Fig. 482.—Entry to New Grange.
Fig. 482.—Entry to New Grange.
In the neighbourhood of Totnes and the river Teign is the world-famous Kent’s Cavern,[988]whence has emanated evidence that man was living in what is now Devonshire, contemporaneously with the mammoth, the cave-lion, the woolly rhinoceros, the bison, and other animals which are now extinct. Kent’s Cavern is in a hill,dun,tun, orwhat the Bretons term atorgen, and thetorgencontaining Kent’s Cavern is situated in the Manor of Torwood in the parish of Tor, whence Torbay, Torquay, etc.: in Cornwalltor, ortur, meant belly, andtormay be equated withdoor, Latinjanua.
The entrance to Kent’s Hole is in the face of a cliff, and the people mentioned in the Old Testament as theKeniteswere evidently cliff-cave dwellers, for it is related that Balaam looked on the Kenites and said: “Strong is thy dwelling-place, and thou puttest thy nest in a rockâ€:[989]Kent is the same word askind, meaninggenus; also askind, meaning affectionate and well-disposed, and it is worthy of note that the cave-dwelling Kenites of the Old Testament were evidently a kindly people for the record reads: “Saul said unto the Kenites ‘Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: forye shewed kindness to all the children of Israel when they came upout of Egypt’.[990]So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.â€[991]
There is evidence that Thor’s Cavern in Derbyshire was inhabited by prehistoric troglodites; the most high summit in the Peak District is named Kinder Scout, and in the southern side of Kinder Scout is the celebrated Kinderton Cavern: at Kinver in Staffordshire there are prehistoric caves still being lived in by modern troglodites, and at Cantal in France there are similar cave dwellings.
In Derbyshire are the celebrated Canholes and at Cannes, by Maestricht, is an entrance to the amazing grottos of St. Peter: this subterranean quarry is described as asuccession of long horizontal galleries supported by an immense number of square pillars whose height is generally from 10 to 20 feet: the number of these vast subterranean alleys which cross each other and are prolonged in every direction cannot be estimated at less than 2000, the direct line from the built up entrance near Fort St. Peter to the exit on the side of the Meuse measures one league and a half. That these works were at one time in the occupation of the Romans, is proved by Latin inscriptions, but evidently the Romans did not do the building for, “underneath these inscriptions you can trace some ill-formed characters traditionally attributed to the Huns; which is ridiculous since the Huns did not build, and therefore had no need of quarries, and moreover were ignorant of the art of writingâ€.[992]In view of the fact that the gigantic cavern farther up the Meuse, is entitled the Han Grotto, this tradition of Hun “writing†is not necessarily ridiculous: the Huns in question, whoever they were, probably were the people who built the Hun’s beds and were worshippers of “the One Man and our Cauldronâ€.
The Peter Mount now under consideration does not appear to have been such a Peter’s Purgatory as found on “the island of the tribe of Oinâ€: on the contrary its galleries, based on pillars about 16 feet high, are traced on a regular plan. These cross one another at right angles, and their most noticeable feature is the extreme regularity and perfect level of the roof which is enriched with a kind of cornice—a cornice of the severest possible outline, but with a noble simplicity which gives to the galleries a certain monumental aspect.
Within the criss-cross bowels of the Peter Mount isanother very remarkable curiosity—a small basin filled with water called Springbronnen (“source of living waterâ€) which is incessantly renewed, thanks to the drops falling from the upper portion of a fossil tree fixed in the roof.[993]The modern showman does not vaunt among his attractions a “source of living water,†and we may reasonably assume that this appellation belongs to an older and more poetic age: the Hebrew for “fountain of living waters†isain, a word to be connoted with Hun, Han, and St. Anne of the Catacombs: St. Anne is the patron of all springs and wells; at Sancreed is a St. Eunys Well, and the wordauneoravonwas a generic term for anygentle flowingstream.
It is reasonable to equate St. Anne of the Catacombs with “Pope Joan†of Engelheim, and it is probable that the original Vatican was the terrestrial seat of the celestial Peter, the Fate Queen or Fate King: with St. Peter’s Mount may be connoted the Arabian City of Petra which is entirely hewn out of the solid rock. The connection between the Irish Owen, or Oin, and the Patrick of Patrick’s Purgatory has already been considered, and that Janus or Janicula was the St. Peter of the Vatican is very generally admitted: we shall subsequently consider Janus in connection with St. Januarius or January; at Naples there are upwards of two miles of catacombs, and the Capo diChino, under which these occur, may probably be identified with the St. Januarius whose name they bear.
Fig. 483.—Seventeenth Century Printer’s Mark.
Fig. 483.—Seventeenth Century Printer’s Mark.
That Janus, the janitor of the Gates of Heaven and of all other gates, was a personification of immortal Time is sufficiently obvious from the attributes which were assigned to him; that the Patrick of Ireland was also the Lord of the 365 days is to be implied from the statement of Nenniusthat St. Patrick “at the beginning†founded 365 churches and ordained 365 bishops.[994]I was recently accosted in the street by a North-Briton who inquired “whatdameis it?â€: on my failure to catch his meaning his companion pointed to my watch chain and repeated the inquiry “whattime, is itâ€; but even without such vivid evidence it is clear thatdameandtimeare mere variants of the same word. It is proverbial that Truth,aliasUna,aliasVera, is the daughter of Time: that Time is also the custodian of Truth is a similar commonplace: Time is the same word as Tom, and Tom is a contracted form of Thomas which the dictionaries define as meaningtwin, i.e., twain:Thomas is the same name as Tammuz, a Phrygian title of Adonis, and in Fig. 404 (ante,p. 639), Time was emblemised as the Twain or Pair; in Fig. 483, Father Time is identifiedwith Veritas or Truth, for the legend runs, “Truth in time brings hidden things to lightâ€.[995]The Lady Cynethryth, who dwells proverbially at the bottom of a well, is, of course, daily being brought to light; it is, however, unusual to find her thus depicted clambering from a dene hole or a den. In all probability the “Sir Thomas†who figures in the ballad as Fair Rosamond’s custodian was originally Sir Tammuz, Tom, or Time—
And you Sir Thomas whom I trusteTo bee my loves defence,Be careful of my gallant RoseWhen I am parted hence.
