virtue of healing various diseases.
— Old Statistical Acarunt of Scotlandy
vol. xiii. p. 184.

O

194 PRnrmvE stons

whicb is about ten feet six inches in length, placed between two
of the upright stonea Within this circle several low concen-
tric walls can still be traced Placed in the centre of the ex-
tensive valley of Cromar, the panoramic view from Tamnaverie,
nnintermpted by any neaier object, is bounded on every side
by hiUs of considerable heightw

Stonehenge — at least its most imposing featore — has the
appearance of being constracted at a later period than any
other circular columnar monument in Britain. From acci-
dental circumstances it has attracted more attention than
other remains of greater extent and more remote antiquity.
Yet we have no more authentic information regarding the
erection of Stonehenge than we have of the far more wonder-
fid monument of Avebury. Two authors in the middle of the
seventeenth century, one of them being Inigo Jones^ daimed
Stonehenge as a work of Boman art Dr. Charlton wrote to
refute this, and avowedly to restore the merit of its erection to
the Danea^ The arguments used by both writers equally fail
to maintain the positions they assumed, or to elucidate any
point whatever in regard to the early history or erection of
this interesting monument

In treating of the sculptured stones of Scotland reference
is made to their connection with monuments formed of
unhewn masses of stone. It seems a natural inference
from the usual progress of art to consider that altars and
fanes of rude stones preceded those in which the component

^ Inigo Jones's work was posthn- SUmthenge ralored to the Danes was
moos. It was edited by Webb, and pablished in 1663 ; Webb's reply in
published in 1655. Dr. Charlton's 1665.

MODERN CIRCULAR FANES. 195

parts were in any way fashioned by man. This view is also
confirmed by the appearance of the monuments as well as by
analogy derived from the history of the Jews, the Arabs, and
the Phoenicians. In like manner it is probable that the simple
emblems graven in outline on unhewn stones preceded by
many years, or even ages, the shaping of the columns and the
embellishment of the symbols.

This theory is doubtless generally correct ; but in the
Dekhan of India may be seen abundant and irresistible proofs
that it cannot be invariably admitted. A remarkable instance
of this fact appears in fanes so rude, humble, and inartificial
that they seldom attract notice, being continually found
lately arranged, even in the immediate neighbourhood of the
lofty pagoda or marvellous excavation. The noble rock-cut
temple of Karli, with its thickset columns and elaborate
sculptures, was executed twenty centuries ago. From its
entrance, and less than two miles distant, may be seen a
pagoda, and nearer still places where circular fanes, formed of
small stones disposed in a circle, have been newly raised to
some local god ; most commonly to Vetal, or Betal, one of
those deities whose worship was probably anterior to the
religions of either Brahma or Buddha, and which, under tlie
name of superstitions, will probably exist when the Brahmins,
like the Buddhists, have lost all power over the minds of the
Maharatta population. These fanes of the most artless kind
being found newly raised is a warning not to judge of the
antiquity of works solely by the simplicity of form or rudeness
of material ; neither to depend on the absence of workmanship

19C PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS.

as anything condiisive in arguments regarding the period
when individual monuments were raised. On the other hand,
it may reasonably be believed that the form of these rude
fanes existed ages before the Brahmins usurped authority in
India^ or Buddha combated against their assumed monopoly
of moral excellence and worldly supremacy.

Tlie following, if it may not be called direct evidence, is
strongly corroborative of the antiquity of such rude mono-
liths graven with emblems in outline as the sculptured stones
and Caledonian hieroglyphics. At Kintore a moimd known
by the name of the Castle-hill was demolished in forming the
North of Scotland Railway. At ten feet from the top of the
mound, which, when complete, was about thirty feet in height,
the workmen came to a layer of charred earth. Here ori-
ginally appears to have been the summit, and Mt John
Stuart^ the editor of Tht Sculptured Stones, who took much
pains to investigate the particulars connected with this monu-
ment,^ ascertained that eleven blocks and a number of small
stones were found in such positions as to render it probable
that a circle of large stones, connected by a wall of smaller
ones, stood on this the origmal summit, where they had been
overthrown, displaced, and covered over to the depth of ten
feet with earth, which completed the height of the mound
known only as the Castle-hilL Mr. Stuart says that it is
probable that more of the large stones were sculptured ; but
two only, which are graven with the Caledonian hieroglyphics,

* See '* Notices of the Plates," p. 33 of Sculptured Stones of Scotland^

by Mr. John Stuart

SCULPTURES AT KINTORE. 197

were saved by a gentleman, while the others had previously
been broken up for railway bridges. The person who rescued
these memorials had his memory recalled by the figures on
them to a stone with similar sculptures which he had for-
merly remarked, but which had afterwards disappeared, being
covered by the accumulation of soil in the neighbouring
churchyard, where it was searched for and found.

Tlie remains on the original summit of this mound, its
charred earth and sculptured stones, might well excuse the
impression that this earliest portion of the monument was of
great antiquity. But an examination of one of the sculptured
stones justifies a belief that they must originally have been
graven and re-engraven at a very remote, probably a prehis-
torical period ; for on one side the figure of the elephant is
nearly worn out of the granite, on which the emblem of the
double disc and sceptre seems to have been executed at a
later period. On the other side of the same stone the elephant
and mirror are inverted. That the elephant on one side had
not been defaced by man, but had become partly obliterated
by the slow process of decay wliich time exerts on Aberdeen-
shire granite, is to be inferred from the fact that all the
sculptures are of one class, and may be found associated in the
Caledonian sculptures. But these are not the only changes
to which this stone had been subjected before it was buried,
with the fane to which it belonged, in the centre of the ex-
tended mound, instead of resting on the original and lower
summit ; for a portion of the stone had been carefully cut
out, an if intended to form it into a seat, by which opera-

198 PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS.

tion a part of the mirror and of the elephant's hecul was re-
moved

Circular areas defined by columnar stones have not unfre-
quently been accidentally discovered, like that at Kintore,
where their existence was not suspected. It is a matter for
consideration whether they were thus concealed to protect
them from desecration by votaries of a new faith, or to prevent
worship in them by adherents to heathenism or doubting con-
verts to Christianity.^

On one of the sculptured granite stones at Logie there ap-
pear to have been earlier Resigns — viz., of the double disc and
other figures of a type similar to those which are now dis-
tinct, and evidently have been graven at a later period over
those which time had nearly obliterated. Yet the later scfidp-
ture is apparently prior to the use of Christian emblems.

Another group at Dinnacair, near Stonehaven, may pos-
sibly be considered as affording slight data from which it
may be inferred that the sculptured stones at that place were
overthrown at a period of remote antiquity. This group was
brought to notice about thirty years ago by a few lads who
contrived, by taking advantage of the crumbling rock and
scanty vegetation in a crevice, to reach the summit It is said
they were tempted to this somewhat perilous adventure by
dreams of treasure concealed there, possibly resulting from
traditions of the former occupation of this unenviable and ap-
patently inaccessible spot Dinnacair, as seen from the high

* One was found de«;p bcDeath the Account of Scotland, vol. xxxviii p.
soil in an old ganlen at Wanlend, in 161. Another dist^overed in Jersey is
tho pflrish of Alvath. — JVet# Statistical elsewhere referred to.

SCULPTURES AT DINNACAIR. 199

ground contiguous, is a contracted green spot on the top of an
isolated rock which has, in all probability, been connected with
the land by means of one of those thin seams of harder stone
which run through the less compact rocks of this precipitous
coast. A narrow, high, precarious pathway would thus have
been the means of commimication with what now is, and for
ages has been, an island. An example of what it was may be
seen in a rock and connecting ledge immediately contiguous.
The length of time that may probably have been required to
render Dinnacair an island, and that has since elapsed, is a
question which geologists only are capable of considering with
any prospect of advantage ; and the condition of rocks somewhat
similar at no great distance from Dinnacair might assist in
forming a conclusion. The lads who had scaled the rock of
Dinnacair found the foundations of a thick wall overgrown
with vegetation, and in removing part of it discovered several
stones bearing the usual Caledonian hieroglyphics. These
they threw over the cliff, and at low water, when its base was
accessible, removed three of them to their parents* houses.
Two of these are delineated in the Sculptured Stones of Scot-
land, and two other sculptured stones were in 1856 procured
by Mr. Thomson of Banchory from the base of the rock of
Dinnacair.

The emblems graven on these stones are of the simple and
apparently most ancient tjrpe of the Caledonian symbols which
are elsewhere separately referred to.^ Found in such a situa-
tion, this group, even if there were no other evidence, is a

* In the chapter on "Sculptured Ston«s, etc. "

200 PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS.

convincing proof that the sculptured stones of Scotland were
not boundary stones ; and various circumstances point to
the original establishment of these stones at Dinnacair at a
period of remote antiquity. Judging from the facts apparent
in places somewhat similar and contiguous, many ages must
have witnessed the gradual decay of the rock and advance of
the ocean before Dinnacair, detached from the adjacent cliff,
became surrounded by the se% and its summit inaccessible ;
but even before that had taken place it would appear, from
the derivation of the Celtic name, that the place where pro-
bably had stood a heathen fane had been desecrated and
transformed into a Celtic fortress, in the walls of which the
sculptured stones were discovered. It is probable that- this
small stronghold gave the name by which the rock is now
known ; Dinnacair being a corruption of the Celtic words Dun-
na-caer,^ which exactly expresses such a position. . Names
of similar import are found in the immediate neighbourhood^^
and in all Celtic countries of Western Europe.

Primitive monuments, unhewn and unsculptured, are found

'Dun, in Gaelic, a hill, a fort, a mous with Cacr, is lued for any famous

fastness ; Na, genitive article ; Caer, place of worship. My information

Cathair,i]i Gaelic, Breton, and Cornish ; regarding the finding of the sculptured

Caer, Wjelsh (Keir, in North Britain, stones on Dinnacair was from one of

is probably a corruption), signifies a the persons concerned ; and so far as

wall, a fortress. The smaU forts or he could remember the sculptured

kcira are very numerous in Scotland, stones were built into the thick wall.

In one parish — viz., Kipiieu, in Stir- and lying flat, in tlic same manner as

lingshire — ^five rising grounds, sur- the other materials, and not in any

mounted by these ramparts, have the way more conspicuous,

word kcir prefixed to the name of the ' As Dunnottar, originaUyDunotyr ;

hill. Keir-hill of Skeen, with its ancient

It has been suggested to mc by a loose stone walls in concentric circles ;

Gaelic scholar that Oathair, synoiiy- etc.

CALEDONIAN SCULPTURES. 201

throughout the length and breadth of Great Britain, from Tes-
caw in the Scilly Isles to Stennis in the Orkneys. From
Kent to Cornwall, Anglesea and Cumberland, from the Lothians
to the Isles of Skye and Lewis, the remains of such monu*
ments are to be seen, or their former existence may be ascer-
tained from authentic records. Being so generally scattered,
not only over Britain and its islands, but in Ireland, while
the sculptured stones, with simple emblems, are only found in
the richer and more level portions of the. eastern side of North
Britain, may be considered conclusive as to the greater anti-
quity of the rude megalithic fanes ; yet the designs in these
sculptures certamly existed before the introduction of Chris-
tianity, and cannot, with regard to any definite authority, be
assigned to a later race than *'the Caledonians tmd other Tic ts,"^
the earliest iidiabitants of North Britain mentioned in history.
As to the length of time the Caledonian sculptures may
have endured under favourable circumstances there is no
lunit. We can only judge by the time that inscriptions have
been preserved in other countries, and that inscriptions on
Boman monuments have existed in Britain. The state of

preservation in which they are found, and the material in
which they are graven, must also be taken into consideration.

The sculptured emblem, which seems intended to repre-
sent a sword in the scabbard, shows that the weapon was
pointless and without a guard ; and we know from Polybius
that such was the form — i,e, without a point— of the swords of

* ** Calcdoniim aliorumqiie Pictonim." — Eumenii Pancgyr. Constant.

August. Mmi. Hist. Brit. p. Ixix.

202 PBUaXIVB STONE M0NUMRNT8.

the Gauls who fought against the Bomans in Italy in tbe third
century b.c^ as we know from Taoitus that the Celts who
confronted Agiicola on the Grampian mountain were armed
with pointless swords. That this probably was a symbol
early foimed, and that it long continued to be graven in the
same shape, may be inferred from its appearing along with
the mirror and comb in a sculpture where the cross is the
prominent object/ and which must therefore have been exe-
cuted ages after the leafnshaped or pointed sword had become
the only weapon of that kind in use.

On the subject of the antiquity of the rude Cyclopean
monuments, whether Celtic or of a prior race, an additional
argument is supplied in a passage in Dr. Wilson's Arehoeology
and Prehistoric AtmaU of Scotland.^ After describing the re-
markable and extensive monoUthic structure at Classemish,
in the island of Lewis, with many of its stones nearly buried
in the moss, he continues — ** But perhaps the most interesting
of all the temple groups of the Hebrides is one which furnishes
indisputable evidence of remote antiquity." ... ''In the
same island of Lewis a large stone circle may be seen, which,
within the memoiy of the present generation, was so nearly
buried in the moss that the surrounding heather and rushes
sufficed to conceal the stones. It has now been cleared out
to a depth of fifteen feet by the annual operation of the
islanders in cutting peats for their winter fuel, and as yet with-
out exposing the bases of any of the columns."' .... ^'But

' Spalding Club, folio, Plate XLIII. * At OaUemish, in 1856, bjromoy-
' Pp. 115, 116. ing the remaining depth of from five

8TENNIS. 203

this is not a solitary example. On various parts of the main-
land monolithic groups still remain partially entombed in the
slowly-accumulating mosses, the growth of unnumbered cen-
turies. On one of the wildest moors in the parish of Tong-
land, Kirkcudbrightshire, a similar example may be seen,
consisting of a circle of eleven stones, with a twelfth of larger
dimensions in the centre, the summits of the whole just ap-
pearing above the moss. Adjoining the group there stands a
large cairn, with its base doubtless resting on the older soil
beneath. With such evidence at command^ it is manifest that,
however vague many of the speculations may be which have
aimed at the elucidation of rites and opinions of the Celtic
Druids, and have too often substituted mere theory for true
archaeological induction, we shall run to an opposite error in
iiscribing to a Scandinavian origin structures manifestly in
existence long prior to the earliest Norwegian or Danish, or
even perhaps Celtic descent on our coastsw"

