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RR 2015/284 The Celtic Myths: A Guide to the Ancient Gods and Legends Miranda Aldhouse-Green Thames & Hudson London 2015 208 pp. ISBN 978 0 500 25209 3 £12.95 Also available as an e-book
Keywords Celtic world, Myths
Review DOI 10.1108/RR-06-2015-0163
This is a very scholarly but eminently readable and accessible guide to the Celtic myths, especially of Ireland and Wales. There is also reference to the Celtic myths of England, Scotland and the rest of Europe, particularly as illustrated in the first-century BCE Gundestrup cauldron from Denmark, which, though from the Germanic world, illustrates many of the themes of the Celtic myths. There is a Prelude defining the Celtic World, a time frame and the evidence for the surviving myths. This is followed by nine chapters on different aspects of the myths. Each chapter has little text boxes, some with illustrations, highlighting a particular feature of a myth or symbolism. The illustrations are a mixture of photographs and line drawings and at first sight seem a little odd being all tinged with green, but on reflection this goes well with the other worldly and supernatural content of the book. There is a very useful and comprehensive Index, Bibliography and Sources of Quotations. There are two maps, one of Britain and the other of Ireland, showing places mentioned in the text and myths.
The chapters follow themes. Word of Mouth: Making Myths introduces how the myths may have arisen and been passed down. It introduces some of the principal sources, such as the Ulster Cycle in Ireland and the Mabinogion, among others. One theme that emerges here is that of carved stones, particularly of the human head, which illustrate the myths and perhaps give a glimmer of perceived links with the Otherworld. The enchanted cauldron is also an important theme, one which can revive the dead or provide unending sources of food. Parallels are drawn throughout the book with biblical stories and other mythologies from around the world, such as the Great Flood. The Sacred Three and triadism are also prominent in the myths, as well of course in Christianity.
The Myth Spinners discusses how the myths were transmitted and deals with Druids, Bards and other storytellers, and how, for instance, the Romans integrated much...