And you Sir Thomas whom I trusteTo bee my loves defence,Be careful of my gallant RoseWhen I am parted hence.
And you Sir Thomas whom I truste
To bee my loves defence,
Be careful of my gallant Rose
When I am parted hence.
The relentless Queen who appears so prominently in the story may be connoted with the cruel Stepmother who figures in the Cinderella cycle of tales—a ruthless lady whom I have considered elsewhere. The silken thread by which the Queen reached Rosamond—to whose foot, like Jupiter’s chain, it was attached—is paralleled by the thread with which Ariadne guided the fickle Theseus. In an unhappy hour the Queen overcomes the trusty Thomas, and guided by the silken thread—
Went where the Ladye RosamondeWas like an Angel sette.But when the Queen with steadfast eyeBeheld her beauteous faceShe was amazed in her mindeAt her exceeding grace.
Went where the Ladye RosamondeWas like an Angel sette.But when the Queen with steadfast eyeBeheld her beauteous faceShe was amazed in her mindeAt her exceeding grace.
Went where the Ladye RosamondeWas like an Angel sette.
Went where the Ladye Rosamonde
Was like an Angel sette.
But when the Queen with steadfast eyeBeheld her beauteous faceShe was amazed in her mindeAt her exceeding grace.
But when the Queen with steadfast eye
Beheld her beauteous face
She was amazed in her minde
At her exceeding grace.
The wordgraceis the same ascross, and grace is the interpretation given by all dictionaries of the name John or Ian: the red cross was originally termed the Jack, andto the Jack, without doubt, was once assigned the meaning “Infinite in the East, Infinite in the West, Infinite in the South. Thus it is said, He who is in the fire, He who is in the heart, He who is in the Sun, they areOneand the same:†inChinathe Svastika is known as theWan.
FOOTNOTES:[905]Walford, E.,Greater London, ii., 95.[906]Mottingham, anciently Modingham, is supposed to be from Saxonmodig, proud or lofty, andham, a dwelling. Johnstone derives it as, “Enclosure of Moding,†or “of the Sons of Mod or Motâ€. We may assume these people were followers of the Maid, and that Mottingham was equivalent to Maiden’s Home.[907]Mackenzie, D. A.,Myths of Crete, p. xlvi.[908]Borlase, Wm.,Antiquities of Cornwall, p. 296.[909]Cliff Castles, p. 33.[910]Cf.Baring-Gould,Cliff Castles.[911]Chislehurst is supposed to mean the pebble hurst or wood, but Chislehurst is on chalk and is less pebbly than many places adjacent: at Chislehurst is White Horse Hill: Nantjizzel orjizzle valley, in Cornwall, is close to Carn Voel,aliasthe Diamond House, and thus, I am inclined to think that Chislehurst was a selhurst or selli’s wood sacred to Chi the great Jehu.[912]Adams, W. H. A.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 90.[913]Spence L.,Myths of Mexico and Peru, p. 293.[914]In 1867 Mr. Roach Smith published the following description: “The ground plan of the caves was like a six-leaved flower diverging from the central cup which is represented by the shaft. The central cave of each three is about 14 yards long and about 6 yards high. The side caves are smaller, about 7 yards long and 2 yards wide. The section is rather singular: taken from end to end the roof line is horizontal: but the floor rises at the end of the cave so that a sketch of the section from end to end of the two principal caves is like the outline of a boat, the shaft being in the position of the mainmast. The section across the cave is like the outline of an egg made to stand on its broader end. They are all hewn out of the chalk, the tool marks, like those which would be made by a pick, being still visible.â€â€”Archæologia, i., 32.Dr. Munro states: “They are usually found on the higher ground of the lower reaches of the Thames ... in fact, North Kent and South Essex appear to be studded with them.â€â€”Prehistoric Britain, p. 222.[915]Nat. Hist., lib. xvii., cap. viii.[916]Part I.[917]One of the most characteristic symbols of the Ægean is St. Andrew’s Cross: I have suggested that the Scotch Hendrie meantancient drieordrew, and it is not without significance that tradition closely connects St. Andrews in Scotland with the Ægean. The legend runs that St. Rule arrived at St. Andrews bringing with him a precious relic—no less than Sanct Androwis Arme. “This Reule,†continues the annalist, “was ane monk of Grece born in Achaia and abbot in the town of Patrasâ€â€”Simpkins, J. E.,Fife, Country Folklore, vol. vli., p. 243.[918]The Gnostics and their Remains, p. 72.[919]“It is certain that ancient caves do exist in Palestine which in form and circumstance, and to some extent also in decoration, approximate so nearly to the Royston Cave that if any historical connection could be established between them, it would scarcely seem doubtful that the one is a copy of the other.â€â€”Beldam, J.,The Royston Cave, p. 24. According to the same authority there are indications at the Royston Cave “of an extreme and primeval antiquity,†and he adds, “it bears, indeed, a strong resemblance in form and dimension to the ancient British habitation; and certain marks and decorations in its oldest parts such as indentations and punctures, giving a diapered appearance to the surface, are very similar to what is seen in confessedly Druidical and PhÅ“nician structures,†p. 22.[920]Beldam, J.,The Royston Cave, p. 24.[921]In Caledonia dovecots ordoocatsare still superstitiously maintained: there may be a connection betweendoocatand the “Dowgate†Hill which neighbours the present Cathedral of St. Paul.[922]Nichols, W. J.,The Chislehurst Caves and Dene Holes, p. 5.[923]Walford, E.,Greater London, ii., 127.[924]Ibid., p. 131.[925]Goddard, A. R.,Essex Archæological Society’s Transactions, vol. vii., 1899.[926]Courtois,Dictionaire Geographique de l’Arrondissement de Saint Omer, p. 156.[927]Wilson, J. G.,Gazetteer, i., 1044.[928]Eckenstein, L.,Comparative Studies in Nursery Rhymes, p. 154.[929]Dan or Don is one of the main European root river names; it occurs notably in the story of theDanaides who carried water in broken urns to fill a bottomless vessel, and again inDanaus who is said to have relieved Argos from drought.