Although several authors within the last quarter of a cen-
tury have, with much decision, scouted the idea of the Druidical
origin of the monuments at Stenms, and a£Brmed that they are
erections of the Scandinavians, an examination of these re-
mains, even after the discoveries in the chambei*ed tumulus of
Maeshow,^ leads to an opposite conclusion ; in so far at least

to eight feet of moss, the original level ^ ThiB chambered tumnlus was

of the ground was reached, and a opened by James Farrar, Esq., M.P.,

chambered tumulus discovered. — Pro- in 1861, and the discovery of its nume-

ceedings of the Society of Antiquaries, rous Runic inscriptions excited in all

vol, iii. part i. pp. 110-112 ; also present intense curiosity to know the

vol. ii part iii. pp. 180-182; vol iii secrets they contained. These are

part ii. p. 212. given, and many valuable plates of

204 PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS.

that, although they may not be Druidical, they are' not Scan-
dinavian, — ^that, on the contrary, the present name of die
place, as stated by Professor Munch,^ was that given by the
first Scandinavittn setders, and is derived from the remark-
able columnar stone circles which they found on the narrow
promontory that divides the salt-water loch of Stenms from
the fresh-water loch of Harray. *' Stennis/' says the Professor;
** is the old Norn Steinsnes — ^that is, the promontory of stones ;"
and, it may be added, that the stones fix)m which only the
name could be derived have been brought and erected, but
were not found, at the places where these monuments have
been reared. Although these monuments not being l^sandi-
navian does not of itself prove any great antiquity, yet it
again throws back the period when the stones of Stennis were
erected, like all other such remains, into prehistoric agea

From a statement in the history of Caesar^s wars in Gaul
may be inferred a date, not of the erection of any of these pri-
mitive monuments, but of the year when in all probability the
most remarkable rude stone memorials existing in any Celtic
country were overthrown or desecrated. Fify-one years be-
fore the Christian era Caesar, when he finally conquered the
Veneti of Armorica^ put all their senate to death, and sold the
whole of the higher classes into slavery. This following after
the great slaughter which had taken place at the capture of
their towns, and in their last disastrous naval action,^ reduced

this monmnent, in the yolume printed Wilson is in the Prehistoric AnnaU

by Mr. Farnir for private circnlation of Scotland, p. 112.

in 1862. ' In the chapter which treats of the

^ Professor Munch's letter to Dr.. influence of the Phoenicians on the

^

MONUMENTS OF THE VENETI. 205

that state to insignificance and the country to desolation that
has not yet passed away. On the promontory from which
Ciiisar witnessed the victory gained by the Eomans over the
fleet of the Veneti stood one of their towns ; £uid even now, after
upwards of nineteen hundred years have passed, the primitive
monuments of a once powerful state stand prominent on the
rugged peninsulas which were sites of ancient Celtic towns.
There, and on the adjacent wastes, the Cyclopean remains ex-
ceed, both in general extent and in the size of individual
monuments, all others remaining in Western Europe. Any
one who reads the history of the Veneti, and compares the
vestiges of ancient greatness with the present material condi-
tion of tlieir country, will not doubt that its monuments must
be the work of ages precedent to the conquest of Celtic Gaul
by the Eomans, and the devastation committed by them on
the peojile and province of Venetia B.C. 51.

Venetia appears to have been by far the most influential
of the maritime states of Gaul, and its history is of particular
interest as regards the early Celtic antiquities of Britain. It
would appear from Strabo that the external commerce of
Britain was principally in the hands of the Veneti, who there-
fore wished to prevent the invasion of that island by the
Romans. He gives this as a cause of the war excited against
the Romans by the Veneti, which ended in the destruction of
their fleet and the extinction of their power. This agrees
with the statement of Ctesar, that in making prepara-

Britons the Veneti arc referred to, nor numbers, size, and constniction
more particularly as regards the sujmj- of their ships to those of the Romans.

206 PRIMITIVE STONE MONUMENTS.

tions to attack the Bomans the Veneti sent to Britain for
auxiliaries.

As a proof that the artificial mount of Silbuiy Hill existed
before the formation of the Soman road, the Via Badomca» it
appears that in 1777 a shaft was worked by Cornish mi]ieT%
under the direction of the Duke of Northumberland and
Colonel Drax, at the centre and from the summit to the base
of Silbury HilL In 1849, under the direction of the Archaeo-
logical Institute^ a gallery was cut from the side to the centre
of this artificial mount, and thence in various directioiis
along the basa From these examinations it was proved that
this hill was not sepulchral ; and also that the Soman road.
Via Badonica, had not passed, as some persons had supposed,
over the site of Silbury Hill, but had avoided this impediment^
previously existing, to the direct line of that highway.^

' Procudinffa of the Arehceologiad tioned in the chapters treatiiig of Ave-

IfulUuU, SaliBbnry 1849, pp. 297- bniyand the other ** Great Circnkr

808. Fanes of Britain ;" also under the head

Silbniy is more particularly men- of " Mod or.Moot Hills."

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CHAPTEE IX.

CROMLECHS^ — CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

Authorities for this application of the word Cromlech — Erected for Religions
Ceremonies — Used as Courts of Justice — For the Assemblies of Elders or
Senates — For the Inauguration of Rulers — Being found in Groups no proof
of their being Sepulchral — Groups of Religious Buildings in many Coun-
tries — Instances of Stone Circles still commonly erected in Groups in
Western India — Great number of Sepulchral Tumuli around the most
remarkable Cromlechs — The only notice of the erection of any of these
Primitive Fanes is in Sacred History — Stones marked with Caledonian
Hieroglyphics, and Cromlechs found in connection with the Sites of early
Christian Churches — Cromlechs used as Courts for the Administration of
Justice — This practice continued in Mediaeval and up to Modem times —
Cromlechs, places used for the Assembling of Councils — Cromlechs of
Britain — Camac in Brittany — Avebury — Silbury Hill artificial but not
sepuchral — Comparison of Avebury with Stonehenge — Stonehenge con-
tains works of different ages — Stones of Stennis — Stanton Drew — Long
Meg and her Daughters — Castle Rig of Keswick — The Boll-Rich Stones
— Approaches to Cromlechs — Heppe — Kits Cotty-Hoose — Lamboume —
Classemish.

IN any inquiry regarding the primitive Cyclopean monu-
ments the circular areas defined by separate unhewn
columns or masses of stone claim the first consideration. By

^ " On nomme Cromlec'h, en terme neux simplement pos^s a nu sur le sol.

d'arch^ologie Celtique, une enceinte, Ce mot vient des deux mots Celtique

soit circulaire, soit elliptique, form^e Crom on Croum, qui signifie courbure

par des Men-hirs plant^s ou par des et Lec'h ou Lea'ch, pierre sacr^, lit-

blocs de pierre plus on moins volumi- teralement, il veut done dire pierrea

208

CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

the people of Brittany, and by Breton archaeologists, areas so
defined are called Cromlechs, an^l without doubt it would
appear they are correctly so called from two words which,
with little variety, are common to all the Celtic dialects* — ^viz.
Crom, a circle, and Lech, which means either a place or a
stone. By British antiquaries Cromlech has been generally
employed to denote the dolmen or altar which is usually
or invariably a component part, either contained in or
immediately contiguous to the consecrated circular space.
But any one who examines the various explanations by
which it has been attempted to reconcile the meaning of
the word Cromlech with the form of the monument which
in England Jfe known by that name, will be at no loss to
discover that, however ingenious, the attempts have been
unsuccessful. . Some of the authorities in England derive
it from a word signifying "a roof or vault ;" others from "a
suspended stone" — "a bowed stone" — "an inclining stone ;"

tacrSes en eourbe, en circle." — Frem-
enville's Monumens Aneiensdc la Bre-
tagne-FinisUre, p. 60, Brest 1845.

** On appeUe Cromlec'hs des cercles
Druidiques formes des pierres plant^es
verticalement en terra." — Sbuvestra'a
Demiers Britons^ vol. L p. 105.

From notices in Gibson's Camden^
vol. ii. pp. 84, 35, it would appear
that the word Cromlech or Grom-
lech was formerly used in Wales,
as in Brittany, to denote circnlar
columnar fanes, although it is com-
monly, but not authoritatively, used
in the English language to express
the Dolmens or table-stones — the
Druid altars.

I (Armorican) Creu, round — Cruin,
circular — Crom and Croum, curved,
circular — Croumm, a circle ; (Gaelic)
Crom, a circle — Crom-nan-clach, cir-
cle of stones ; (Welsh) Crwmm, cur-
vus — Crwnn, rotundus — Crwm, a cir-
cle.

In Annorican, Welsh, and Cornish,
Lech is both "a flat stone" and "a
place." In Gaelic, Clach or Cloch, a
stone.— See Davies's "Edwd. Lhuyd,"
ArchceologiaBritanniea, Oxford, 1707 ;
Highland Society's OcLclie Diction-
ary; Fremenville's Monumens An-
cieiis FinisterCf p. 60; Souvestre's
Demiers Britons^ vol. L p. 105.

DRUID CIRCLES. 209

others make it the people who bowed, and not the stone,
etc. The form of tlie monuments and the simple meaning
of the Celtic words are sufficient proofs that the Bretons are
correct in calling the circular columnar fanes cromlechs,
and the altars taulmens or dolmens — i,e, " table-stones.*'
By circular fanes I mean those areas which are com-
monly fenced round by rude monoliths, and appear to have
been used as places of worship. They may easily be distin-
guished from circles of stones, somewhat similar, that have
formerly surrounded sepulchral tumuli, and, equally with
those that were consecrated to religion, are generally known
as Druid circles} As regards these places of worship this
name is not inappropriate, for, by whatever people reared,
there can be little doubt that in Britain they were occupied
by the Druids prior to the introduction of Christianity ; and
it is certain that thereafter these temples were occasionally or
generally used as places of worship for the early Christians.
Before entering on a description of these fanes it is necessary
to state the objects for which it would appear they were used ;
and afterwards to give the evidence on which that opinion is
formed. An examination of such facts as we possess leads to
the conclusion that cromlechs were erected as temples of reli-
gion — that they were used as courts of justice — for the inau-
guration of kings and rulers — and were also occupied by the
assemblies of elders in those local or national senates which
formed part of the organisation of a Celtic community.^

* Draid is used iii Gaelic for circle. semblies. The most direct is that of

• Many arguments might be used Caesar, who put to death the whole
to prove that the Celts had such as- senate of the Veneti ; and the senate

VOL. I. V

210 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

Tlie princij)al argument for considering these areas to have
been designed as places of sepulture is, that human remains
are generally found in and around these monuments, 'and
even beneath the dolmens, which, notwithstanding that they
• sometimes cover funereal deposits, have to all appearance been
erected as altars. If all dolmens and every circular fane could
• be shown to be places of sepulture — which cannot be done, as
will appear in treating of the dolmens — ^that would in no way
disi)rove the primary object of their erection being for religious
purposes.^ Ev6n if we were to admit, without any authority
for so doing, that the same race which reared the dolmens at
the same period used them as places of sepulture, human
remains in abundance may be foimd beneath the altars or
pavements as well as surroimding our most ancient and noble
Christian churches ;^ yet these were surely erected* for the
living not for the dead.

It is unnecessary to occupy space with multiplied proofs
of what is generally known — viz., that most nations endeavour
to deposit the remains of their dead within the precincts of,
or contiguous to, consecrated places ; in holy lands ; or in sacred

of the Picts, mentioned in Adamnam circular fane, particularly if without

VUa St. Columbce, by Dr. Reeves, p. urn or kistvaen, are moVe likely to be

152. those of a ]ierson sacrificed than of

^ Under the head of " Spirits wor- one intended to be honoured,
shipped by the Heathen Inhabitants

of Britain " I have noticed the sacrifice * Many an ancient ecclesiastical edifice

of human victims to pro^ntiate ** the of Britain was the burial-place of its

Spirit of the Earth.** The remains of founder." York Minster previous to

these victims were placed beneath 17S6 was disfigured, its pavement en-

any erection that was to cumber the cumbered, and worshippers obstructed,

soil ; therefore bones found beneath or by an accumulation of monuments

beside a menhir or the columns of a and gravestones.

rUOMLECIlS IN (IKOUPS. ** 211

streams.; nor are we likely to forget how, in this century, and
in our own country, .tlie accumulated dead had in many cases
rendered dangerous the approach of tlie living to the temples
of God. ' .

Another argument adduced in support of the opinion that
circular arcas defined by rude columnar stones are sepulchral
n)onuments is, .that they are occasionally found in groups.
. From tliis circumstance an al)le and accou)plished archaeologist ^
has given a somewhat contemptuous notice of those persons
who have called such enclosures **Druidical temples/' Yet
no other reasons are there given for repudiating this designa-
tion than the acknowledged facts that these places often con-
tain funereal deposits, and occasionally are found in groups.

Objections to the" inference derived from the discovery of
human remains in such places have already been stated ; and
the argument that " Druid circles " being found in groups is
proof that they were designed for places of sepulture appears
equally inconclusive, if not altogether untenable, for it is op-
posed to analogies derived froin similar monuments in many
countries and most religions ; and the plan and construction
of the best specimens of such remains in Britain and Aimorica,
with their far-extending stone avenues of approach and Cyclo-
p<»an altare, negative the opinion that these enclosures were
primarily, far less exclusively, designed for sepulchral monu-
ments. In Palestine the Jews, to use the expressive language
of the prophet, had so multiplied their places for' heathen sac-
rifice that they were common " as heaps in the furrows of the

* Quoted in Dr. Wilson's Prehistonc Animls it/ Scot la mf^ ]». 117.

212

CIRCULAR C0LX7MNAB FANES.

fields."^ In Hindostan, Ayodhya and Gya, in the early
days of Hindus and Buddhists, were cities of religious build-
ings and monuments. The wonderful rock-cut temples of
Karli, Ellora^ Kenneri, Adjunta, and many other places of
Western India, and those of Dambool, Alue-Wihare, etc.,
in Ceylon, are in groupa* So are the minutely-sculptured
marble temples of a later age on Mount Aboo. In Java, in
Thibet, in Egypt, and Assyria — in short in all countries that
had a religion and a priesthood — religious edifices may be
found in groups. The Jews were forbidden to have any
except the one temple, but there is ample proof in the Bible,
beside the expression above quoted, that they had numerous
places for heathen sacrifice ; and it appears from recent trar
vellers that in Palestine groups of Cyclopean remains are to
be foimd similar to those in the Celtic countries of Western
Europe. Surely no one who has examined the great temple
of Avebury will call it a sepulchral monument — ^with its miles
of stone avenues of approach, its high rampart and deep fosse,
surrounding a circle of huge monoliths which enclose upwards
of twenty-eight acres of land* and several inferior circles,
besides those which terminated at least one of the avenues, and
others that were extemsd — and the artificial moimt of Silbury,

^.King, in his MunimeTUa Antiqua^
vol. L pp. 204, 205, says that nume-
roos quotations from Scripture leave
no doubt that the high-places in which
Jews and Philistiuea sacrificed were
not confined to mountainous places,
but that they were artificial fanes,
liable to be overthrown and broken,

and that pillars were part of their for-
mation.

' Some of these groups .of sacred
places contain more than ten times
the number of Druid circles to be
found in any one locality.

* From measurements made in 1812.
— Higgins's Celtic Druids, pp. 23, 24.

TEMPLES AND TUMULI. 213

which is proved not to have been a tomb, but a portion of the
fane. Yet these are a group of circular areas defined by de-
tached masses of stone ; and if it cannot be directly proved,
it is certainly, from circumstantial evidence, to be deduced
that the Druids were the occupants of such fanes in Celtic
countries.

