Studying Celtic Mythology and Celtic Figures of Divine Status in Light of Recent Archaeological Discoveries

Abstract

The article addresses questions related to the study of Celtic mythology within the history of Celtic Studies throughout the twentieth century and initiates a discussion of its place in the twenty-first-century scholarship, including recent advances in the archaeology of the Continental Celts in Central Europe.

Introduction

The terms included in the title of this article—Celtic mythology—assume that the scholar addressing the topic is aware of what the Celtic mythology entails. In order to arrive at its understanding, firstly, the term ‘Celtic’ needs to be given proper consideration. ¹ In linguistics, the Celtic languages are the languages spoken by the inhabitants of the islands of Britain and Ireland before the arrival of the Romans, the Anglo-Saxons, the Vikings and the Normans (thus, insular Celtic, including its two branches, Gaelic (Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Manx) and Brythonic (Welsh, Cornish and Breton)). The Celtic languages were also spoken in continental Europe (from Brittany in the Northwestern Atlantic periphery of modern-day France down to Galatia in modern-day Turkey, including Gaulish, Celt-Iberian, Lepontic) in the early centuries ce. ² However, difficulties arise when linguistic data are used to examine the belief systems of various Celtic population groups that once held ritual and sacred significance—that is, in relation to mythology. ³

The alignment of Celtic linguistic data with the belief systems of sacred significance among the early Celts provides a framework for the study of Celtic mythology. The implications of this alignment—along with the outcomes produced by applying specific theoretical frameworks—have varied across different historiographic academic contexts. From the early twentieth century onwards, bibliographic and classificatory efforts have played a formative role in shaping the field’s approach to Celtic mythology.

Foundational figures such as Richard Irvine Best and Marie-Henri d’Arbois de Jubainville helped establish an initial classificatory framework that shaped the understanding of Celtic mythology based on the early Irish writing, particularly emphasizing the importance of the tales of the Mythological Cycle. Over time, this classificatory approach has evolved, reflecting shifts in scholarly methodology, as seen in the contributions of Rolf Baumgarten and the work of Proinsias Mac Cana and Kim McCone. ⁴

Parallel to this literary and linguistic analysis, archaeological discoveries from Hallstatt and La Tène cultures have offered critical insights into the ritual and symbolic dimensions of the life of the early Celts. Initially, this article traces the evolution of the bibliographic treatment of Celtic mythology, which is followed by a discussion of various features of various Celtic archaeological sites of Hallstatt and La Tène provenance. Finally, focusing on the case study of Glauberg, I will explore the ways the material culture of the Iron Age Celts can illuminate our understanding of the Celtic mythological data available in the writings of Classical historiographers.

History of Celtic Studies: Classifying Celtic Mythology in Bibliographies

At the foundation of Celtic Studies in the early twentieth century, when the parameters of the discipline were being established, scholars made use of a bibliography compiled by Richard Irvine Best. ⁵ This resource outlined the types of mythological research being conducted in the field at the time, which were broadly understood to fall under the category of ‘Literature’.

Best divided the early Irish literature into the four cycles (Mythological or Tuatha De Danann Cycle, Conchobar-Cuchulinn Cycle, Finn or Ossianic Cycle, and Other Cycles). This division was originally proposed in M.-H. D’Arbois de Jubainville’s work translated by R. I. Best and published in Dublin in 1903. ⁶ Which were the sources classified as ‘mythological’?

Best does not apply alphabetical order in arranging the sources, starting off with the Dindshenchas compilations, followed by Leabar Gabála. ⁷ Following the works dedicated to these two compilations, Best provides an alphabetical list of other mythological texts, opening up with the genre of the Aideda (which he interprets as ‘Tragic Deaths’), ⁸ choosing the Old Irish spelling for the titles of such late compositions as Oidheadh Chloinne Lir and Oidheadh Chloinne Tuireann. ⁹ The latter are followed by Aided Echach maic Maireda, ¹⁰ the tale of a toponymical nature which had already been listed in the first section on the Dindshenchas, Airne Fíngein, ¹¹ Aislinge Oengusso, ¹² Cath Maige Tuired, ¹³ Echtra Laegaire maic Crimthainn, Imacallam Tuain fri Finnia (also known as Scél Tuain maic Cairill), ¹⁴ Tochmarc Etáine ¹⁵ and Toghuil tSítha Truim. ¹⁶ Under the heading of Minor Tales, the reader is provided with the miscellaneous publications by Whitley Stokes under the unifying title of ‘Mythological Notes’. ¹⁷