[930]P. 242.[931]Herbert, A.,Cyclops, p. 154.[932]Wright, T.,Patrick’s Purgatory, p. 162.[933]Ibid., p. 231.[934]Travels in the East, p. 2.[935]“This was theroundchurch of St. Mary, divided into two stories by slabs of stone; in the upper part are four altars; on the eastern side below there is another, and to the right of it an empty tomb of stone, in which the Virgin Mary is said to have been buried; but who moved her body, or when this took place, no one can say. On entering this chamber, you see on the right-hand side a stone inserted in the wall, on which Christ knelt when He prayed on the night in which He was betrayed; and the marks of His knees are still seen on the stone, as if it had been as soft as wax.â€[936]Wright comments upon this: “Dr. Clarke is the only modern traveller who has given any notice of these subterranean chambers or pits, which he supposes to have been ancient places of idolatrous worshipâ€.[937]Cf.Baring-Gould,Curious Legends, p. 238.[938]Mysteries of the Cabiri, ii., 393.[939]Cf.Herbert, A.,Cyclops, p. 155.[940]Ibid., p. 154.[941]It is not improbable that the Pied Piper incident was actually enacted annually at the Koppenburg, and that the children of Hamelyn were given the treat of being taken through some brilliantly lit cavern “joining the town and close at handâ€. Whether the Koppenburg contains any grottos I am unable to say.[942]Cyclops, p. 156.[943]The authorities connect the surnames Kettle and Chettle with the Kettle or Cauldron of Norse mythology, whence Prof. Weekley writes: “The renowned Captain Kettle, described by his creator as a Welshman, must have descended from some hardy Norse pirateâ€. Why Norse? The wordkettle, Gaeliccadhal, is supposedly borrowed from the Latincatillus, a small bowl: the Greek for cup iskotulos, and it is probable thatkettleandcotyledonare alike radically Ket, Cot, or Cad. In Scotlandadhanmeant cauldron, whence Rust thinks that Edinbro or Dunedin was once a cauldron hill.[944]Sandringham, near King’s Lynn, appeared in Domesday as Sandersincham: upon this Johnston comments, “Curious corruption. This is ‘Holy Dersingham, as compared with the next parish Dersingham. Frenchsaint, Latinsanctus, Holy.â€[945]Ogilvie, J. S.,A Pilgrimage in Surrey, ii., 183.[946]Ibid., p. 166.[947]Ibid., p. 167. The italics are mine.[948]“The old Bourne stream, generally known as the ‘Surrey Woe Water,’ has already commenced to flow through Caterham Valley, and at the moment there is quite a strong current of water rushing through an outlet at Purley.“There are also pools along its course through Kenley, Whyteleafe, and Warlingham, which suggest that the stream is rising at its principal source, in the hills around Woldingham and Oxted, where it is thought there exists a huge natural underground reservoir, which, when full, syphons itself out at certain periods about every seven years.“Tradition says that when the Bourne flows ‘out of season’ or at irregular times it foretells some great calamity. It certainly made its appearance in a fairly heavy flow in three of the years of the war, but last year, which will always be historical for the declaration of the armistice and the prelude of peace, there was no flow at all.â€â€”The Star, 15th March, 1919.[949]“Archæologia†(fromThe Gentleman’s Magazine), i., 283.[950]Cf.Johnson, W.,Byeways, pp. 411, 417.[951]Ogilvy, J. S.,A Pilgrimage in Surrey, ii., 164.[952]That the solar horse was sacred among the Ganganoi of Hibernia is probable, for: “On that great festival of the peasantry, St. John’s Eve, it is the custom, at sunset on that evening, to kindle immense fires throughout the country, built like our bonfires, to a great height, the pile being composed of turf, bogwood, and such other combustibles as they can gather. The turf yields a steady, substantial body of fire, the bogwood a most brilliant flame: and the effect of these great beacons blazing on every hill, sending up volumes of smoke from every part of the horizon, is very remarkable. Early in the evening the peasants began to assemble, all habited in their best array, glowing with health, every countenance full of that sparkling animation and excess of enjoyment that characterise the enthusiastic people of the land. I had never seen anything resembling it: and was exceedingly delighted with their handsome, intelligent, merry faces; the bold bearing of the men, and the playful, but really modest deportment of the maidens; the vivacity of the aged people, and the wild glee of the children. The fire being kindled, a splendid blaze shot up; and for a while they stood contemplating it, with faces strangely disfigured by the peculiar light first emitted when the bogwood is thrown on. After a short pause, the ground was cleared in front of an old blind piper, the very beau-ideal of energy, drollery, and shrewdness, who, seated on a low chair, with a well-plenished jug within his reach, screwed his pipes to the liveliest tunes and the endless jig began.“But something was to follow that puzzled me not a little. When the fire burned for some hours, and got low, an indispensable part of the ceremony commenced. Every one present of the peasantry passed through it, and several children were thrown across the sparkling embers; while a wooden frame of some 8 feet long, with a horse’s head fixed to one end, and a large white sheet thrown over it, concealing the wood and the man on whose head it was carried, made its appearance. This was greeted with loud shouts as the ‘white horse’; and having been safely carried by the skill of its bearer several times through the fire with a bold leap, it pursued the people, who ran screaming and laughing in every direction. I asked what the horse was meant for, and was told it represented all cattle.