We know that the Britons and Caledonians worshipped
many gods.^ It is therefore natural to presume that in places
of peculiar sanctity temples would be erected to those most
reverenced or most dreaded Moreover, it would only be in
accordance with the practice of other nations if the separate
tribes of Caledonia reposed their chief confidence in different
members of the same Pantheon ; and therefore at the great
places of assembly we might expect to find temples for the
worship of various gods. Although sepulchral tumuli were
sometimes surrounded by circles of stones, the cases in which
the cairn or mound was removed and the columnar stones
were left must have been rare. For if the tumuli were cairns,
and the stones were coveted, would the most valuable — ^viz.,
those forming the circles — have been left? If the tumuli
were removed in consequence of advancing cultivation, why
leave the stone circles, which would still prevent tillage?
If the answer should be that "superstition protected the
circle," then arises the question, How could superstition pro-
tect the belt from those who did not fear to destroy the body ?

* Besides the superior deities men- p. 309 ; Wright's Ancient Inhabitants

tioned by Cajsar, local British deities of Britain,^]). 272-276, etc. ; Wilson's

are aUuded to in Roman inscriptions. ArchcBologyj p. 399.
— See Stewart's CnJrdonia Eom/tna^

214 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

More conclusive, against the decision of those who scout
the idea that groups of *' Druid circles" could have been
raised for religious purposes, is the fact that several stone
•circles, close together, ev^n intersecting each other,^ and fetely
erected to the same object of worship — viz., to Vital — may
any day be seen in secluded rocky places near towns and
villages of the Dekhan in India. Near Poonah they are
extremely common, and there these primitive fanes first at-
tracted the notice of Dr. Stephenson and Dr. John Wilson.

" Epiphanius, who was bom and lived in Syria, described
an open circle as a place of prayer formed by the ancient
Samaritans ;"^ and there appears good reason for believing
.that not only the greater, but all sizes of circular areas defined
by monoliths, and containing either dolmens or central men-
hirs, were temples. The form of the dolmen in simple fanes
is a tabular mass of stone of superior size to any other in the
circle of which it forms a portion. This stone Irests on the

> In the Botallick circles in Com- cultivators, because Yital has not been

wall, and near Harlech in Wales, are so much noticed as other objects of wor-

circles intersecting each other. ship less generally venerated, probably

' Vital is a favourite and very because of' his being ignored or de-

genenil object of worship in mi^ny -^nouncedby the Brahmans. The same

parts of Western India by the nual author, in the same chapter, in treat-

and agricultural population. A co- ing of '•' The Earliest Inhabitants of

incidence, in name at least, appears - Italy," refers to names of other .gods

' in the following quotation from Momm- tommou to the races that worshipped

sen's History ofliame: — " One of the on the banks of the Ganges, and on

most ancient myths regarding the the banks ofthellissus and Tiber. —

. Italian race attributes to King Italus TheodoTe'Mommsen'a History of Borne,

(or &s the Italians must have pro- translated by Robertson, pp. 14, 18.

nouttced the word, Vitalusor Vitulus) irr-4.it n»_^. i- A-t^x

., -xjx- c Jix»t ¥ Kitto s Palestine^ vol. i. p. 410.*

the introduction of agnculturc. I *■

remark the coincidence of the name * Tlie more iin|>ortant forms of dol-

of this ante-Brahmanicalgodof Indian mens are treated of separately.

i'i,irt-:\rr

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t

I

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a ft

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4

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ft

r

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J^€^a^rj^ /^/ry^', Ovy?4Va//

EARLY CHRISTIAN CEMETERY. 215

ground, and its upper side is either horizontal or with a gentle
slope, which, although general, may be accidental. Two rude
columns, selected as the highest in the range, and of a tapering •
form, rise one at each end of the horizontal stone, and may
well be described as the horns of the altar.

Towards the end of the sixth century St. Augustine ob- '
tained from King Ethelbert a heathen temple in which the
kkig had formerly worshipped, of which the saint made a
burying-place.^ In this we have a . proof, not only qf the
transfonnation into a Christian cemetery of a heathen temple,
an assurance that the temple was not a house, but an area
of determined limits. There may be found rare instances in
which the stones set round a sepulchral cairn had, by the
removal of tlie smaller stones that formed, the central heap,
assumed the general appearance, but witUojit inany of the
characteristics, of a circular fane.

As the Druids, the oldest priesthood in Britain in the his-
torical period, inculcated the immortality of the soul, it is
natural to presume that they would have their funeral rites
performed and their ashes deposited in the places of their
ministration. Then, as has happened in later times in Chris-
tian churches, the worthy or the wealthy may have shared
the posthumous honour of sepulture within the circle, while

* In AberdeeJishire there are remains Mantura and Customs^ English Era,
of many, and 'even now not a few weU- vol. i. p. 69.

preserved circles of this description — * Such circles— ^viz. those that have

as at Sinhinriy, Midmar, Crimond, once. surrounded caijns — are not com-

Tyrebagger, Keig, Daviot, Deer, etc. mon ; for whoever removed the cairn

* Brand's Popular AntiiiuUicSy by was not likely to leave the stones of
SirHcnry Ellis, vol.ii. p. 179; Strutt's the outer circle.

216 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

others were content to have their monumental barrow or cairn
raised within view of some fane of remarkable sanctily.
Around Avebury, Stonehenge, and other circular temples, we
can judge from remains, and learn from records, how extremely
numerous were the tumuli Every elevation within the very
extensive circuit which the eye could reach from these centres
of worship was studded with the cairns and barrows of the
worshippers, who we may imagine hoped, from the sacred
nature of the locality, to obtain a favourable metempsychosis.

A late and careful writer,^ in exploring the summits of
Mount Hermon, believes that the foundations of a stone wall
there enclosing a circular space, 180 feet in diameter, mark
one of the "high-places" where the worship of Baal was
particularly celebrated, and once contained an altar whence
ascended the flames of sacred fires in his honour.

The earliest notice in history of unhewn columns forming
part of an establishment dedicated to religious ceremonies is
that of Mount Sinai, where Moses "bmlded an altar under
the hill, and twelve pillars according to the twelve tribes of
Israel"* There he caused bumt-ofiferings to be oflered, and
peace-offerings to be sacrificed, and he himself sprinkled the
blood on the altar and on the people. It has already been
intimated that the altars were to be formed of unhewn stones,
and were not to be ascended by steps.

* Porter^s Five Years in Damascus ^ temple of Baal existed on Mount

pp. 293-295. Hermon, voL ii pp. 14, 15.

See also Egyptian SeptUchres and * Exod. xxiv. 4.

Syrian Shrines^ where the same facts * Exod. xx 25, 26 ; Josh. Tiii 31.

are repeated, and St. Jerome is men- This shows that there were steps to

tione<l as testifying to the fact that a the altai-s of the Canaanites.

MONUMENT AT GILGAL, 217

The next record of such a monument is that of Gilgal,
where Joshua first encamped after crossing the Jordan. There
he caused twelve stones to be " pitched," the number of the
stones being ** according to the number of the tribes/'^ These
stones were also unhewn, having been taken from the channel
of the river, as must have been those of the altar which
Joshua reared at the same place, and on which he offered
sacrifice.^

In these, the earliest notices of rude stones employed for
the erection of altars and to define places destined for reli-
gious ceremonies, we have four facts distinctly announced —
First, That the stones were to be of their natural form, not
in any way shaped by man. Second, That colunmar stones
(" pillars") were associated with the altar. Third, That these
pillars set up were in number according to the number of
tribes who were to be partakers in the intended sacrifice ; and
Fourth, That the altar was to be without steps. Another cir-
cumstance may, with much probability, be inferred from the
meaning attributed to the word Gilgal by Hebrew scholars,'
as well as from the description of those places of sacrifice
in the Bible and the historian Josephus — viz. that the conse-
crated area was circular.

Under other heads reference is made to the monument of
Gilgal, and here it is suflScient to notice that it was conse-
crated to divine worship — that the twelve stones were reared

* Josh. iv. 5. Ccmcordance, "wheel," "revolution ;*'
' Josh. viii. 31 ; Whiston*8 JiM«pAi«, in Kitto's Palestine, vol. L p. 408,

vol. i. p. 223. ** a circle," *• a round," " a wheel."

* Gilgal in the marginal notes is

translated " rolling ;" in Cruden's * 1 Sam. x. 8 ; xi. I.*) : xiii. 8, 9.

218 CIBCULAS COLUMXAB FAXES. *

33 a memorial^ — ihstt there justice was administeied* — and
that k was at Gilgal that the people assembled and made Saul
king befoul the Lord' It may thns be seen that this place
was used for devotional, jndicial, and inangnral purposes ;
licsides being originally distingoished, when it acquired that
name, by stones of memorial At a later period Gilgal, so
long' reverenced and consecrated to the worship of the true
God, became notorious as a place for the heathen sacrifices
and other pagan abominations of the apostate Jew&^

Notwithstanding the early period to which we are carried
back by the history of these define areas and rude stone
altars erected at Sinai and Gilgal, it is very possible that the
circular temple of Baal, lately discovered by Mr. Porter on the
eastern 'summit of Mount Hermon, may have been erect^
long before, the period of the exodus.

In a' separate 'article are noticed the various countries in
which circular areas defined by pillars, and various other
Cyclopeau remains, have been discovered-extending fiom
Central Asia through Northern Africa to Gaul and Britain.
In now treating of tliese circles as places of worship it is only
necessary, as regards other countries, to remark that this was
the purpose to which such places were dedicated in Syria and
Palestine ; and that in India they are still formed, as well as
occupied, for the practice of religious rites. In Britain there-
is sufficient proof that these areas were places of worship to
the hcatlien, and afterwards to the early Christian inhabitants .

' Josh. iv. 7. . • 1 Sam. xi. 15.

■ 1 »Sam. vii. 16. . * Hosea iv. 15 ; ix. 15 ; xii. Tl.

HEATHEN FANES CHRISTIAN CHURCHES. 219

of our coimtry. This opinion will now be supported by a few
put of many facts and corroborative circumstances that might
l)e adduced. • •

That the areas or immediate'vicinity of the circular fanes
were selected by the first Christian missionaries and teachers
as their places of worship, might be inferred, even without the
du*ect testimony which will be afterwards quoted, from the
remains that still exist, and other portions that have been re- •
moved in modern times from the consecrated precincts of
early Christian churchea In illustration of this assertion, it
is not necessary to extend the examples beyond the limits of
the county of Aberdeen, It is a part of Scotland in which
primitive monuments ai:e abundant ; and its antiquities have
V)een collected and described with great ability and research
by Mr. Joseph Robertson.^

With these records, and the valuable notices of the Sculp- •

iurcd Stones of Scotland by Mr. John Stuart, it is considered

unnecessary farther to extend inquiries or multiply examples

of heathen fanes and sculptured stones in connection with

Christian churches. In the parish of Culsalmond several

of the most remarkable sculptured stones of Scotland have

been discovered,- one of them bearing, in an unique' form of

character, an alphabetical inscription. In the churchyard of this

parish stood a circular fane of unhewn stones ; one also existed

in the end of the seventeenth century near the church of Keig.^

■» . • .

' Foil r vol ufh cs are alr-eady puhl ishcd * More particularly described under
by the Spalding Club, and a fifth ia the head of ** Inscriptions."
forthcoming. ' Letter of Dr. Garden to John Au-

brey, 15th June 1692.

220 CIBCULAB COLUMNAB FANES.

Another stood in the churchyard of the parish of Daviot^
and near it was found a stone with Caledonian hierogly-
phics/ In the churchyard of Kinellar once stood a circular
fane and a stone on which is graven the crescent emblem. It
was discovered in the foundation of the old church of that
parish. In the foundation of the old church of Tyrie, in or
near the churchyard waUs of Dyce, Inverury, Kintore, and the
ancient abbey of Deer were found stones sculptured with
hieroglyphics. In the parish of Deer there were many circu-
lar fanes, the most entire of which is described in the last cen-
tury as "having the altar-stone placed as usual on the south
side, and lying east and west It is fourteen and a half feet
long, five and a half broad, and four and a half deep. The
gross weight would exceed twenty-one tons." In some of
these, as in many other cases, the connection of the sculptured
stones with the circular fanes and other primitive monuments
is conspicuous ; and the examples are too numerous to warrant
any doubt of their contiguity being intentional

The next argument in proof that the circular areas were
anciently occupied, if not originally formed, as places of wor-
ship, is derived from the names of places and expressions, both
in the Celtic and in the Anglo-Saxon language& For the pur-
pose of making more intelligible the following remarks it is
necessary to premise that in the Gaelic language Clach signi-
fies a stone, and Clachan, stones, a church' — as Clachan-Michel,

^ On a riBing grcmnd near the clinrch formerly other primitiye monnments,

of Daviot are the remains of a crom- of which only a few monoliths now

lech, in the circumference of which remain,
lies the stone presumed to have been

for sacrifice. At this place there were • Shaw's History of Moray ^ p. 280.

THE STONES THE CHURCH.

221

Michael's church ; Clachan-Muire, Mary's church. It also
signifies a village, a circle of stones, a churchyard, a monu-
ment.^ As a kirk-town or parish village clachan has been
adopted into the modem or mediaeval Scottish dialect.

In many parts of Scotland in which the Gaelic language
was spoken — from the Higlilands of Perthshire to the island
of Harris — the Gaelic expression signifying "the stones,*'
was used as synonymous with " the church," and the High-
landers there more frequently say "Will you go to the
stones?" or "Have you been at the stones?" than "Will you
go to the church?" or "Have you been at the church?"
Glenorchy was formerly called " Clachan Dysart," and the
place where the parish church now stands was probably the

* Armstrong's Gaelic Dictionary^
and Hujhlaiid Society's Dictionary.

' Jamieson's Scottish Dictionary.

* See Statistical Account of Scotland,
jjarishcs of Callander, Perthshire ;
Aberfoyle, Perthshire; island of Har-
ris, voL xi. p. 581 ; vol. x. p. 129 ;
vol. X. p. 374. "The Clachan or
Kirkton of Rasay."— OW Statistical
Account of Scotland, island of Kasay,
parish of Portree, luvcmess-shire,
vol. xvi. p. 159.

The same term for going to wor-
sliip seems also to be used in Ircliind,
for the Kev. li. II. Kyhuid, in si)eak-
ing of a Druid's altar in the county of
Waterford, says we have indis})utable
evidence that those who introduced
Christianity into this country endea-
voured to engraft the ]mre religion
upon the heathen superstition which
preceded it ; and he adds, * The Irish

expression for going to worship liter-
ally signifies going to a stone.' —
Ryland's Ilistory of County JVaier-
ford, p. 263, London, 1824.

The site of the ancient church of
Kilcholm-Kill in North Uist is at a
place called Clachan. — Ori^jines Paro-
eJiialcs Scotioc, vol. ii. p. 376.