On 30 May 1942, Best continued his bibliographic work by producing another publication, ‘a continuation of that published for the National Library of Ireland in 1913’, ¹⁸ with some modifications to the scope and plan of the work and the arrangement of such subjects as etymology, lexicography and poetry. On the second page of the Preface, the reader is informed that Best drew upon Joseph Vendryes’s Bibliographie and Chronique from the Revue Celtique periodical and its successor Études Celtiques, as well as upon the works of Julius Pokorny, Robin Flower and others. ¹⁹

In relation to the Mythological Cycle, the classification principle has not been changed by Best, and the mythological sources were equally included within the Literature section as in the 1913 volume, however, the opening section on the Dindshenchas (of the 1913 volume) was dispensed with, and the list of mythological tales was arranged in alphabetical order, starting with the already mentioned Aided Chlainn Tuirenn. Of the sources not mentioned in the 1913 bibliography, one can refer to Altram Tige dá Medar, ²⁰ the division of Cath Maige Tuired into Cath Maige Tuired 1 and Cath Maige Tuired 2, and the inclusion of Imthechta Tuirill agus a Mac and Tochomlod Mac Miled a hEspain. ²¹ The tale Echtra Laegaire maic Crimthainn, which had been furnished with a separate entry in the 1913 bibliography, was classified among the ‘Minor Tales’.

In 1986, the third bibliography of Irish Linguistics and Literature was published in Dublin, this time edited by Rolf Baumgarten. ²² The new editor dispensed with the classification principles adopted by Best but did not explain a revised principle of classification. Baumgarten divided the bibliography into major headings. The first section, A: General, opened the bibliography, and the final section, M: Prehistory, Cultural History, closed it off. The mythology had been integrated into the section G: Narrative Literature, and was divided into three subsections: first, General & Various, second, Mythological Cycle (where two sources had been highlighted: Tochmarc Étaíne and Catha Maige Tuired) and, third, Echtra, Imram, with Imram Brain and Imram Maíle Dúin given a special place.

Finally, Roibeard Ó Maolalaigh, the School of Celtic Studies, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, bibliographer between 2001 and 2004, and presently Alexandre Guilarte, dispensed with section 1.3 of Baumgartner on the echtra and imrama. ²³

The Celts, the Indo-Europeans and the Archaeological Discoveries of the Twenty-first Century

The data presented by the Classical authors uncover a highly diverse and heterogeneous picture: remains of ritual practices appear linked to the idea of sovereignty, while Classical records discuss various religious and cultural phenomena, reflecting the complexity of mythological beliefs among the Celts. None of them classifies the Irish data as Celtic, yet modern scholars pointed out various parallels existing between the Irish sagas and the Classical accounts of the Celts.

Titus Livy’s Ab urbe condita (written between 27 and 9 bce) contains the story of the Gaulish king Ambigatus (who ruled c. 600 bce) in what McCone describes as ‘presumably a native account of the Gaulish conquest of Northern Italy’. ²⁴ It describes the fecundating effect of good kingship—frequently compared in academic literature to similar beliefs in the Irish tradition and in the broader Indo-European context (cf. Odyssey 19: 109–14)—pointing to ‘a feature of Indo-European culture: a simple but powerful ethical notion of the Ruler’s Truth’. ²⁵

Another oft-cited example is the ‘notion of a king’s daughter transmitting sovereignty to the man of her choice by offering him a drink prior to marriage’. ²⁶ This motif is first contained in Aristotle’s account (born c. 384–died c. 322 bce) of the Greek foundation of Massilia (founded c. 600 bce), present-day Marseilles, ²⁷ which, according to McCone, records a Greek assimilation of a native Gaulish myth of sovereignty. This theme finds echoes in early Irish sources of Togail Bruidne Da Derga [‘Destruction of Da Derga’s Hostel’] and Cóir Anmann [‘The Fitness of Names’], as well as in the Nala episode from the Indian epic Mahābhārata (Book III, chapter 53, 1ff.)—the ceremony of the choice of husband (svayaṃvara) by the king’s daughter.