“Here was the old pagan worship of Baal, if not of Moloch too, carried on openly and universally in the heart of a nominally Christian country, and by millions professing the Christian name! I was confounded; for I did not then know that Popery is only a crafty adaptation of pagan idolatries to its own scheme; and while I looked upon the now wildly excited people, with their children and, in a figure, all their cattle passing again and again through the fire, I almost questioned in my own mind the lawfulness of the spectacle, considered in the light that the Bible must, even to the natural heart, exhibit it in to those who confess the true God.â€â€”Elizabeth, Charlotte,Personal Recollections, quoted from “S. M.â€Sketches of Irish History, 1845.[953]The Religion of Ancient Britain, p. 28.[954]Prehistoric London, p. 137.[955]Man the Primeval Savage, p. 328.[956]Ibid., p. 66.[957]Archæologia, i., 29.[958]Le donseilprobably here meansdonsol, orlord sun. Adonis and all the other Sun lords were supposed to have beep born in a cave on 25th December. We have seen that Michael’s Mount (family name St. Levan), was known alternatively asdinsol.[959]Adams, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 183.[960]Ægean Archæologia, p. 156.[961]Mr. and Mrs. Hawes,Crete the Forerunner of Greece, p. 65.[962]Myths of Crete and Pre-Hellenic Europe, p. 183.[963]“Herodotus inBook VIII. says that the ancients worshipped the Gods and Genii of any place under the form of serpents. ‘Set up,’ says some one in Persius’Satires(No. 1), ‘some marks of reverence such as the painting of two serpents to let boys know that the place is sacred.’â€â€”Seymour, F.,Up Hill and Down Dale in Ancient Etruria, p. 237.[964]Johnson, W.,Byways, p. 304.[965]Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society, 1869.[966]MacKenzie, D. A.,Myths of Crete, p. 138.[967]Light of Britannia, p. 200.[968]Cf. Percy Reliques(Everyman’s Library), p. 21.[969]The Baron’s Cave at Reigate is “about 150 feet long†(ante,p. 799).[970]Percy Reliques, p. 20.[971]Hawes,Crete the Forerunner of Greece, p. 125.[972]The Cornish Riviera, p. 265.[973]H. O. F.,St. George for England, p. 15.[974]A Pilgrimage in Surrey, ii., 177.[975]At Bristol is White Lady’s Road.[976]The curious name Newlove occurs as one of the erstwhile owners of the Margate grotto: the Lovelace family, for whose name the authorities offer no suggestions except that it is a corruption of the depressing Loveless, probably either once worshipped or acted the Lovelass. This conjecture has in its favour the fact that “many of our surnames are undoubtedly derived from characters assumed in dramatic performances and popular festivitiesâ€.—Weekley, A. B.,The Romance of Names, p. 197. “To this class belong many surnames which have the form of abstract nouns,e.g.,charity,verity,virtue,vice. Of similar origin are perhaps,bliss, chance, luck, andgoodluck.â€â€”Ibid., p. 197.[977]With the old English custom of burying the dead in roses, and with the tradition that at times a white lady with a red rose in her mouth used to appear at Pendeencave (Courtney, Miss M. L.,Cornish Feasts and Folklore, p. 9), in Cornwall may be connoted the statement of Bunsen: “The PhÅ“nicians had a grand flower show in which they hung chaplets and bunches of roses in their temples, andon the statue of the goddess Athenawhich is only a feminine form of Then or Thorn†(cf.Theta,The Thorn Tree, p. 40). The probability is that not only was the rose sacred to Athene but that Danes Elder (Sambucus ebulus), and Danes flower (Anemone pulsutilla) had no original reference to the Danes, but to the far older Dane, or donna, the white Lady. Bothdonanddanare used in English, as the equivalent ofdominus, whence Shakespeare’s reference to Dan Cupid.[978]Adams, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 177.[979]Davidson, P.,The Mistletoe and its Philosophy, p. 51.[980]The term Christ is interpreted as “the anointedâ€.[981]Akerman, J. Y.,Ancient Coins, p. 25.[982]We shall consider Robin Hood whom the authorities already equate with Odin in a subsequent chapter. In Robin Hood’s Cave have been discovered remains of paleolithic Art representing a horse’s head. In Kent the ceremony of the Hooden Horse used until recently to survive, and the same Hood or Odin may possibly be responsible for “Woodstockâ€.[983]Crutched Friars in London marks the site of a priory of the freres of the Crutch or Crouch.[984]The Sancreedchalice may be connoted ideally and philologically with the Sangraal, Provençalgradal: the apparition of a child in connection with the graal or gradal also permits the equationgradal=cradle. At Llandudno is the stone entitledcryd Tudno, i.e., the cradle of Tudno.[985]Cyclops, p. 137[986]The Mistletoe and its Philosophy, p. 31.[987]“The young people being all assembled in a large meadow, the village band strikes up a simple but lively air, and marches forward, followed by the whole assemblage, leading hand-in-hand (or more closely linked in case of engaged couples) the whole keeping time to the tune with a lively step. The band or head of the serpent keeps marching in an ever-narrowing circle, whilst its train of dancing followers becomes coiled around it in circle after circle. It is now that the most interesting part of the dance commences, for the band, taking a sharp turn about, begins to retrace the circle, still followed as before, and a number of young men with long, leafy branches in their hands as standards, direct this counter-movement with almost military precision.â€â€”Cf.Courtney, Miss M. L.,Cornish Feasts and Folklore, p. 39.[988]The name Kent here appears to be of immemorial antiquity, and was apparently first printed in a 1769 map which shows “Kent’s Hole Fieldâ€.[989]Num. xxiv. 21.[990]In modern Egyptiankunjeymeanskinship.[991]1 Sam. xv. 6.[992]Adam, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 167.[993]Adams, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 163.[994]Usher, Dr. J.,A Discourse on the Religion Anciently Professed by the Irish and British, p. 77.[995]At the foot of this emblem the designer has introduced an intreccia or Solomon’s knot between his initials R. S.