At Clachan the clergyman in the
last century was in the practice of
officiating every third Sunday. — Old
Statistical Account of Scotland, vol.
xiii. p. 314.

In the Old Statistical Account of
Scotland, Camjjsie, Stirlingshire, vol.
XV. p. 315 — **0f course the clachan
is the place of worship."

There is a village, with vestiges of
a church, called St. John's Clachan,
in the parish of Dairy in Kirkcud-
brightshire. — Old Statistical Accotmt
of Scotland^ vol. xiii. p. 58.

222 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

" Clachan, or Circle of Stones,"^ which was succeeded by the
Christian hermitage of some Scottish recluse.^ In the parish of
CouU in Aberdeenshire there is a circular fane on the summit
of a mount called Tamnaverie, or the Hill of Worship. In
the parish of Ellon in Aberdeenshire a place, from its position
to one of these monuments, is called '*Belot^ the Chapel."
At Aberlour in Banffshire one of these circular fanes is
called Leachel-Beanich — i.e. "the Blessed Chapel" These
two last examples are mentioned in a letter by Dr. Garden
to Aubrey* nearly two hundred years ago. In the same com-
munication he mentions that there had been groves near all
these fanes ; and that in consequejice of the superstitious
veneration in which these monuments were held by the people
they would not employ the stones to any other purpose. Un-
fortunately when superstition abated the veneration for these
objects of antiquity ceased, and, whilst few remain unmuti-
lated, great numbers have bBen entirely destroyed.

The same argument regarding the religious purpose of these
circles that has been maintained from Gaelic expressions holds
good in regard to the names of places in the common Scottish
dialect and of English names in South Britain. In the .parish
of Tough in Aberdeenshire the largest of several circular
fanes is called " The Auld Kirk of Tough." It is surrounded
with tumuli, jti 'accordance with similar remains round Ave-
bury and Stonehenge, etc. In the same parish another

* Statidical Account of Scotland^ loiia. — Reeves's AcUimnani Vita St.
Glenorchy, Argyleshire, voL viii. pp. Columba:, p. 366.

33, 35, 36. * The Blessed Stones (?) *

• Diaert or Diseart, in Irish Celtic, * Quoted in Gibson's Camden's Bri-
is a herniitago. Such existed also hi tannin^ voL ii. p 298.

THE AULD KIRK.

223

fane is not only surrounded by tumuli in great numbers, but
remains of walls and causeways, rmming from the principal
circle to others of smalkr dimensions, may still be traced In *
the parish of Alford in Aberdeenshire a circular fane is known
.by the name of " The Auld Kirk." In the parish of Auchter-
less in Aberdeenshire is a remarkable monument, consisting
of three adjacent circles of white stones.^ The hill of Logie
Newton, on which it is situated, is called '*the Kirk Hill."^
A cromlech on the Toft Hill, in the parish of Cla'tt, was called
« The Sunken Kirk."

Thus far from reasoning on facts philological and material,
and evidence presumptive or circumstantial ; but more direct
testimony wiH now be quoted to prove that the circular fanes
were primarily places of worship.. From the instructions sent

* These stones are remarkable from
their being whit<% of large size, en-
tirely different from the stones
found in the adjacent quarries, and
also from being placed in a singu-
larly commanding jiosition, .look-
ing down • on the Roman camp on
the Ythan, and contiguous to the re-
mains of a circular entrenchment,
"which, although now completely obli-
terat<id by the advance of cultivation,
>vas distinct in the earlier part of the
present century. The three stone
circles are also, much dilapidated and
their areiis contracted. They are
placed in the form of a triangle —
the two most remote from each other
having their centres in a line running
E. and W., while the one in the
middle is advanced to the S. a dis-
tance eijual to the diameter of the

E

©

©«

circles. The circles were about 30
feet in diameter, and those on the E.
and W. about the same distance .from
the one on the S.

The largest stojie, the
most prominent feature
in these circles, occupied
the most ea.stern point of
^^ — , tlie cAstem circle.
\OJ The ramparts of the

,W Roman camp mentioned

in this note, in ne'arly
their whole extent, were distinct at
the commencement of the present
century, but are now nearly obli-*
terate<l.

' Near St. Donat's in ' Glamorgan-
shire a dolmen, called there a crom-
lech, goes by the name of ** the Old
Church."

224 CI&CULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

to St Augustine by Pope Gregory in A.D. 601 we learn that
what had hitherto been practised from necessity was thereafter
to be permitted, was in reality enjoined as a matter of policy.
That able and astute pontiff directed that the pagan temples
of Britain should not be destroyed, but only the idols that
were contained in them ; that the temples were to be purified
by the sprinkling of holy water, and thereafter be converted
to the worship of the true God ; " that the nation," says the
pontiff, " seeing that their temples were not destroyed, may
remove error from their hearts, and, knowing and adoring the
true God, may the more familiarly resort to the places to
which they have been accustomed.'' ^

That there were altars for sacrifice in these fanes appears
from Pope Gregory's letter, in which he directs that in place
of the sacrifices of oxen that had hitherto been offered to
devils in these temples,* the people on great festivals — such as
" the day of the dedication, or nativities of the holy martyrs
whose relics were placed in the temple — might celebrate the
solemnity with religious feasting." For this purpose they were
to be allowed " to build themselves huts with boughs of trees
about these churches which have been turned to that use
from temples, and to kill cattle to the praise of God, and re-
turn thanks to the giver of all things for their sustenance."

' Bede, Jfom. Hist, Brit. p. 141. as also pouring oat milk upon hills

as oblations ; diyinations ; adoring

* On the 6th September 1656 the wells, monuments, and stones. See

presbytery of Dingwall in Ross-shire a most Yalaable paper by A. Mit>

donoonct^ the abominable and hea- chell, M.D., in vol. iv. p. 251, of

thenish practice of sacrificing bulls, the Froceeditigs of the Society of jtnti'

which the pt»ople wore wont to do ; quarita of Scotland.

GODMUNDINGIIAM. 225

For," it is added, " there is no doubt that it is impossible to
efface everything at once from their obdurate minds." ^ It
may be presumed that this permission to encamp roimd
the lately transformed churches, and to sacrifice there, indi-
cates the manner in which the people had previously been
accustomed to assemble and sojourn for a season roimd their
fanes.

The chief heathen priest Coifi, on his conversion to Chris-
tianity, caused a heathen temple and its enclosures to be de-
stroyed by fire.^ From this, and from the permission gi-anted
by the Pope for the people to make huts around the temples,
we may know, what otherwise could only have been inferred —
viz., that these heathen fanes had buildings of more perishable
materials than the columnar groups of stones which are all
that now remain on their sites.

It appears from Bede that this sanctuary of idols at God-
mundingham, although surrounded by an enclosure and con-
taining altars, was open above, for it was profaned by the
casting of a spear into it by Coifi. I am not aware that there
is any authority for believing that any new form of fanes or
objects of worship were imposed by the Anglo-Saxons on the
Britons. Columnar stone circles and dolmens, as they were
used for religious, judicial, and civil rites by Anglo-Saxons
and Danes, as well as by Celts, would have been adopted,
not destroyed, by these intruders from the Baltic. To use the
words of Wilson* — " Diverse as were the Celtic and Scandi-

1 Bede, Mon. Hist. BrU. p. 141. » Dr. Wilson's ArchaohHjy and l^re^

* Ibid. p. 165. historic Annals nf Scotland, pp. Ill,

112.
VOL. I. o

226 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

navian creeds, their temples were probably of similar character ;
and the rude Norsemen who possessed themselves of the
Orkney Islands in the ninth century found far less difficulty
in adapting the temple of Stennis to the shrine of Thor than
the Protestants of the sixteenth century had to contend with
when they appropriated the old cathedral of St. Magnus to
the rites of Presbyterian worship." There certainly are no
remains, excepting sculptures, in Britain that can with pro-
bability be considered as pertaining to heathen worship except
monolithic circles, dolmens, and menhirs ; and the great num-
ber of these existing in Caledonia and in Ireland, where their
erection can be referred neither to Romans nor to Saxons, is
a strong argument in favour of their Celtic origin, although it
is possible that a prior race may have been the architects of
these enduring monuments.

It is recorded by Bede^ that Redwald, king of the East
Saxons in the commencement of the seventh century, having
been received into the Christian faith, afterwards relapsed ;
and in the same temple he had an altar on which to sacrifice
to Christ, and another small one where he offered victims to
devils. This temple had been seen by Aldwolf, who was a
contemporary of the venerable historian. From that account
we find that these fanes were provided with altars — that a
plurality of altars for sacrificing to different objects of worship
within the same temple was not unknown to our pagan ances-
tors, and that the heathen fane became the place of worship
to the Christian convert.^

* Bedo, Mon. Hist. Brit. p. 167. terosted perversions, shows that even

* History, disencumbered of in- the religion of Constantine was but

FRAGMKNTS OF HEATH FN FANKS. 22

As Christianity superseded paganism, and adopted the
ancient places of worship, the materials of the heathen fane,
when not too ponderous and unmanageable, would, on the first
erection or later restoration of the Christian church, be ab-
sorbed, buried in the foundation, or broken up to l)uild the
walls of the sacred edifice. This easily accounts for the demo-
lition of many fanes, and the fragments of others being disco-
vered in the neighbourhood of churches or in the niins of
ecclesiastical buildings of the earliest periods.^ From the
foundations of these in process of time may yet be recovered
more sculptured stones, and additional light be thrown on
the very obscure subject of Caledonian hieroglyphics, by
whom they were executed, ,and whence they were de-
rived.

Eeference has been made to Gilgal as a place where unhe>vn
stones of memorial were reared, and where an altar for sacrifice
was formed of the same rude materials. There also justice was

a halting Christianity. This emperor, Claudius endeavoured it in Gaul;

altliougli revered by the Western and yet in the succeeding enij)erors' times

canonised by the Eastern Church as there wore of them left, as appears in

a saint ** ec^ual to the apostles," re- Lampridius and Vopiscus mentioning;

tiined a claim on his original patron them in their lives ; and long since

deity, the Sun-god. On the coins of that Procopius, writing under Justi-

Constantino the letters of the name nian, about 500 years after Christ,

of Christ occupy one side ; the figure affirms that then the Gauls used sac-

of A])ollo, with the motto "sol invic- rifices of human fiesli, wfiich was a

tus," is on the other.— See Stanley's part of Dniidian doctrine." — Seldon's

Kimfcrii CJiurch, p. 193. Notes to Pobjolbion^ p. 154.

To show that the edi(*ts of the
Roman emperors did not put an end , Two of the most nmiarkal)le of

to the Dniidical religion even in the sculptured stoni-s have been dis-

(Jaul, I quote Seldon's remarks— covered in the foundations of old

** Under Augustus and Tiberius the rhurclies— vi/. at Tyrie ami Kinellar.
Druids were prohibited i?on»e, and

228 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANE&

administered ; for from year to year Samuel went to Oilgal on
circuit and judged Israel^

At Bethel the first pillar of memorial mentioned in history
was set up,^ and one of the earliest altars was erected.' It
was also one of the places to which Samuel went on circuit
and judged Israel Mispeh, although less frequently men-
tioned than GUgal or Bethel, seems also to have been approved
for religious, judicial, and civil purposes, and like them was
afterwards turned by the Jews to the purposes of false wor-
ship and heathen sacrifices.^

To Homer, in his description of the shield of Achilles, we
can refer for the elders, when discussing a judicial case, being
seated on or at rough-hewn stones within a sacred circle,^ and
it would appear that the council summoned by Alcinous were
similarly placed.®

ChardiUy when travelling in Persia^ observed circles formed
of great stones which must have been brought from a distance.
The tradition of the natives was, that these circles were places
where councils assembled, each member of which seated him-
self on one of the stones.

In comparatively modem times the following instances
are famished by Scottish records of circular fanes being then
in use as places for the administration of justice. On a rising
ground called the Candle-hill, situated in the parish of Bayne

^ 1 Sam. Tii. 16. It seems probable that at Bethel

' Gen. zzviii. 18, 19. there was also a sacred coUe^ (2

* Gen. zxxv. 7. Kings ii. 85).

* 1 Sam. yii. 6 ; 1 Kings xii. 88 ; * Iliad, b. xviii.
2 Kings xxiii. 15 ; Amos iii. 14. * Odyssey ^ b. yiii.

COURTS OF JUSTICE. 229

in Aberdeenshire, there are still considerable remains of a
circular fane. Here " apud stantes lapides de Eane,"
at the standing-stones, on Saturday, the 2d May, a,d.
1349, in presence of William, Earl of Eoss, the King's
justiciar north of the Forth, William of Deyn, Bishop of
Aberdeen, held a court, to which William of St. Michael
was summoned for illegally maintaining possession of church
lands.^

Another instance of a circular fane being used as a court
of justice is found in the Chartulary of Moray. There it
appears that the Bishop of Moray in the year 1380 was sum-
moned to attend the court of Alexander, lord of the regality
of Badenoch, to be holden " apud le standaiid stanys de la
Rath de Kyngucy-estir " (at the Standing Stones of the Rath
of Kyngucy-Estir). Tlie Bishop, who was summoned as a vas-
sal, and protested against the proceedings, is described as
standing "extra circum."^ The judge who thus held his
court at the Rath of Kingusy-Easter was that prince, son of
King Robert IL, who, by the conmiission of the most heinous
crimes, and from his extraordinary ferocity, earned general
execration and the appropriate name of " the Wolf of Bade-
noch." Although he sacked and plimdered towns in his own
country, burnt churches, and gave the cathedral of Elgin tojthe
flames, after polluting its altars with blood, yet soon afterwards
we find that his monument was reared in the middle of the
choir of the cathedral of Dunkeld ; and there for ages the

* Rc(fiM. Epis. Ahcrdon. ' Rc^st. Epis. Morav, p. 184; Wil-

2 Rath, a circular mound. son's Archaeology of Scotland^ p. 113. i

230 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

stately marble bore the lying record that this, savage was of
" blessed memory."

The Druidical system of worship immediately preceded
Christianity in North Britain, and the Druids were not only
priests of the mysteries and sacrifices of that religion, but
were judges in all cases civil and criminal.^ We might there-
fore reasonably have presumed that the circular fane, or its
contiguous mound, the Mod, Mot, or Moat^* would be em-
ployed for the administration of justice. The cases just
quoted, with many others that might be brought forward,
show that holding courts in such places was common in the
fourteenth century ; and in the more remote districts of
Scotland, and the adjacent islands, the practice lingered until
a much later period.

When the Celtic coimcils deliberated on affairs of great
importance human sacrifices were offered, and from the con-
tortions of the victims the Druids augured of the failure or
success of proposed undertakings.' As no sacrifice could take
place unless in presence of the Druids, and sacrifice was
practised when they deliberated on all momentous questions,
it must be inferred that the circular fanes, as the places of
sacrifice, were also the places where the senates or councils of
the Eeltai assembled, and except in such assemblies it was
not lawful to discuss any public affairs.^ Such monuments
in Persia were pointed out as places where councils had as-

^ See chapter on *' Heathen Reli- ' Diodonis SicnluB, b. v., and i/bfk

gion — Druids," etc. Hist. Brit. p. 104.