On the one hand, one strives to crystallize the Celtic mythology in the form of a certain constant set of beliefs, on the other, scholars agree that regional diversity and cultural differentiation must be considered depending on the nature and the dating of the data.

Spanning two millennia, the Celts have left an extensive legacy of material artefacts. Leaving the texts aside, the remaining part of this article will focus on artefacts and archaeological findings to uncover the stories they tell. ²⁸

Hallstattian Archaeological Data

The range of archaeological discoveries available is diverse and includes complete sites of religious cult and importance, such as Gournay-sur-Aronde (modern-day France), ²⁹ ritual burials, such as the Iron Age Lindow Man (northwest England) and Oldcroghan Man (central Ireland), ³⁰ and individual items such as sandstone statues of cult importance from Glauberg and Heidelberg as well as pieces of Celtic artistic metalwork, including the ornamented royal armour.

In modern archaeology, the immediate ancestors of the Celts known to the Classical authors are identified with representatives of the so-called Western Hallstatt D₂–D₃ cultures (600–500 bce), followed by the so-called La Tène cultures (500–100 bce), whose members were described as Celts (Gr. Keltoi, Keltai, Galatai; Lat. Celtae, Galli).

The best-known of the giant Hallstattian mounds is the Magdalenenberg at Villingen-Schwenningen, located at the source of the River Neckar and one of the first tributaries of the Danube. The mound contains a central tomb (probably occupied by a person of high social status) surrounded by 126 individual tombs, from which around 136 burials were recovered. The site was used for burials over two different generations. ³¹

The first excavation of the mound was carried out by Karl Schumacher in 1890 and continued by Konrad Spindler in 1970–73. Archaeologists found the central tomb chamber filled with water, which they estimated entered when the chamber was opened fifty years after its construction. It had taken over twenty years to construct. ³²

The findings included earrings with pearls, amber from the Baltic region, as well as the corals from the Mediterranean, necklaces, bracelets, massive neck rings and strong barrel bracelets. These indicate that the female members of the local tribe were wealthy, and that the tribe’s prosperity may have been linked to the exploitation of iron deposits—although no traces of protohistoric exploitation have been found.

Numerous items reached Magdalenenberg through trade, confirming an extensive network of contacts. It stretched from the present-day Slovenia (a fibula), to Brittany (a belt) and to south-east Spain (a bronze belt hook). ³³

A beautifully decorated belt plate, used to fasten the belt around the waist and bearing solar motifs, was also found at the site. The ornamentation is relatively simple, with stars and rays of the sun at the centre. ³⁴

Another belt plate, known as a stamped-decorated belt sheet, was found in 1884 in a woman’s grave within a burial mound at Heidenbühl (Allensbach-Kaltbrunn, near Constance). ³⁵

It is approximately sixty centimetres long and seventeen centimetres wide and consists of three decorated plates and one fitting flat plate. Each plate contains eleven horizontally decorated rows. The widest rows feature alternating images of a radial aureole (a sun?) and four-legged stags looking backward. The rows above and below are decorated with embossed images of two-legged horses, separated by three vertical stripes. Further rows depict embossed human figures with upraised arms—a gesture symbolizing veneration or prayer—accompanied by circular ornamental patterns. Discussing the symbolism of the imagery on the belt sheet, Hartmann Reim writes:

Die großen Ringbuckel mit radialem Strahlenkranz sind Sonnensymbole. Hirsche und Pferdchen können als Symboltiere von Gottheiten angesprochen warden. Bei den Hirschen könnte es sich um Begleittiere des keltischen Hirschgottes Cernunnos handeln, während die Pferde—die zu den wichtigsten Symboltieren der Hallstattzeit gehören—mit Gottheiten verbunden werden können, die dem griechischen Poseidon oder der Artemis beziehungsweise Demeter vergleichbar sind, deren Symboltier das Pferd ist. ³⁶

However, it remains uncertain whether the imagery depicted on the above-mentioned objects contains features of mythological significance. The suggestion that the stags are the symbolic companions of the Celtic god Cernunnos—whose worship is unattested in the historical period under discussion—is not confirmed by contemporary evidence.