[905]Walford, E.,Greater London, ii., 95.
[905]Walford, E.,Greater London, ii., 95.
[906]Mottingham, anciently Modingham, is supposed to be from Saxonmodig, proud or lofty, andham, a dwelling. Johnstone derives it as, “Enclosure of Moding,†or “of the Sons of Mod or Motâ€. We may assume these people were followers of the Maid, and that Mottingham was equivalent to Maiden’s Home.
[906]Mottingham, anciently Modingham, is supposed to be from Saxonmodig, proud or lofty, andham, a dwelling. Johnstone derives it as, “Enclosure of Moding,†or “of the Sons of Mod or Motâ€. We may assume these people were followers of the Maid, and that Mottingham was equivalent to Maiden’s Home.
[907]Mackenzie, D. A.,Myths of Crete, p. xlvi.
[907]Mackenzie, D. A.,Myths of Crete, p. xlvi.
[908]Borlase, Wm.,Antiquities of Cornwall, p. 296.
[908]Borlase, Wm.,Antiquities of Cornwall, p. 296.
[909]Cliff Castles, p. 33.
[909]Cliff Castles, p. 33.
[910]Cf.Baring-Gould,Cliff Castles.
[910]Cf.Baring-Gould,Cliff Castles.
[911]Chislehurst is supposed to mean the pebble hurst or wood, but Chislehurst is on chalk and is less pebbly than many places adjacent: at Chislehurst is White Horse Hill: Nantjizzel orjizzle valley, in Cornwall, is close to Carn Voel,aliasthe Diamond House, and thus, I am inclined to think that Chislehurst was a selhurst or selli’s wood sacred to Chi the great Jehu.
[911]Chislehurst is supposed to mean the pebble hurst or wood, but Chislehurst is on chalk and is less pebbly than many places adjacent: at Chislehurst is White Horse Hill: Nantjizzel orjizzle valley, in Cornwall, is close to Carn Voel,aliasthe Diamond House, and thus, I am inclined to think that Chislehurst was a selhurst or selli’s wood sacred to Chi the great Jehu.
[912]Adams, W. H. A.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 90.
[912]Adams, W. H. A.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 90.
[913]Spence L.,Myths of Mexico and Peru, p. 293.
[913]Spence L.,Myths of Mexico and Peru, p. 293.
[914]In 1867 Mr. Roach Smith published the following description: “The ground plan of the caves was like a six-leaved flower diverging from the central cup which is represented by the shaft. The central cave of each three is about 14 yards long and about 6 yards high. The side caves are smaller, about 7 yards long and 2 yards wide. The section is rather singular: taken from end to end the roof line is horizontal: but the floor rises at the end of the cave so that a sketch of the section from end to end of the two principal caves is like the outline of a boat, the shaft being in the position of the mainmast. The section across the cave is like the outline of an egg made to stand on its broader end. They are all hewn out of the chalk, the tool marks, like those which would be made by a pick, being still visible.â€â€”Archæologia, i., 32.Dr. Munro states: “They are usually found on the higher ground of the lower reaches of the Thames ... in fact, North Kent and South Essex appear to be studded with them.â€â€”Prehistoric Britain, p. 222.
[914]In 1867 Mr. Roach Smith published the following description: “The ground plan of the caves was like a six-leaved flower diverging from the central cup which is represented by the shaft. The central cave of each three is about 14 yards long and about 6 yards high. The side caves are smaller, about 7 yards long and 2 yards wide. The section is rather singular: taken from end to end the roof line is horizontal: but the floor rises at the end of the cave so that a sketch of the section from end to end of the two principal caves is like the outline of a boat, the shaft being in the position of the mainmast. The section across the cave is like the outline of an egg made to stand on its broader end. They are all hewn out of the chalk, the tool marks, like those which would be made by a pick, being still visible.â€â€”Archæologia, i., 32.
Dr. Munro states: “They are usually found on the higher ground of the lower reaches of the Thames ... in fact, North Kent and South Essex appear to be studded with them.â€â€”Prehistoric Britain, p. 222.
[915]Nat. Hist., lib. xvii., cap. viii.
[915]Nat. Hist., lib. xvii., cap. viii.
[916]Part I.
[916]Part I.