* Described in a separate section of * Diodorus Siculus, b. v. c. ii.

" Mod or Moat." '' Ciesar, Afm. Hist. Brit. p. 34.

TEMPLE OF AVEBUKY. - 231

sembled, and Homer alludes in the Iliad and Odyssey to circles
of stones where persons were seated for judgment or council

It is evident to all that the megalithic temples and monu-
ments of primitive ages have defied time, and it is equally
clear that in all countries their o'i^jin and, except in Palestine,
their erection preceded historj'. Although ignored by archi-
tecture, they are not only interesting as objects of mysterious
antiquity, but in some cases are impressive from their situa-
tion, and imposing from the number and magnitude of the
rude columns or masses of rock that defme the areas, or the
huge dolmens which are amongst the distinguishing charac-
teristics of Celtic-Cyclopean remains. Had the temple of
Avebury been spared to us in its entirety Britain would have
possessed in it one of the greatest wonders of early human
art and combined exertion.

Reasons have already been given for believing that as early
as the fourth century B.C. the fame of the temple of Ave-
bury had extended to the eastern extremity of Europe, and
was recorded by Hecata^us of Abdera. From existing remain^,
aided by descriptions, one of them (a manuscript) written two
hundred years ago, it may with confidence be said that in
unity of design this primitive fane surpassed all others that
have yet been discovered. It was also beyond comparison
the greatest in point of extent, in the amount of labour ex-
pended, and in the size of the monoliths of which it was
constmcted, of any circidar primitive temple as yet noticed
in Asia, Africa, or Europe. This observation is purposely
limited to the design and form of Avebury ; for the remains

232

CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

of the stone avenues of Camac in the Morbihan, which was
the country of the Celtic Veneti, far exceed any other primi-
tive monuments in the number of rude columns and the
great extent of country over which they can be traced. Twelve
hundred rough columntu* stones, varying in height from five
to twenty feet, still remain on the plain of Camac : fifty years
ago four thousand were reckoned '} and the number of mono-
liths, when the whole was complete, has been variously esti-
mated at from twelve to twenty thousand. They are arranged
in eleven lines, thus forming ten avenues between the columns,
the average distance between the lines being thirteen or four-
teen paces, and between the stones in the lines six or seven
paces. Now, these avenues only occur in detached groups, in
a rugged and undulating country, which may account, if ever
they were continuous, for their lines not having been quite
straight. The size of the monoliths, and the extent of the
monuments of various kinds on the heights, plains, and pro-
montories that lie between the estuary of Intel and the Mor-
bihan sea are beyond comparison greater than the remains in
any other Celtic district — not only as the most extensive, but
also aa comprising the finest examples of the menhir, the
dolmen, the galgal, the barrow, and other varieties, excepting

^ In the MofMMMfi^A Ctlbiqw of
Cambray four thoxisand stones, the
highest being 22 feet above ground,
12 feet wide, and 6 thick, art noticed
at Camac. — Cambray's M<mwm/«nji
Celtiquef p. 172.

If the groups at Carnac never were
connected, it is unaccountable how,

for several miles, they should consist
of eleven lines, forming ten avenues,
and the same direction should be so
nearly preserved ; for the groups at
Camac do not diverge fiBirther from
a straight line than the two stone
avenues of approach to Avebuiy.

Vt \i

K£' i

AVEBURY. 233

only the circular fanes, the Celtic cromlech. The fane of
Avebury, or those portions of it which could be traced when
first carefully examined in the seventeenth century, may best
be described by commencing at the great circle, the exterior
limit of which is an immense earthen mound or rampart
TTear the middle of the inner declivity of this rampart is a
ledge, and then the slope continues until it becomes the side
of a deep fosse that passes immediately within the mound,
encircling a space of rich and level ground twenty-eight acres
in extent. On the verge of the interior area within the
fosse were arranged, at equal distances, a hundred massive
stones, and appearances, not sufficiently conclusive however,
render it probable that immediately within these was another
and similar range of monoliths. It may here be remarked
that the fosse being within the rampart, and its ledge far from
the summit, prove that this great inclosure was not intended
as a place of defence. The stones on the inner edge of the
fosse stood at an average distance of 27 feet from each other,
and were in height from 14 to 17 feet. The diameter of
the circular area within the fosse is about 1300 feet.

On each side of the centre of this space stood double con-
centric circles formed of the same huge columnar masses as
marked the outer circimiference. In each of these two inner
fanes the exterior circle, about 270 feet in diameter, contained
thirty, and the interior, 166 feet in diameter, consisted of
twelve stones, all placed about the same distance fix)m each
other as in the great circle.^ In the centre of the circles that

* According to the careful plans in interior temples is larger than what I
Higgins's Celtic Druids^ one of these have stated. In these plans, from'

234 CIBCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

are towards the south-east stood a stone of greater height than
the surrounding monpliths, being upwards of 20 feet in height
In the centre of the circles which lie towards the north-west
were three stones, each about 20 feet in height The one in the
middle faced nearly north-east, and was flanked by the other
two, which projected forward so as to enclose a space in front
of the centre stone, and the recess thus formed was occupied by
a tabular stone placed level with the surface of the ground.
This group seems to have faced in the same direction as the
principal group of ^trilithons at Stonehenge, of which a writer
who visited that monument in 1795 ^ says, that standing in
front of the central trilithon at Stonehenge, and looking to-
wards the great stone, which stands at a distance of 210 feet^
outside and entirely detached from the circle, it will be found
that the top of that stone corresponds with a hill over which
the sun appears to rise on the longest day of the year.

At Avebury the great temple and its inner sanctuaries were
reached by two avenues that swept in gently-curved lines
towards the south-^east and south-west The average breadth
of these approaches, which were defined by great stones, was
45 feet The avenue to the south-east, upwards of a
mile in lengthy terminated in a double oval,' and had two
hundred and fifty-eight mpnohtha The other avenue, rather
longer but less complete, appeared to terminate in a single
stone.^ Near the middle of this approach, in the line of the

surveys made in 1812, it would appear * The outer oval conaiBted of 40, tbe

that the fosse and rampart is not com- inner of 18 stones. The length of the

pletely circular, although intended to outer oval was 155, its breadth 188 feet,

be so. ' It so appeared to Stukeley; but

^ Wauscy. His account was pub- this termination suited his theory —

lished in 1796; viz. that the plan of Avebury^ was a

AVEBUKY AND SILBURY.

235

monoliths that marked the north side, stood three stones,
each 16 feet in height, disposed in the same relative position to
each other as those already described as occupying the centre
of those inner circles from which this avenue proceeds.^ This
group of three stones in the approach is known to the people
of tlie neighbouring villages by the name of ** the Devil's
Coits." " Coit and Coits," a term, so often applied to this and
similar kinds of Celtic monuments, may possibly be derived
from the Celtic word Coit in the ancient Cornish language,
and Coet in the Breton, which signifies a wood or grove ; as
it was in groves that our heathen ancestors celebrated their
rites and erected their altars.

Nearly in the middle, supposing a line drawn from the outer
extremities of the two avenues, stands Silbury Hill, a beautiful
green conical moxmt 125 feet in height^ The diameter of this
artificial hill, which is formed entirely of earth, is 100 feet
at tlie summit and 500 feet at the base, round which it has
lately (in 1849) been discovered there was a circle of rude
stones 3 or 4 feet in thickness, and placed at intervals of about
feet. By a shaft sunk from the sunmiit in 1777, and more
important excavations made by the Archaeological Institute

huge delineation of a serpent The
same tlieory has been adopted by
other writers, and is also applied by
them to tlu* great primitive remains
on the plains of Camac in Brittany.
Nothing at Avebury or Carnac con-
veyed to my mind any circumstance
favouring this theory ; neither do the
arguments adduced in proof of it in-
cline me to biilieve that the serpent

was intended to be represented by the
Cyclopean works either at Avebujpy or
Camac.

^ This recess, and similar ones in
other places, aro sometimes called
coves, which word may possibly be
derived from the Gaelic Cobhan, a
chest, a cave.

» Dr. Stukcley calls the height 170
feet.

236 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

in 1849, nothing was discovered indicative of the purpose for
which this hill was raised. It was clearly not sepnlchral ;
and although it may have been used for religious rites, there
is much more reason to infer that it was principally employed
as a place for the assembly of councils and courts of justice,
called Mod in Celtic, and Mote or Mute Hills in Anglo-Saxon.
These mounds, so common both in South and North Britain,
are considered in a separate article,^ and here it is sufficient
to notice two examples, one at each of the ancient seats of
royalty in England and Scotland — viz. the " Mota de Wind-
sor " and the '* Mute-hill of Scona" The object in particularly
referring to this artificial mount of Silbury, and showing its
connection with the Avebury temples, will appear when de-
scribing other artificial mounts of small size found contiguous
to the lesser circular stone fanes. Stones sculptured with the
Caledonian hieroglyphics being foimd in connection with the
fanes and moat-hills is also an important fact in regard to
these mysterious sculptures

Outside the great rampart of Avebury, on the north-east
side, was a circular area defined by the same rude masses of
stone as in the circles of the great temple, and within the
limits of this outer enclosure was a dolmen. This monument^
however, although an appendage, would not appear to have
formed a portion of the original fane.

Avebury lies low and level, surroimded on all sides by re-
ceding hillft of gentle declivity, altogether forming an amphi-
theatre from whence a whole nation might witness the smoke

t Article on *' Mod, Mute, or Moat HiUs."

AVEBURY AND STONEHENGE. 237

of sacrifices ascending from the thickly-clustered columns of
rock included within the great rampart. The surroimding
ridges of Avebury, far as the eye can reach (it is the same
also at Stonehenge ^ and at Carnac in Brittany) are covered
with sepulchral tumuli, many of which are of great size.
This is a proof that those who could command men and
labour could not all, or many of them, obtain admission for
the remains of deceased relatives into the fanes of their deities.
For whom that posthumous honour was reserved can only be
a matter of conjecture.

No better way appears for giving an adequate idea of the
extent of Avebury, and the labour employed in its construc-
tion, than by comparing it with that much more generally
known monument of antiquity, Stonehenge. On passing
thence to Avebury, and tracing its ^long approaches and
beautiful mount of Silbury — notwithstanding the fascination
of the remains on the plain of Salisbury — one is not inclined
to dispute the truth of the remark made by Aubrey, and
quoted by Sir Richard Colt Hoare — viz., " Avebury does as
much exceed in greatness the so-renowned Stonehenge as
cathedral doeth a parish church." This remark, however,
was made upwards of two hundred years ago ; and now,
unless the visitor prepares himself by previous examinations
of the plans and descriptions of Stukeley and Hoare,^ he might
fail to comprehend the full extent and rude magnificence of

* The beautiful maps in Sir R. Colt henge Ancient Wiltshire, pp. 113,

Hoare's Ancient Wiltshire show the 170.

immense number of barrows existing

even in this century around Stone- * Or in Higgins's Celtic Druids.

238 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

ancient Avebiuy — in its day, perhai)s, not only the great
temple of a nation, but also the centre and radiating point of
a religion.

All around Stoneheiige, as at Avebury, the country was
studded with sepulchral tumuli But at the former there
was no mount like Silhury Hill, nor miles of stone avenues
like those that extended from Overton and Beckhampton to
Avebuiy. Tlie bulk of the stone masses at Avebury greatly
exceeded that of the columns at Stonehenge ; the largest in
the former is said to have been 37 feet in length, the longest
at Stonehenge is 27 feet. The number of stones the position
of which could be determined at Avebury was six hundi'ed
and fifty/ the number at Stonehenge one hundred and forty.
The diameter of the outer circle of stones at Avebury is
1200 feet, witli the ditch and vallum 1450 ; that at Stonehenge
106 feet Witli regard to the fosse and eartlien rampart* tliat
surroimd both Avebury and Stonehenge the contrast is still
greater. In the former, the ridge of the rampart is of great

1200

9

thickness ; even now it rises with a very steep slope, which
in some places measures between 70 and 80 feet from the
bottom of the ditch to the top of the mound. At Stonehenge

* To wluoh must be wUlrd seventy had n surrounding circle of stones,
or eighty for stones lately discovered, — See tlie chapter on Motl or *' Moat
as now it is proved that Silhury Hills."

ALTARS OF UNHEWN STONES.

239

the rampart, although it can be distinguished, is comparatively
insignificant, and adds nothing to the interest of the monument
which it encircles.

At Avebury the rocky masses are "whole stones, over
wliich no man hath lift up any iron." This was a command
to the Israelites, enjoined by Moses and enforced by Joshua,^
with regard to their devotional monuments. The ancient
inhabitants of Britain, judging froni their most . ancient
remains, appeal* to have been under some influence suffi-
ciently powerful to insure their fanes and altars being formed
by stones in their rude form, and never subjected to con-
tamination by any instnmient.^ Neither was this rule the
result of necessity ; for the ponderous masses of which Celtic
monuments are so often formed could never have been moved
to t^eir places except on rollers, of which the forests of
Britain offered a ready supply.^ The manner in which the
houses of the early inhabitants were built, and their towns
stockaded, is sufficient evidence that they possessed instru-
ments wherewith to cut trees.'' There are also the vessels
formed from single hard stones found in ancient fanes of

* Exodus XX. 25 ; Joshna viii. 31.

' Tlie central stone of one of the in-
terior circles at Aveliury, seen by
Stukeley in 1723, was 21 feet high, of
a circular fonn, and 8 feet 9 inches in
diameter ; and it was then said that
one end of the Avebur}' Inn was built
from one stone broken* up by the
masons.

* On such rollers I have seen proof
that, with a suflioiont body of men,

unassisted by mechanism, the trans-
port of large blocks can be accom-
plished.

* Besides the chariots, which the
Britons possessed in numbers, in
the same book Caisar mentions the
position of Cassivellaunus on the river
Thames, one of its banks being de-
fended by sharp stakes, similar stakes
being fixed in the bed of the river,
and covered bv the water.

240 CmCULAB GOLDlfKAK FANSBl

North Britain,^ and other evidences of the Celtic races
possessing tools by which, if so disposed, they could have
shaped those materials which, however, were used in their
rude form for the construction of devotional monumenta

Avebuiy, when carefully examined, appears to be amongst
the most ancient, and Stonehenge — at least the prominent parts
of it — ^the most modem of circular columnar fanes in Britain.
On visiting Stonehenge one is struck with the great pro-
bability of an hypothesis that has been advanced — ^viz., that
parts of this monument are the work of two different ages ;
for it is a compound erection, in which rude magnificence
alternates with comparative meanness.