In terms of iconography, the closest parallels are found at the burial mound of a Celtic chief at Eberdingen-Hochdorf, dated to 600 bce. At Hochdorf, major zoomorphic and anthropomorphic features characteristic of Hallstatt-period Celtic iconography are present: horses, human figures with raised hands (used as supports on the funerary chariot’s wheels) and solar imagery. However, stag figures are notably absent. ³⁷

A stag figure does appear in the funerary and votive offerings set from Gutenberg (c. 500 bce), which also includes warrior-type anthropomorphic figures—possibly influenced by Etruscan art—and two zoomorphic figures (a boar and a stag). Thematically, the figures can be broadly grouped into three domains: war, fertility, and nature. ³⁸

The set also contains a pair of figures with distinct sexual characteristics, possibly linked to the cult of the Divine Twins. This cult was attested among the early Celts as confirmed by the writings of Diodorus of Sicily (The Library of History, 4.56), who, citing Timaios of Tauromenium (born c. 350 bc), noted:

The Celts who dwell along the ocean venerate the Dioscori above any of the gods, since they have a tradition handed down from ancient times that these gods appeared among them, coming from the ocean.

Traces of the cult of the Divine Twins also appear in the Irish tradition, which preserves a legend about the naming of the royal site of Emain Macha associated with the so-called Twins of Macha. This name may correspond to Isamnion on Ptolemy’s late antique map of Ireland and may be etymologically related to the Lat. gemini ‘twins’. ³⁹

Nevertheless, no definite conclusions can be drawn from this example, as the figures may have been produced by different craftsmen, in different locations, and possibly at different time periods, as indicated by variations in bronze composition. Moreover, the dating of this set is extremely vague, ranging from 500 to 100 bce.

La Tène Archaeological Data: The Case of Glauberg

Moving into the La Tène period, one encounters a marked contrast with earlier artistic traditions: unlike the schematic, geometric artworks of the Hallstatt period, La Tène is characterized by intricate ornamentation, often of vegetative type. The La Tène style developed through four distinct phases, each marked by an increasing ornamental complexity over the previous phase and the inclusion of anthropomorphic and zoomorphic elements. ⁴⁰

The emergence of new stylistic and ornamental patterns has often been attributed to external influences, particularly emanating from the Greek colonies situated along the Mediterranean coast of present-day France (esp. Massalia, present-day Marseilles), and from Etruscan settlements in the Northern Alps. Alongside these external influences, the iconography of the Celtic divine figures retained certain features inherited from the Hallstatt era, such as raised hands—a sign of veneration—and visible neck rings, or torques, a marker of high-status warrior elites.

The torque is visible on the sandstone statue known as ‘warrior from Hirschlanden’ (‘Krieger von Hirschlanden’, dated to 550–500 bce). ⁴¹ This figure bears iconographic similarities to the Gutenberg warrior, as both wear a conic helmet distinguishing them from other warrior-type statues of Celtic origin—such as those from Glauberg and the Heidelberg—which are depicted as wearing a so-called crown of leaves.

A Glauberg complex presents a particularly intriguing case study. A burial mound with two graves containing highly valuable goods was discovered, along with an almost fully preserved life-size sandstone statue of an armed warrior, found in the ditch surrounding the main mound. Subsequently, fragments of three additional sandstone statues were recovered.