[917]One of the most characteristic symbols of the Ægean is St. Andrew’s Cross: I have suggested that the Scotch Hendrie meantancient drieordrew, and it is not without significance that tradition closely connects St. Andrews in Scotland with the Ægean. The legend runs that St. Rule arrived at St. Andrews bringing with him a precious relic—no less than Sanct Androwis Arme. “This Reule,†continues the annalist, “was ane monk of Grece born in Achaia and abbot in the town of Patrasâ€â€”Simpkins, J. E.,Fife, Country Folklore, vol. vli., p. 243.
[917]One of the most characteristic symbols of the Ægean is St. Andrew’s Cross: I have suggested that the Scotch Hendrie meantancient drieordrew, and it is not without significance that tradition closely connects St. Andrews in Scotland with the Ægean. The legend runs that St. Rule arrived at St. Andrews bringing with him a precious relic—no less than Sanct Androwis Arme. “This Reule,†continues the annalist, “was ane monk of Grece born in Achaia and abbot in the town of Patrasâ€â€”Simpkins, J. E.,Fife, Country Folklore, vol. vli., p. 243.
[918]The Gnostics and their Remains, p. 72.
[918]The Gnostics and their Remains, p. 72.
[919]“It is certain that ancient caves do exist in Palestine which in form and circumstance, and to some extent also in decoration, approximate so nearly to the Royston Cave that if any historical connection could be established between them, it would scarcely seem doubtful that the one is a copy of the other.â€â€”Beldam, J.,The Royston Cave, p. 24. According to the same authority there are indications at the Royston Cave “of an extreme and primeval antiquity,†and he adds, “it bears, indeed, a strong resemblance in form and dimension to the ancient British habitation; and certain marks and decorations in its oldest parts such as indentations and punctures, giving a diapered appearance to the surface, are very similar to what is seen in confessedly Druidical and PhÅ“nician structures,†p. 22.
[919]“It is certain that ancient caves do exist in Palestine which in form and circumstance, and to some extent also in decoration, approximate so nearly to the Royston Cave that if any historical connection could be established between them, it would scarcely seem doubtful that the one is a copy of the other.â€â€”Beldam, J.,The Royston Cave, p. 24. According to the same authority there are indications at the Royston Cave “of an extreme and primeval antiquity,†and he adds, “it bears, indeed, a strong resemblance in form and dimension to the ancient British habitation; and certain marks and decorations in its oldest parts such as indentations and punctures, giving a diapered appearance to the surface, are very similar to what is seen in confessedly Druidical and PhÅ“nician structures,†p. 22.
[920]Beldam, J.,The Royston Cave, p. 24.
[920]Beldam, J.,The Royston Cave, p. 24.
[921]In Caledonia dovecots ordoocatsare still superstitiously maintained: there may be a connection betweendoocatand the “Dowgate†Hill which neighbours the present Cathedral of St. Paul.
[921]In Caledonia dovecots ordoocatsare still superstitiously maintained: there may be a connection betweendoocatand the “Dowgate†Hill which neighbours the present Cathedral of St. Paul.
[922]Nichols, W. J.,The Chislehurst Caves and Dene Holes, p. 5.
[922]Nichols, W. J.,The Chislehurst Caves and Dene Holes, p. 5.
[923]Walford, E.,Greater London, ii., 127.
[923]Walford, E.,Greater London, ii., 127.
[924]Ibid., p. 131.
[924]Ibid., p. 131.
[925]Goddard, A. R.,Essex Archæological Society’s Transactions, vol. vii., 1899.
[925]Goddard, A. R.,Essex Archæological Society’s Transactions, vol. vii., 1899.
[926]Courtois,Dictionaire Geographique de l’Arrondissement de Saint Omer, p. 156.
[926]Courtois,Dictionaire Geographique de l’Arrondissement de Saint Omer, p. 156.
[927]Wilson, J. G.,Gazetteer, i., 1044.
[927]Wilson, J. G.,Gazetteer, i., 1044.
[928]Eckenstein, L.,Comparative Studies in Nursery Rhymes, p. 154.
[928]Eckenstein, L.,Comparative Studies in Nursery Rhymes, p. 154.
[929]Dan or Don is one of the main European root river names; it occurs notably in the story of theDanaides who carried water in broken urns to fill a bottomless vessel, and again inDanaus who is said to have relieved Argos from drought.
[929]Dan or Don is one of the main European root river names; it occurs notably in the story of theDanaides who carried water in broken urns to fill a bottomless vessel, and again inDanaus who is said to have relieved Argos from drought.
[930]P. 242.
[930]P. 242.
[931]Herbert, A.,Cyclops, p. 154.
[931]Herbert, A.,Cyclops, p. 154.
[932]Wright, T.,Patrick’s Purgatory, p. 162.
[932]Wright, T.,Patrick’s Purgatory, p. 162.
[933]Ibid., p. 231.
[933]Ibid., p. 231.
[934]Travels in the East, p. 2.
[934]Travels in the East, p. 2.
[935]“This was theroundchurch of St. Mary, divided into two stories by slabs of stone; in the upper part are four altars; on the eastern side below there is another, and to the right of it an empty tomb of stone, in which the Virgin Mary is said to have been buried; but who moved her body, or when this took place, no one can say. On entering this chamber, you see on the right-hand side a stone inserted in the wall, on which Christ knelt when He prayed on the night in which He was betrayed; and the marks of His knees are still seen on the stone, as if it had been as soft as wax.â€
[935]“This was theroundchurch of St. Mary, divided into two stories by slabs of stone; in the upper part are four altars; on the eastern side below there is another, and to the right of it an empty tomb of stone, in which the Virgin Mary is said to have been buried; but who moved her body, or when this took place, no one can say. On entering this chamber, you see on the right-hand side a stone inserted in the wall, on which Christ knelt when He prayed on the night in which He was betrayed; and the marks of His knees are still seen on the stone, as if it had been as soft as wax.â€
[936]Wright comments upon this: “Dr. Clarke is the only modern traveller who has given any notice of these subterranean chambers or pits, which he supposes to have been ancient places of idolatrous worshipâ€.