At Stonehenge there is a circle consisting of forty stx>nes»
not more that 5 feet in height^ intervening between the outer
circle and the oval designated by the five trilithons. In this
circle the forty stones are of a different kind firom that of
which the rest of the monument is composed. They have
been brought from a great distance and are unhewn, while
all the laige stones may have been found in the neighbour-
hood, and have been roughly shaped — some of them being
connected together by rudely-formed projections and cor-
responding sockets, which serve to keep in their places those
stones that have been raised to form the architraves of the
trilithons, and to connect by a continuous cornice the outer
circle of columns.^ Not only in the circle of forty are the
stones small, of a different kind of ston^, and unhewn, but

^ WiLwii's Prehistoric ctnd AreheeO' Stonehenge were probably nused to

logical Anmils of Scotland, p. 148. their place in the same, or in a stiU

' These great cornice-stones at more simple manner, than the archi-

LEGEND OF STONEIIENGE.

241

their incongruous position . between lines of columns only
eight feet distant, averaging three times their height, and
surmounted by simple massive cornices, seems to prove that
circle to be of a different age from the more ponderous and
imposing portions of the monument. Possibly this, the now
comparatively mean part of Stonehenge, was the original
circle, and had attained a sanctity and fame sufficient to
attract the notice of those who in later times added the
massive colimins and cornices which have excited so much
interest and not a little controversy.

Nennius, Geoffrey of Monmouth, and other early British
chroniclers,^ repeat stories which, although somewhat varied,
yet agree in one point — viz. that the monument of Stone-
henge was, by the magical powers of the prophet Merlin,
transported to where it now stands from Kildare in Ire-
land. To Ireland it had, in like manner, found its way from
the extremity of Spain and from Africa.^ Merlin himself
told the king if was brought from Africa. The way in
which the massive columns of Stonehenge are said to have
reached their destination — viz. conveyance through the air
by supernatural influence — need not "be insisted on. But

traves and lintels of the Temple of
Diana at Ephesns. — Pliny, Xat. Hist.
b. xxxvi. c. 22.

An inclined plane of earth, such as
is still used by the natives of India,
would have served the purpose as well
as the sand-ba^ used by the arehitect
at Ephesus.

* Giraldus ('anibr., Roger de Wen-
doviT, etc.

VOL. I.

* Giraldus, in his Topographu of
IrcJandy written about A.D. 1187,
says that stones raised over other
great stones, as at Stonehenge, existed
on the plain of Kildare, an<l that they
had been lirouglit from the remotest
parts of Africa. — Sir fJiehard Colt
Hoare's Avciait Wi/fsf^irr^ j)p. 121^
132.

K

242 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

the places whence they were brought — wiz. Spain and Africa
— deserve consideration ; for in the overland routefrom Kildare
to Spain and the Pillars of Hercules, and beyond them by the
north coast of Africa, rude monuments, similar to those of Celtic
countries, may still be traced. This does not appear to have
been hitherto noticed. If so, it is the more remarkable that^ in
a paper read to the British Association in 1847/ Dr. Meyer
pointed out that very line as the route by which he believed
that the earliest Celtic hordes — viz. the Gaelic — advanced to
the north-western extremities of Europe. In the account of the
old chroniclers if, instead of the actual monuments^ they had
written that the original models were brought from these
countries, it might probably have been correct^

The great circle at Stennis in Orkney is, in point of size,
next to that of Avebury ; and from the many remains of
other circles and sepulchral tumuli, including Maeshow with
its curious chambers and long Bunic inscriptions, it does not
yield to any in interest. The situation is also very peculiar,
and with a wild beauty of its own. Bising from a narrow
ridge which separates two lakes, the high monoliths of the
" ring of Brogar," and lesser circles, are prominent objects
in the scene at Stennis.

The ring of Brogar originally contained about sixty
columnar stones, of which more than one-half, partly over-
thrown, yet remain. They vary in height, those that still stand,
from 14 to 6 feet^ with a breadth of 3 or 4 and a thickness of
1 foot The circle has a diameter of 340 feet^ and in

^ P. 803. * This subject is more particularly considered in other chapters.

KING OF BROGAR. 243

superficial extent measures 2^ acres. To the inner edge of the
surrounding fosse the diameter is 3G6 feet, to the outer
edge 424 feet. The fosse is still 6 feet deep; and there
are entrances across it, level with the surrounding ground
and circle, on two opposite sides. On the other side of the
bridge of Brogar, under which is the only communication
between the two lochs of Stennis, is a lesser circle, containing
the remains of a dolmen. Of this circle, which was 104 feet
in diameter, only seven stones, including the three stones
of the dolmen, now remain. The highest standing stone is 17
feet ; one that is prostrate measures 19 feet in length.

The circular fanes at Stanton Drew in Somersetshire
appear to have been of considerable extent, although when
first observed with attention, so late as the year 1718, they
were in a state of miserable ruin. Comparatively few of the
monoliths were left ; some of them, however, were of con-
siderable size — one, still standing in 1834, was 16 feet in
height, and two others lay beside it of nearly equal size.
With the assistance of former accounts three separate circles
can still be traced, one of them 342 feet in diameter, another
of 120 feet, a third of 94 feet. There are also traces of a stone
avenue of approach; a ''cove'* — viz. three stones placed to
form a niche — of which there are two at Avebury, stands at a
short distance from the circles ; and in another direction lies
" Hackells-Quoit,"^ a stone computed to weigh 30 tons.

In the parish of Aldinghara in Cumberland are the remains

* Quoit, Coit. I have elsewhere tic monuments, heing deriveil from
adverted to the probability of this word, the Celtic word Coit or Coet — "a
continually found connected with Cel- ^ove."

244 CIRCULAR COLUMNAR TANES.

of a circular fane having now no other name than " Long Meg
and her Danghters." It is apparently of great antiquity. It' has
a diameter of 330 feet, and its circumference is defined by 67
stones varying in height- from 8 to 3 feet— ^some being of great
bnlk^ others comparatively small On the south-west, 40 feet
■from the circle, the gaunt figure of "Long Meg" overlooks her
dumpy daughters. Her height^ now impaired by age, is about
12 feet above ground, but once was 18 feet ; her form being
an irregular pyramid with a base about 3^ feet square.* Her
colour is red, and in this, as in shape, differs from the grey
lumps of gittnite boulders of which her progeny is composed.
It would appear that there had been an approach to this circle
from the north-east, in which direction, about four himdred
yards distant, there are remains of a small circle of the same
primitive type and materials as the large enclosure. Advanc-
ing from this direction " Long Meg" would have appeared over
the highest part of the great circle, which is situated on a gentle
slope, and facing nearly the same direction as the altar-cove
of Avebury and the central trilith of Stonehenga

On an eminence called the Castle-Eigg, situated about a
mile and a half from Keswick in Cumberland, and command-
ing an extensive and magnificent prospect, are the remains of
a columnar stone-temple of an oval form, 108 feet in length
and 100 in breadth. Immediately within this space, at the
eastern end, a small square is defined by twelve stones of less
size than the forty which remain to mark the outer boundary.

* Since my visit to Long Meg, Sir pears of a different type from those
Gardiner Wilkinson has discovered an which I have termed the Caledonian
incised figure upon the atone. It ap- hieroglyphics.

a

C3.

a.

a.

(>3tr

_^* — -

-\^' f '

THE ROLL-RICH STONES. 245

As the early Christians in Britain were authorised to use the
heathen fanes as places. of worship, it may not be deemed an
unreasonable conjecture that the enclosure at. the east may
have been added when the inhabitants were converted from
paganism.

The monument called the Eoll-rich Stones, near Chipping-
Norton, on the borders of Oxfordshire, has- received so much
notice from Camden and other antiquaries that it cannot be
passed without remark But it is of less size than the fanes
already referred to. It is an oval of 105 feet by 99, and was
defined by sixty stones of various dimensions, the largest being
17^ feet in height. On the north-east, 250 feet from the oval,
stood by itself the largest monolith of the group — apparently
at the opening of the approach to the consecrated area — on
the outside of which, on the south-east, were, in a group,
five large stones, probably the remains of a dolmen or kist-
vaen. Tlie legend attached to the Eoll-rich Stones is like
the legend attached to such remains in all countries — viz.
that the stones are petrified human beings. Here there are
some details, such as that the large detached column was the
king;^ the group of five large stones, knights; the stones
of the oval, royal attendants — soldiers who shared the fate of
their leader.

Stone avenues, or lines of approach less prominently de-

* I suggest, as a possible expla- a buryiiig-place, aud High, a king,

nation of the name, a derivation free Roilig is synonymous with Reidhlic, a

at li-ast fr(»in some of tlie objections word derived from Reidh, a plain,

which have been taken to previous and Ii(;ac, a stone. — Uaelic Dicticmary

« tyniologies — viz. that Uoll-rieh may of the HUjhland Society.
be from the Cel tie -Gaelic words Koilig,

246 CIKCULAR COLUMNAR FANES.

fined, are common to the fanes of the Celtic countries in the
north-west of Europe, and in some instances form the princi-
pal feature in existing remains — as at Camac in Brittany. At
Avebury, also, the avenues were especially remarkable. At
Shap, formerly Heppe, in Westmorland, at the commence-
ment of tliis century, an avenue of rude columnar stones
extended nearly a mile ;^ at one end was a circle of stones,
and there was another about half a mile distant One of the
stones was perforated, the hole being near the ground, and on
the uppermost comer of the same stone was sculptured a circle
8 inches in diameter. Nearly aU these monuments have been
destroyed. At Eirkmichael in Perthshire among the nume-
rous Cyclopean remains there is an avenue bounded by stones
upwards of 100 yards in length.^

Stonehenge may be taken as the best known, as well as
the most distinct^ specimen of the numerous fanes in which
the lines of approach, although well defined, are not marked
by rows of monoliths. In some cases it is probable that the
stones have been removed ; in others that they never existed,
their purpose being served by erections of a perishable nature,
such as generally sufficed for the dwellings of the early inhabi-
tants of Britain.

An approach leading from near Kits-Cotty House in Kent
to other Cyclopean remains at Addington, a distance of five
miles, have been partly traced by vestiges of stone monuments f

^ Penuant's Tom- in Scotlandy vol. ^ Old SlcUistical AecoufU of Scotland,
iii. p. 279. vol. xv. p. 517.

' Wright's Ancient Inhabitants of Britain^ p. 64.

fti

:§

\j

I

<4 Ji

CLASSERNISH. 247

but, like otlier Celtic memorials on that side of England,
nothing of their original form can with any certainty be now
discovered. King^ describes the oval fane at Addington as
being in length from east to west fifty paces and in breadth
forty-two paces ; some of the stones which defined the area
being about 7 feet in height. On the east was the altar-stone,
9 feet by 7, and near it lay another stone 15 feet in height

To the ancient monument in the parish of Lamboume in
Berkshire, called Wayland-Smith, and the vestiges of exten-
sive Cyclopean remains contiguous, there appear to have been
two approaches through double rows of stones.^

Of the multitude of circular columnar fanes in Scotland —
and under that name I include all those having dolmens or
table-stones, whether resting on the ground or raised on three or
four detached blocks — few, I believe, are without traces of an
approach, evidently part of the original design. The same
remark applies to the circles which have in the centre a
single pillar. Perhaps the most remarkable instance of
this kind of monument now remaining in North Britain is
at Classemish in the island of Lewis. Here a circle, de-
fined by twelve stones, each of the average height of 7 feet
above ground, has a diameter of 40 feet ; the centre being
occupied by a stone 13 feet high. Towards the north an
avenue, defined by double lines of stones similar to those in
the circle, is 270 feet in length ; single lines, now consisting
of five stones each, point from the circumference of the circle

' Ku\f(s Mint itii/'nf a A niiqnay vol. i. * Biitton and Hraylcy's Berkshire^

I». 200. p. 130.

248 CIKCULAR COLUMNAR FAXES.

to tlic eaat and west ; and a line of six stones points to the
south. The nuinl^er of stones now remaining is forty-eight.
Tliey are inil>edded in the clay to a depth of 4 or 5 feet,* and
are entirely unhewn shjipeless blocks of gneiss.

I " DeMcription of Classernish," by vol. ii. partiii of Proceedings ofSociti^
H. Callender, Esq., pp. 382, 383, in of Antiqyariet of SeoOandL

CHAPTER X.

menhirs' (columnar stones) — devotional; memorial.

Menhirs, Upright Stones, the Earliest Emblems of Deities — Hare Stones not
Jioundary Stones— Stone erected at Bethel — Baetulia of the Phcenicians —
Aerolites— Ileliognbulus — Alitta of the Arabs, and Venus of Paphos —
Menhir worshipi^ed in Ireland, overthrown by St. Patrick — Stone Worship
—Great Menhir at Loc-Maria-Ker — Rude Stones representing Deities —
Menhir of Kerloaz — Obscene Rites — Druidesses — Monuments attributed
to Seth — Stones of Memorial, first mentioned in Sacred History — Cat
Stanes — Lulach's Stone.

MENHIRS, or columnar stones, placed upright in the
• ground, were the earliest monuments of which there
is recoixi that they were reared by man as emblems of a
deity.'^ They were also employed for preserving the memory of
important events,^ and for recalling the past existence of be-
loved or distinguished individuals.** Eude stones fixed up-

* Upright, long, Mr ; stone, maen. Menhirs despierresverticalesfich^es

iMn. en terre. — Souvestre, Deniiers Britons,

Menhir — ce qui veutdire, en Celto- vol. i. p. 106.

Breton, pierre longue. Ces monu- Certain menhirs are also called in

nientssontcommunsdansleFinisterre; Gaelic, Clach-sleuchdadh, Stones of

ce sont des pierres brutes ordinaire- TForship. — See chapter on ** Rocking-

ment alougecs, plus ou moins 61ev^es, Stones."

et plantees verticalement en ten-e. , Genesis xxviii. 18-22; Deutfer-

Ces pierres, scion certaines circon- -^^^^j^y ^ 3 . g^j^n, Sales's Pre-

st^mces qui les cara^teriseiit, sont, ou /,•„l^M^l/•2/ Discourse, pp. IS-IS.

des monuments funt'raires, ou des . - *.«

,« .«,.w,««+o ^^...^^^r^^^^f^^'^ «« ,ioo Genesis xxxv. 14 : xxxi. 46-62 ;

monuments commemoratiis, ou ties . ' *

monuments religueux.— Fremenvillc, ''^shua xxiv. 26.
Finiskrc, p. 11. * Genesis xxxv. 20.

250 MENHIRS.

right, singly or in a group not exceeding three in number —
from a piece that could be lifted by an individual up to a
mass of rock which required the combined exertions of a tribe
to move — ^are all included in the category of devotional, memo-
rial, and sepulchral stones, classed under the head of menhira
Although without records or reliable traditions regarding the
more ancient of these monuments in Western Europe, there are
yet sufficient data by which there can be assigned to each
monolith or group its distinctive character. Rules have even
been proposed by which to determine the original intention of
each variety of these monuments, but when sufficiently definite
the formulae appear not only unsatisfactory but inadmissible.