The sandstone statue displays martial attributes (sword, shield and armour) as well as jewellery (neck ring, finger rings and an armpit ring) corresponding to the findings from the warrior grave. ⁴²

The grave itself contained the remains of a young man approximately 1.69 metres tall, buried in a timber chamber and identified as belonging to the warrior elite.

The head of the buried figure was encircled with a crown of leaves, identified as mistletoe—an element associated with the Gaulish druids described by Pliny the Elder in Natural History, Book 16 (written c. 77 ce). Although Pliny was not a contemporary of the Celts buried at Glauberg (dated to ca. 500 bce), scholars have proposed that this warrior may also have held priestly status, based on the symbolic association between mistletoe, his headdress and druidic rituals.

Among the grave goods was a four-litre bronze pitcher with a beak-shaped spout, filled with a concentrated mixture of water and honey—presumably a fermented, alcoholic honey-based beverage. The pitcher’s brim is decorated with three-dimensional figures: a cross-legged seated male figure flanked by two beast-like or hybrid figures combining animal bodies and human facial features. This iconographic motif, widespread in the Mediterranean and of likely Near Eastern origin, may represent the ‘Lord of the Animals’, also known in the Celtic world through the figure of Cernunnos. ⁴³

Although produced locally, the pitcher displays Mediterranean influences; its form most likely having been inspired by Etruscan prototypes. Similar pitchers have been previously discovered in Dürmberg (Austria) and in Basse-Yutz (France). ⁴⁴

Near the first burial, a second grave was excavated, containing the cremated remains of another man of similar stature (1.69 m tall, aged 30–40 years). The findings in this grave were undamaged by fire and included a pitcher with tubular casting made from bronze, iron and wood. Like the first pitcher, it was similarly filled with a honey-based alcoholic beverage. Decorated with circular ornamentation, it contains a winged creature on the lid—a characteristic motif of Early La Tène animal style (500–400 bce). ⁴⁵

What insights can be gained from these artefacts discovered at the Hallstatt and La Tène sites? Unlike the mythological texts of Ireland, which offer vivid, literary portrayals of distant social realities imagined by the medieval Irish literati, or Classical descriptions of Gaulish druidic cult practices by Caesar or Pliny, these archaeological sites provide direct material evidence of Celtic burial customs, in which elite warrior figures play a central role.

These discoveries illuminate the pivotal figure in early Celtic society: the young royal warrior, whose life and death become focal points for communal identity. In burial, the Celtic chief was accompanied by symbols of martial prowess—sword and shield—adorned in luxurious garments and jewellery and provided with intoxicating drink. Together, these items expressed his status in life and the community’s beliefs about the afterlife.

Conclusion

Through a combined analysis of bibliographic history, Indo-European comparative theory and archaeological evidence, this article illustrates the layered complexity involved in interpreting Celtic mythology. A key question remains: which theoretical framework is most appropriate for studying Celtic mythology to direct our understanding of the subject?

For instance, inspired by scholars specializing in Indo-European reconstructions, scholars have developed theoretical models of Celtic society comparable to those in Ancient Persia, Classical Greece and Vedic India. This approach characterized early twentieth-century studies of Irish mythological texts, notably rooted in the work of M.-H. d’Arbois de Jubainville, which laid the foundation for decades of scholarly engagement.

The archaeological record, particularly from Hallstatt and La Tène sites, provides a material counterpoint to the literary tradition, reinforcing certain ideological themes such as kingship, ritual and social stratification, while also revealing the symbolic richness of early Celtic visual culture. Yet, this material remains inherently fragmentary and interpretively challenging.

But which mythology is Celtic? Is it the one constructed by medieval texts, where the Indo-European beliefs are epitomized in the figures of the gods of Tuatha Dé Danann? Is it the one described by the Classical authors in their observations of the religious practices of the Celts? Or is it the belief system reconstructed from the material remains of the Celtic age, exemplified by the sandstone statue of the warrior priest of Glauberg?

The answer is still uncertain, although the ongoing discussion of texts and artefacts, myths and material data promises to yield further insights into the belief systems, societal values and cultural expressions of the ancient Celts excavated at archaeological sites of Celtic provenance across Europe.