[936]Wright comments upon this: “Dr. Clarke is the only modern traveller who has given any notice of these subterranean chambers or pits, which he supposes to have been ancient places of idolatrous worshipâ€.
[937]Cf.Baring-Gould,Curious Legends, p. 238.
[937]Cf.Baring-Gould,Curious Legends, p. 238.
[938]Mysteries of the Cabiri, ii., 393.
[938]Mysteries of the Cabiri, ii., 393.
[939]Cf.Herbert, A.,Cyclops, p. 155.
[939]Cf.Herbert, A.,Cyclops, p. 155.
[940]Ibid., p. 154.
[940]Ibid., p. 154.
[941]It is not improbable that the Pied Piper incident was actually enacted annually at the Koppenburg, and that the children of Hamelyn were given the treat of being taken through some brilliantly lit cavern “joining the town and close at handâ€. Whether the Koppenburg contains any grottos I am unable to say.
[941]It is not improbable that the Pied Piper incident was actually enacted annually at the Koppenburg, and that the children of Hamelyn were given the treat of being taken through some brilliantly lit cavern “joining the town and close at handâ€. Whether the Koppenburg contains any grottos I am unable to say.
[942]Cyclops, p. 156.
[942]Cyclops, p. 156.
[943]The authorities connect the surnames Kettle and Chettle with the Kettle or Cauldron of Norse mythology, whence Prof. Weekley writes: “The renowned Captain Kettle, described by his creator as a Welshman, must have descended from some hardy Norse pirateâ€. Why Norse? The wordkettle, Gaeliccadhal, is supposedly borrowed from the Latincatillus, a small bowl: the Greek for cup iskotulos, and it is probable thatkettleandcotyledonare alike radically Ket, Cot, or Cad. In Scotlandadhanmeant cauldron, whence Rust thinks that Edinbro or Dunedin was once a cauldron hill.
[943]The authorities connect the surnames Kettle and Chettle with the Kettle or Cauldron of Norse mythology, whence Prof. Weekley writes: “The renowned Captain Kettle, described by his creator as a Welshman, must have descended from some hardy Norse pirateâ€. Why Norse? The wordkettle, Gaeliccadhal, is supposedly borrowed from the Latincatillus, a small bowl: the Greek for cup iskotulos, and it is probable thatkettleandcotyledonare alike radically Ket, Cot, or Cad. In Scotlandadhanmeant cauldron, whence Rust thinks that Edinbro or Dunedin was once a cauldron hill.
[944]Sandringham, near King’s Lynn, appeared in Domesday as Sandersincham: upon this Johnston comments, “Curious corruption. This is ‘Holy Dersingham, as compared with the next parish Dersingham. Frenchsaint, Latinsanctus, Holy.â€
[944]Sandringham, near King’s Lynn, appeared in Domesday as Sandersincham: upon this Johnston comments, “Curious corruption. This is ‘Holy Dersingham, as compared with the next parish Dersingham. Frenchsaint, Latinsanctus, Holy.â€
[945]Ogilvie, J. S.,A Pilgrimage in Surrey, ii., 183.
[945]Ogilvie, J. S.,A Pilgrimage in Surrey, ii., 183.
[946]Ibid., p. 166.
[946]Ibid., p. 166.
[947]Ibid., p. 167. The italics are mine.
[947]Ibid., p. 167. The italics are mine.
[948]“The old Bourne stream, generally known as the ‘Surrey Woe Water,’ has already commenced to flow through Caterham Valley, and at the moment there is quite a strong current of water rushing through an outlet at Purley.“There are also pools along its course through Kenley, Whyteleafe, and Warlingham, which suggest that the stream is rising at its principal source, in the hills around Woldingham and Oxted, where it is thought there exists a huge natural underground reservoir, which, when full, syphons itself out at certain periods about every seven years.“Tradition says that when the Bourne flows ‘out of season’ or at irregular times it foretells some great calamity. It certainly made its appearance in a fairly heavy flow in three of the years of the war, but last year, which will always be historical for the declaration of the armistice and the prelude of peace, there was no flow at all.â€â€”The Star, 15th March, 1919.
[948]“The old Bourne stream, generally known as the ‘Surrey Woe Water,’ has already commenced to flow through Caterham Valley, and at the moment there is quite a strong current of water rushing through an outlet at Purley.
“There are also pools along its course through Kenley, Whyteleafe, and Warlingham, which suggest that the stream is rising at its principal source, in the hills around Woldingham and Oxted, where it is thought there exists a huge natural underground reservoir, which, when full, syphons itself out at certain periods about every seven years.
“Tradition says that when the Bourne flows ‘out of season’ or at irregular times it foretells some great calamity. It certainly made its appearance in a fairly heavy flow in three of the years of the war, but last year, which will always be historical for the declaration of the armistice and the prelude of peace, there was no flow at all.â€â€”The Star, 15th March, 1919.
[949]“Archæologia†(fromThe Gentleman’s Magazine), i., 283.
[949]“Archæologia†(fromThe Gentleman’s Magazine), i., 283.
[950]Cf.Johnson, W.,Byeways, pp. 411, 417.
[950]Cf.Johnson, W.,Byeways, pp. 411, 417.
[951]Ogilvy, J. S.,A Pilgrimage in Surrey, ii., 164.
[951]Ogilvy, J. S.,A Pilgrimage in Surrey, ii., 164.