In regard to such monuments we know that they were
adopted from the earliest ages of the Hebrews in Canaan.
We also find that the nations on whom they intruded had
places of worship on mountains and hills, in sacred groves
and under treea They had altars, pillars,^ and even sculp-
tured stones, for such, it may be presimied, is the meaning of
" figured stones " or " stones of picture."

In India, not only among the aboriginal tribes but also
among professed Hindus, unhewn stones are still used as re*
presentatives of the invisible powers which are the object of
native worship.^ In many parts of the Indian peninsula rude
stones mark or have made consecrated places ; and nothing is
more common than to see a Hindu god receiving vicarious

' Deuteronomy xiL 1, 2, 3 ; Leviti- Asia, in Kafiristan, and among the

cus xxvL 1 ; marginal note in D*Oyly tribes on the eastern frontiers of Hin-

and Maut*8 BibU. dostan, stones are phiced as represent-

s Not only in India, but in Central atives of deities.

BUDDHISM AND DRUIDISM. 251

worship when, under the form of a stone, he is anointed
with gee or oil by some pious villager or passing traveller.
Being smeared and dirty, with perhaps a broken earthenware
lamp lying near, is often the only mark which distinguishes
these sacred stones from others, apparently equally eligible
representatives of supernatural power. Such objects were
worshipped in Hindostan prior to the era of Gautama
Buddha,^ and we know not how many ages before ; for that
great moral teacher, speaking of those " who worship Gods,"
and address themselves for protection or reward " to trees
and rocks, stocks and stones," compares them to people who
would seek refreshment at the illusive waters of a scorching
atmosphere, or might expect to derive warmth from the light
of the glow-worm.

The opinion has been stated and defended that the proto-
types of the Caledonian hieroglyphics are to be found in the em-
blematic designs of the followers of the Gautama Buddha; but,
on the contrary, I believe the sculptures on the monuments of
Scotland to be referable to a system in every way the opposite
of Buddliism. Buddhism is essentially peaceful, moral, and
humane, forbidding the destruction of life and denouncing the
sacrifice of any animal ; Dniidism, so far as we know, was the
reverse of all this, for although of its moral laws we are ignor-
ant, yet we can see that its characteristics were priestcraft
combined with mystery, and cruelty consummated by the
immolation of human victims.

Primitive mounds, caves, and monuments are, however, the

> B.O. 543.

252

MENHIRS.

originals from which we can deduce the architectural woadeis
executed in the palmy days of Buddhism. The dagobahs and
topes of Ceylon and Hindostan and other Buddhist countries
— ^the mounts of masoniy which we find piled above some
shrunken atom of mortality — are but the tombs of the relics of
Oautama or his early followers. Although the spires of the
dagobahs at Anuiadhapoora may have reached a height nearly
equal to the cathedral of St Paul's, these massive sepulchres
were nevertheless only barrows or cairns extended, cased, or
entirely formed with masonry, surmounted with spires^ and
more or less embellished according to the taste or the wealth of
their founders.^ In like manner, and in progress of time, the
overhanging rock and rude stone cell became developed into
cavemed halls and ornamented cathedras hewn from the solid
rocks of Western India. Thus also the memorial stones of
successful warfare are found expanded in the sculptured pillars
and towers of victory, of which a noble specimen still remains
at Oodeypoor in Eajasthan.

The menhirs of greatest size are generally of a pyramidal

^ In ancient sohonpolas (burying-
places of Ceylon), particularly in the
remote parts of Nuwarakalawia, I
have seen the dagobah, according to
the wealth, estimation, or position of
the individual whose ashes lay be-
neath, of many sizes and different
degrees of embellishment. There was
the humble heap of earth, in form the
same, in size not much different from
a mole-hill. Another, a little larger,
had its base surrounded by a circle of
stones. liftrgcr mounds were cntii-ely

cased in stone ; and on others still ]aig^
was raised a kind of spire. In shoit*
the whole progress and design of
the dagobahs were displayed from the
modest heap of earth to the prond
monument of a «hief ; which again
was but the miniature of that raised
oyer a king ; and this last was still
more insignificant when compt^red with
the monumental tombs of the relics of
Gautama Buddha, in the ancient capi-
tals of Covlon.

HARE-STONES.. 253

form, and have their broadest parts fixed in the ground ; but
some of the rude columns have evidently by design been
planted on their smallest end. The attempt to explain this
peculiarity by the theory of natural decay of the inferior por-
tions of these stones, increased by the friction of animals, how-
ever plausible, will require no refutation to those who have
examined the monuments. But neither is there any sugges-
tion which is satisfactory in regard to these inverted obelisks,
although they are commonly met with singly, as well as in
combination with the other varieties of primitive stone re-
mains.

The monuments in Britain called " hare-stones" probably
derive their name from the Celtic words Hir, upright or long,
and Maen, a stone. It has been contended that the term " hare-
stones" — maen-hirs — signifies boundary-stones. They may be,
and may have been, occasionally used as such ; but certainly
not exclusively, for hare-stones are found in groups — a strong
proof that it is the shape of the stone, and not the nature of
the monument which is indicated by the name. Thus, at
Kirkdean in the parish of Kirkurd, and at Hare-stanes in the
parish of CraHing, circles of stones are called the " hair" or
" hare stones/' Haer and hicr cairns in groups are mentioned,^
and were probably all originally surrounded or surmounted by
menhirs, although these may have been removed or obscured.

* Haer-cairns of Clunie ; Hier- loch, near Perth, are "vast numbers of

cairns of Monikie, Forfarshire, etc. — tiimuU caUed the haer-cAirns." — Old

Wilson's Archceoiofjy of Scothuul, pp. > Statistical Account of Scotland, vol.

92, 93. xvii. p. 479.

In a moor in the parish of Kin-

254

MKNniRS.

Lately it has been discovered that the mount of Silbury was
surrounded by a line of detached upright stones.^ Great
mounds at New Grange and Dowth in Ireland, also at Loc-
Maria-Eer and other places in Brittany are thus encircled ;
and not less conmion are mounds surmounted by menhirs.
There are two such monuments near the hamlet of Moustoir
in the Morbihan^ between Auray and Camac : the menliir on
one of these was 11 feet above the ground.

Menhirs, stones placed upright, intended for devotional
purposes, appear in the earliest ages to have been unhewn —
as that of Bethel set up by Jacob/ " the smooth stones of the
stream" of the Jews,' and the baetulia of the Phoenicians.^
They appear generally to have been selected of a pyramidal
form, although some, described as small and shapeless^ are
with much probabUity believed to have been aerolites — for it
is natural to suppose that anything so anomalous as to be at
the same time material and unearthly would be received as
an object of mysterious sanctity. Whether aerolites or earth-
bom, these stones^ although they may have been at first
placed or acknowledged as emblems of unseen power,
certainly afterwards became objects of worship to many
heathen nations/

The god Heliogabulus — ^set up by the emperor, who had

* At the same time, I belieye SU-
bury was neither devotional, memo-
rial, nor monumental, but Judicial.
See article on " Moot or Moat-hills."

' Genesis xxviii. 18, 19.
' Isaiah Mi. 6.

* Baetulia, devised by Ouranus.
Sanchoniatho, as given in Kenrick's

Phoenicia, p. 834. See also pp. 254-
304.

* The mother of the gods, Khea or
Cybele, was worshipped in the form
of a stone. It was of a black and
tawny colour, and small size — easily
carried by one man. This stone was
believed to have fallen from heaven.

HELIOGABULUS. 255

adopted the name of the idol, and commanded the Eomans to
worship it — was merely a black stone of a conical form, which
it was believed had fallen from heaven.^ At Emesa in
Phamicia it would appear that this stone was worshipped
rather as the actual representative than as an emblem of the
sun ; and the emperor seems to have acted on this belief
when he caused the nuptials of the idol Heliogabulus to be
solemnised with tlie image of the moon goddess, the Cartha-
ginian Astarte, which, by his orders, was brought to Rome for
the purpose.^

Prior to the time of Mohammed a stone was worshipped
by some of the Arab tribes.^ Venus was one of the ob-
jects of worship so typified,* as the Alitta of the Arabians
seems to be fairly identified with the Babylonian Mylitta, the
Assyrian Venus, whose abominable rites are described by
Herodotus.*^ The Venus of Paphos would appear to have
been worshipped with the same unhallowed rites as the
Babylonian Mylitta, and was acknowledged under the same
form as the Alitta of the Arabs — ^viz. a rude stone.

The unhewn stone, worshipped as the representative of
unseen power, was the first step in idolatry : it was no startling

* Montfaucon, quoting from Hero- the particuLirs regarding this emperor
dian, descril>es the god Elagabal, and and the idol Elagabulus, and the las-
mentions the Phoenician women who civious dances of the Syrian damsels
danced around the god beating cym- round this representative of the sun.
bals and dulcimers (**tympanons"). See also Universal History, Ancient
On a medal the figure of this god ap- series, vol. xv. 847.
pears in a car drawn by four horses, • Sales's Preliminary Discourse to
with the inscription Sanct-Deo-Soli- the Koran, pp. 18, 15.
Elagabal. — Montfaucon, vol. i. pp. * Kenrick's Phoenicia, quoting Lar-
119, 120. Cher, p. 304.

" Gibbon, in his sixth chapter, gives ® Clio, sect. 199.

256 MENHIRS.

change, but a natiiral and gradual result when the emblem
became the . actual object of worsliip ; and it required no
great advancement in the arts to fasliion the upright stone
into some definite form of the deity represented

In Ireland, in the fifth century, the pagan object of
worship of King Laoghaire appears to have been a massive
stone pillar, surroimded by twelve other objects of worship.'
This pillar, called the Crom-Cruach, was overthrown by St.
Patrick It stood on the plain of Magh-Sleacht, in the county
of Cavan.'

When St Patrick visited Cashel, and converted the king
of Munster to Christianity, his baptism took place at a stone
afterwards known as Leach-Phadruic*

The stone at Clogher, covered with gold plates, and wor-
shipped by the pagan Irish, was called Kermand-Kelstach.
The stone itself was still to be seen in 1498 in the porch of
the cathedral of Clogher.^

We have abundant evidence of the prevalence of stone-
worship in Britain as well as in Armorica,* wliich is of conse-
quence in showing that it was a portion of the Celtic supersti-
tions ; as the best authorities for the stone-worship of Britain
are of a later date than the Anglo-Saxon invasion. The wop-
ship of stones is condemned by Theodoric, archbishop of
Canterbury, in the seventh century ; is among the acts of

' It is said to hare been of brans. — * In A.D. 442 and 667, in the coun-

Dr. Todd's St, Patrick^ p. 127. cils of Aries and Tours, stone-worship

I n 'J inn i* condemned.

■ Ibid. p. 129. -_. ....r ^«,j

*^ • Thorpe s A neunt La tos of Englani,

• Ibid. p. 129. vol. ii. p. 84.

STONE WORSHIP.

25'

heathenism forbidden by king Edgar in the tenth/ and by
Cnut in the eleventh century.^ In a council held at Tours in
A.D. 567 priests were admonished to shut the doors of their
churches against all persons worshipping certain upright
stones ; and Mah6 states that a manuscript record of the
proceedings of a council held at Nantes in the seventh cen-
tury makes mention of the stone-worship of the Armoricans.
These are a few of the recorded facts regarding stone-worship
in the olden time ; and along with the following notices, and
others to be found under different heads/ leave little doubt
that stone-worship and some kindred forms of heathenism are
not altogether extinct either in Britain or in Armorica.

Martin describes a stone in the island of Jura round
which it was customary for the people to move deasil (sunwise)/
In some of the Hebrides the people attributed oracular power
to a large black stone which they approached with certain
solemnities. A writer on ancient customs in the isle of
Skye, in 1795, sajrs, " In every district thefe is to be met
with a rude stone consecrated to Gruagach or Apollo."^ The
Rev. Mr. M'Queen of Skye says that in almost every village
the sun, called Grugach or the Fair-haired, is represented by

* Thorye'a Ancient Laws of England,
vol. ii. p. 249.

• Ihid, voL i. p. 379.

• In the chapters ** Monunienta
common to Indian and Celtic Nations "
— " Superstitions and Customs com-
mon to Indian and Celtic Nations" —
"Baal"— Beltane, "etc.

* Martin's Western Isles, p. 241.
VOL. I.

* Sir Walter Scott's note to Lady of
the LakCf canto iv.

• Brand's Popular Antiquities^ by
Sir H. Ellis, vol. ii. p. 16.

^ In the Jiigveda of the Hindus,
Agni and Surya — personifications of
light, fire, heat, the sun — are called
" the bright-haired," ** the golden-
haired."

S

'■ioS MENHIRS.

a rude stone ; and he further states that libations of milk
were poured on the Gruaich-stones. May not the name of
an island on the coast of Brittany, which was once the abode
of Dniidesses and still contains primitive stone monuments,
be derived from this word ? It is called Ulsle de Groah.

The finest specimen of a menhir in Britain is the pyra-
midal stone, which probably gave the name of Rudston
to the village in the churchyard of which it is situated.
It is 29J^ feet above, and readies 12 feet below the sui^
face of the ground, giving a height altogether of 41 feet
6 inches. In the absence of record or tradition regarding
tliis monument, with the fact of pagan fanes l^eing adopted as
sites for eariy Christian churches, and the church at Rudston
being contiguous to this obelisk, it is reasonable to conjecture
that it was once an object of worship or portion of a heathen
temple.

The great menhir^ at Loo-Maria-Ker, in the department
of the Morbihan in Brittany (the ancient Armorica), is by far
the largest monolith to be found among the primitive remains
of Celtic coimtries. Although now prostrate and broken, it
has • evidently at one time stood erect ; and the same force
which effected its overthrow doubtless caused, along with the
concussion, the three fractures which have separated this huge
obelisk into four pieces. The fractures are wonderfully clean,

> Fremenville's 3forbiJui7i, p. 28. Rudston and ** the Arrows," near

* In Yorkshire. — See (libson's Cam- Boroughbridge, are deacribeiL
dcvt vol. ii. pp. 96, 110 ; and //-

histraUd Englawl and Walfs, vol. • There is another of considerable
xvi. pp. 423-866, in which l)oth the . size lying dose to the village.

MONUMENT AT LOC-MAUIA-KEU. 259

piirallel to each other aud to the base. The three portions
next tlio apex, from the position in wliich they lie, may have
l)eon sepanited by the concussion when this immense mass,
calculated to weigh 260 tons, was hurled to the ground But
the fracture next above the base must have occurred simul-
taneously with or previously to the fall of the menhir, for the
lower portion has not fallen in a line with the other pieces,
but appears to have been partly turned round by the same
])ower that overthrew the monument. It is remarkable that
the base shows the same clean -fracture as the other divisions ;
and from its appearance I would expect that sufficient exami-
nation will yet prove that beneath the soil is the original base,
from which the superior poiiions, all that we now see, were
wrenched, probably by lightning, the only force which I can
imagine capable of producing such effects. Thj^ four pieces
. of this monument, if united^ would, according to Fremenville,
measure 58 French — about 61| English feet. T made the
entire lengtli nearly 03 feet.

Looking from the site of this* menhir over the promontory
of Loc-AIaria-Ker and its monuments, the view to the left in-
cludes a confusion of islands in the Morbilmn Sea. Forward
and to the right is the bay of Quiberon ; and farther round
the eye catches sight, at a distance of five miles, of the spire
of the church of St. Michael, built on an artificial mount
beside and overlooking the plain and monuments of Carnac.
Some writers have suggested what seems yerv' probable —

^ Not iH'ing aware at the ti)[ic of this to verify the measurement which I
ilisirepancy, I did not take any juiins minle with a common tape measure.

2t)() MENHIRS.

viz. that the Cyclopean remains on the rugged peninsulas
between the estuary of Int^l and the Morbihan Sea, the stone
avenues of Carnac, the infinity of rude columns, altars, mounds,
and cairns, found an appropriate termination towards the east
in the menhirs and dolmens of Loc-Maria-Ker, the largest of
their kind known to exist in any country.

Among heathen nations light, heat, fire were objects of
worship in the earliest ages. The sim, the ob\dous dispenser,
was generally acknowlcnlged as the author of these blessings,
and under many names and various forms became an object
of worship in all countries. The earliest material representa-
tives of the sun were probably rude obelisk-shaped stones,
such as the baetyli^ of the Phoenicians. In Egj-pt these small
conical monoliths l)erame developed into the finished obelisk
of surpassing height ;^ and on the plains of Chaldsea expanded
into the temple of Belus. In another direction the imagina-
tion of the Greeks and the cunning of their sculptors trans-
formed the simple emblem into a human shape, and magnified
the size imtil, in the Apollo of Ehodes, it rivalled in height
the greatest monolith on the banks of the Nile. In the first
century of the Christian era the colossal statue, 110 feet in
height, originally intended for the emperor Nero, was sur-
rounded with seven rays and consecrated to the sun.

The Venus of I'aphos was a conical stone bearing no re-
semblance to the human form, and the Cybele of Pessinus but
a shai)eless block. Yet the early history of these goddesses,

* Kenrick's Phornicia, pp. 304, 334.
» Wilkinson's Modem Egyi)l, vol. i. pp. 293, 294.

MONUMENT OF KERLOAZ. 261

and of devotional stones, connects them sufficiently with the
monuments of later periods and more ample size — viz. the
menhirs.

In India may be traced a simple idea, first embodied
as an emblem, and then passing onwards through various
stag(»s until it was seen personified in the hideous idol. Pro-
portional mental debasement must have accompanied — or
rather have prect^ded and originated — these transitions, by
w^hich the worship of liglit and animated nature was first
materialised, and then matured into an image of obscenity.
In turning from the menhir of Loc-Maria-Ker, impressive
from its great size and rude simplicity, to that of Kerloaz, the
largest still standing in the Celtic countries of the West,
we can discern a fresh proof of the progress of idolatr}^
Once the human mind adopts any material object, even as
an emblem of w^orship, tlie principle is admitted — the gate has
been passed — the broad path to idolatry lies open — and its
extremity may be reached without encountering any startling
impediment. Whether the alteration and workmanship visible
on parts of the menhir of Kerloaz w^ere executed by later
races, or were the effects of external influence through com-
mercial intercourse ^ or l)y foreign conquest, cannot now be
discovered. But the result is apparent in the degraded form
of worship to which tlie monument was latterly adapted, and
for which it does not appear to have been originally intended.

* The fragments of an obelisk at ceive a certain dcf^ree of worship by
lii^ing in Egypt, which had the women, who thus hope to have a
peculiarity of a round a|)ex, still re- numerous progeny.

2^)2 * MENHIRS.

At this obelisk of Kerloaz very ancient ceremonies, the re-
mains of a 8])ecies of obscene worship, are still practised by
both sexes/ Tlie superstitions connected with these impure
rit(*«, and the remains of ..other monuments of Armorica, will
pn)bably be considered sufficient warrant for thinking that
the objects of the worship at Kerloaz were latterly nearly simi-
lar to that of the vilest idols of the Hindus.

Fremenville describes certain sculptures in Brittany of evi-
dent anti(|uity, and says that of the period when they were
executed he cannot fonn any estimate, while of the object for
which they were intended he avows himself unable to form
a conjecture. Any one who has witnessed the deified and

»

personified obscenity so commonly obtruded on the traveller's
view in Hindostan, will have little hesitation in pronouncing
the descriptions of Fremenville aj^plicable to one of the most
common objects of Hindu worship.^

* "Ohjctsde superstition ilontle but circles s'elevait iin mamelon. Sur
et.l'origine se peident <lanti la nuit des une autre roche, nous vimcs un sem-
temps, COS bosses re^oivent encore une blable travail . . . qu'il ne restait
sortc de culte bizarre de la part des qu'un quart de la circonference du
paysjins des environs. Ix'S nouvcaux circle qui y fut trac^jadis.- Ce circle
mari(.^s ce rendent devotement an pied parait avoir ^te inscrit dans un quad-
de se menhir," etc. — FinistcrCt pp. rilatere sculpte encreux, etdontdeux
178, 197. cotes seulenient sont encore visible."

• "Snr la surface inegaled'unrocher, ** Sur une grosse pierro situee pres
nous remaniftames un singulier on- d'un hameau nomme La Mercerie, k
vragc incontestablement dii a la main une lieue de la foret de Machecoul, de-
des homnu^s ; mais dans quel but, dans jmrtment de la Loii'e Inferieure, cett<»
quelle intention, et fait dans quel pierre, saillante au dessus du sol soul-
temps ? C'etait un circle de dix pieds raent de trois jiouces, etait taillee en
de diametre, taille en saillie, dans rond et avait huit pieds de diametro ;
lequel etait sculpte, pareillement en sa circonference renfemiait un autre
saillie dans le roc vif, un seconde circle circle, taille en saillie, et ayant aus.si
concentrique, ct tlu diametre d'un trois pouces d'elevation, mais senle-
environ septs pieds ; au centre de ces mcnt quatre pieds de diametre. Une

DRUIDESSES. 263

Those who maintain that the Celtic religion was a com-
paratively pure form of paganism, and that Druids inculcated
true morality, certainly do not find support in ancient history,
and may he refen*ed to the characteristics of the priestesses of
the Isle-de-Groadi — the island opposite to the entrance of the
Loire, as described by Strabo— and of Ulsle-de-Sen, whose
practices are mentioned in Pomponius Mela. The Dniid-
esses also in the island of Auglesea (or Mona), how^ever brave
and patriotic, showed by the part which they took against
the Ilomaiis that thev were both fierce and influential.^ From
the meam'e accounts of earlv authorities we therefore gather
that the priestesses of the Celts were fierce, cruel, and lasci-
vious. If this is considered too severe a judgment to be de-
duced from these notices of the priestesses of the Celts, it
must be recollected that they were also employed in the im-
molation of human victims, and that in the island already
mentioned (now Isle-de-Groacli) one of the priestesses became
annually a sacrifice by her comrades during the fury of super-
stitious excitement. The nature of some of the objects of
Celtic worship, and the impure rites with which the worship
was conducted, may be further supported and inferred by
existing circumstances and ceremonies in Armorica. In places
wdiere heathen fanes were succeeded by Christian churches we

rif^ole circulaire ile (jiiatre a cinque la martlelle d'un puits ; il eut beaii-

[Miuccs do lar^o rr^nait autonr tl« cc coup de peine a la tirer de terre, ou

second«' rinlc, ct avait son devrrsoir die s'enfon^ait de six pieds : elle avait

dn cote dc l.'()U«'st. Ccttc pivrro ainsi la forme d'un cone renverse." — Fre-

tiiilKV ctait plai^'-e sur une petite ])utte nienville's Aniiq. Brd/njnc, Morbiluin,

de torre haute de quatre pieds. Vn pp. 12-14.
particulier la tit enlever pour en faire * Tacitus, MoU. Ifitf. BrU. p. 38.

264 MENHIBS.

find that the latter had received, and still retain, names derived
from no very reputable members of a Celtic pantheon. This
is the explanation given as to the origin of such names for
Christian churches as Notre-Dame-de-la-Joie, Notre-Dame-
de-Liesse, Notre-Dame-de-la-Haine, and Notre-Dame-de-la-
Clarte. The latter title, although somewhat more respectable
in appearance, was evidently of heathen derivation, and pos-
sibly — even probably — appertaining to a deity of as ques-
tionable purity as Notre-Dame-de-la-Joie — ^viz, to Astarte or
Mylitta,^ in place of Venus or some other deity of similar
attributes.^

In Notre-Dame-de-la-Haine^ is continued, in name at
least, the deification of human passions the most malignant- —
even less excusable than those which appear to have derived
their names from the licensed orgies of paganism. That a
dangerous, even a criminal, licence followed some ancient cus-
toms founded on superstitious ceremonies in Britain is well
known, as they endured to a period comparatively modem.
That certain religious ceremonies in some parts of Brittany
still terminate in such licence * is the less to be wondered at
when we learn that it was the pious and indefatigable priest
and missionary Michael le Nobletz who, so late as the seven-
teenth century, converted to real Christianity the inhabitants
of the islands of Molene and Guessant, and of the re-

^ For the abominable rites of Mylitta glyphics on the sculptored stones of

see Herodotus, Clio, cxcix. For As- Scotland.

tarte under various designations see * This church is near Treguier. —

Kenrick's Phofnicia, pp. 300, 301. Souvestre's Demiers Bretons, p. 92.

• This is referred to in treating of *SeQSoviYea{re* a Les Dernier Bretons,

the fish— one of the Caledonian hiero- pp. 95, 96, etc.

1

CEREMONIES AT KERLOAZ. 265

mote parts of the promontory of Finistere.^ Previous to
his exertions it would appear that the peasants were
Cliristians only in name, baptized heathens in fact. In addi-
tion to these notices of rites inherited from paganism may be
remarked an extremely indecent statue on the tower of the
cliurch of St. Pierre at the extreme point of Penmarch in
Finistere, and the history of the Venus of Quinipily, whose
uncouth form has for so long a time received the homage of
local immodesty.

The ceremonies still practised at the menhir of Kerloaz,
and others elsewhere referred to, show how deeply rooted and
enduring in Celtic countries was the paganism connected with
stone-worship. The summit of the rising ground on which
tliis monument is situated bears the same name — viz. Kerloas
or Kerglas. ** The field of mourning " is said to be tlie mean-
ing of the word in the Armorican language ; and in other
parts of France various groups and single stones are found at
places bearing names, both Celtic and French, of synonymous
import. " Taoursanan," "moumfid or melancholy places,"^ is
a Gaelic expression used in some parts of Scotland for what
are generally known as Druid circles. There the name is sup-
posed to be derived from these areas having been places of
human sacrifice. Some writers have accepted this explana-
tion, while others maintain that the name originated from these

* The tomb of Michael de Noblctz * In Gaelic, Taoursach or Tuier-

is in the church of Lochrist, two miles seach. In Welsh, Toirseach signifies

from Point St. Mathieu. He died mournful, sad, melancholy. — Lhuyd's

5th May 1662. — Fremenville's Fmis- and other Dictionaries.
terr.y p. 175.

266 MENHIRS.

circles having been places of sepulture. It is not likely
that this point will ever be authoritatively decided, but if it
should be, the probability is, that both parties will be found to
be right.

The menhir of Kerloaz is of rose-coloured granite, and
appears to have been, at the time it was erected, of an obelisk
shape, unhewn and uncontaminated by the work of man's
hands, which can now be distinguished on the east and west
sides of the monument. On these are to be seen marks
of a debasing form of paganism, the rites of which are not yet
extinct. On each of these sides, about three feet from the
ground, a boss about a foot in diameter projects in its highest
part three or four inches above the surrounding surface of the
stone, which has been cut away on purpose to give relief to
these- bosses. The height of this monument above ground is
now 37 feet 9 inches.^ I was informed by an intelligent
person in the neighbourhood, at St Eenan, that the menhir
was formerly higher, and that 5 feet had been shivered off the
top by lightning. My informant did not know when this
occurred, and the appearance of the summit as seen from the
ground does not favour the tradition, which, however, may be
correct: no object or position can well be more likely to
attract the electric fluid than this monument, which stands
amidst patches of furze, broom, heath, ferns, and dwarf oak-
copse on the summit of an exposed ridge, and at no great dis-
tance from'tlie north-west comer of Europe.

* Weld's Vacation in BriUany- metres. I had no instrument by which
Fremenville says 11 metres 5 renti- I could measure this column.

STOXES OF MEMORIAL. 267

Joscphus, in his Uvitory of the Jews, meations the exist-
ence of monuments which he says Seth erected in order to
preserve the astronomical knowledge that his race liad ac-
quired. The existence of tlie inscribed pillars may be admitted,
although the origin attributed to them may be denietl, and
the antiquity claimed for them be abated. When their erec-
tion was attributed to the antediluvian Seth we may conclude
that tlie Jewish historian could obtain no correct knowledge
regarding the period when tliey were reared.

The earliest record of a stone being raised, anointed, and
sanctified, is of that wliich Jacob erected at Luz and called
Bethel,^ and it is doubtfid whether that and the stone Ebenezer,
raised by Samuel* near !Mizpeh, slioidd be classed as devotional
or memorial. The pillar and cairn erected by Jacob on
Mount Gilead were memorials to witness and keep in remem-
brance an ngreement between two individuals.* That many
sucli monuments have been erected in Britain is extremely
probable — memorials of the feuds and fights, covenants and
slaughters, which seem to have afforded continued occupation
to our ancestors. Yet in nearly all cases, even with the assist-
ance of tradition, these stones of memorial have failed to keep
in mind the events .which they were intended to perpetuate.
Many of these stones have been moved from their original sites
and appropriated in divers ways — possibly have again become

* Chapter ii. * 1 Sam. v\\. 12.

a . X- iMi i. 1 . * Such also ma\' be considered the

" A practiee still to be seen m many ^ ^. , . t i • «^

^ .. , ,. stone mentioned in Joshua xxiv. 26,

parts ol India. . i ^ . , .

a memonai of a covenant between

' Oen. xxviii. 18; xxxv. 14. Joshua and the peopk.

268 MENHIRS.

memorials of later events, and again failed to fulfil the pur-
pose for which they were designed.

The cat-stanes of Scotland probably derive their name
from the Celtic word Cath,^ and mark places of conflict. But
we ask in vain who was the victor, for none can tell who
were the combatants. Lulach's Stone, in the parish of Ehynie
in Aberdeenshire, may maik the spot where the cousin and
successor of Macbeth was slain ; and a few other monuments,
not altogether false to their trust, may perhaps retain, in
more or less corrupted forms, some semblance of the names
of

" Chiefs who under their gray stone
So long had slept, that fickle Fame
Had blotted from her rolls their name."

^ Cath, battle.

88 Pbinoks Stbset,
SdirUmrgh,

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