[952]That the solar horse was sacred among the Ganganoi of Hibernia is probable, for: “On that great festival of the peasantry, St. John’s Eve, it is the custom, at sunset on that evening, to kindle immense fires throughout the country, built like our bonfires, to a great height, the pile being composed of turf, bogwood, and such other combustibles as they can gather. The turf yields a steady, substantial body of fire, the bogwood a most brilliant flame: and the effect of these great beacons blazing on every hill, sending up volumes of smoke from every part of the horizon, is very remarkable. Early in the evening the peasants began to assemble, all habited in their best array, glowing with health, every countenance full of that sparkling animation and excess of enjoyment that characterise the enthusiastic people of the land. I had never seen anything resembling it: and was exceedingly delighted with their handsome, intelligent, merry faces; the bold bearing of the men, and the playful, but really modest deportment of the maidens; the vivacity of the aged people, and the wild glee of the children. The fire being kindled, a splendid blaze shot up; and for a while they stood contemplating it, with faces strangely disfigured by the peculiar light first emitted when the bogwood is thrown on. After a short pause, the ground was cleared in front of an old blind piper, the very beau-ideal of energy, drollery, and shrewdness, who, seated on a low chair, with a well-plenished jug within his reach, screwed his pipes to the liveliest tunes and the endless jig began.“But something was to follow that puzzled me not a little. When the fire burned for some hours, and got low, an indispensable part of the ceremony commenced. Every one present of the peasantry passed through it, and several children were thrown across the sparkling embers; while a wooden frame of some 8 feet long, with a horse’s head fixed to one end, and a large white sheet thrown over it, concealing the wood and the man on whose head it was carried, made its appearance. This was greeted with loud shouts as the ‘white horse’; and having been safely carried by the skill of its bearer several times through the fire with a bold leap, it pursued the people, who ran screaming and laughing in every direction. I asked what the horse was meant for, and was told it represented all cattle.“Here was the old pagan worship of Baal, if not of Moloch too, carried on openly and universally in the heart of a nominally Christian country, and by millions professing the Christian name! I was confounded; for I did not then know that Popery is only a crafty adaptation of pagan idolatries to its own scheme; and while I looked upon the now wildly excited people, with their children and, in a figure, all their cattle passing again and again through the fire, I almost questioned in my own mind the lawfulness of the spectacle, considered in the light that the Bible must, even to the natural heart, exhibit it in to those who confess the true God.â€â€”Elizabeth, Charlotte,Personal Recollections, quoted from “S. M.â€Sketches of Irish History, 1845.
[952]That the solar horse was sacred among the Ganganoi of Hibernia is probable, for: “On that great festival of the peasantry, St. John’s Eve, it is the custom, at sunset on that evening, to kindle immense fires throughout the country, built like our bonfires, to a great height, the pile being composed of turf, bogwood, and such other combustibles as they can gather. The turf yields a steady, substantial body of fire, the bogwood a most brilliant flame: and the effect of these great beacons blazing on every hill, sending up volumes of smoke from every part of the horizon, is very remarkable. Early in the evening the peasants began to assemble, all habited in their best array, glowing with health, every countenance full of that sparkling animation and excess of enjoyment that characterise the enthusiastic people of the land. I had never seen anything resembling it: and was exceedingly delighted with their handsome, intelligent, merry faces; the bold bearing of the men, and the playful, but really modest deportment of the maidens; the vivacity of the aged people, and the wild glee of the children. The fire being kindled, a splendid blaze shot up; and for a while they stood contemplating it, with faces strangely disfigured by the peculiar light first emitted when the bogwood is thrown on. After a short pause, the ground was cleared in front of an old blind piper, the very beau-ideal of energy, drollery, and shrewdness, who, seated on a low chair, with a well-plenished jug within his reach, screwed his pipes to the liveliest tunes and the endless jig began.
“But something was to follow that puzzled me not a little. When the fire burned for some hours, and got low, an indispensable part of the ceremony commenced. Every one present of the peasantry passed through it, and several children were thrown across the sparkling embers; while a wooden frame of some 8 feet long, with a horse’s head fixed to one end, and a large white sheet thrown over it, concealing the wood and the man on whose head it was carried, made its appearance. This was greeted with loud shouts as the ‘white horse’; and having been safely carried by the skill of its bearer several times through the fire with a bold leap, it pursued the people, who ran screaming and laughing in every direction. I asked what the horse was meant for, and was told it represented all cattle.
“Here was the old pagan worship of Baal, if not of Moloch too, carried on openly and universally in the heart of a nominally Christian country, and by millions professing the Christian name! I was confounded; for I did not then know that Popery is only a crafty adaptation of pagan idolatries to its own scheme; and while I looked upon the now wildly excited people, with their children and, in a figure, all their cattle passing again and again through the fire, I almost questioned in my own mind the lawfulness of the spectacle, considered in the light that the Bible must, even to the natural heart, exhibit it in to those who confess the true God.â€â€”Elizabeth, Charlotte,Personal Recollections, quoted from “S. M.â€Sketches of Irish History, 1845.
[953]The Religion of Ancient Britain, p. 28.
[953]The Religion of Ancient Britain, p. 28.
[954]Prehistoric London, p. 137.
[954]Prehistoric London, p. 137.
[955]Man the Primeval Savage, p. 328.
[955]Man the Primeval Savage, p. 328.
[956]Ibid., p. 66.
[956]Ibid., p. 66.
[957]Archæologia, i., 29.
[957]Archæologia, i., 29.
[958]Le donseilprobably here meansdonsol, orlord sun. Adonis and all the other Sun lords were supposed to have beep born in a cave on 25th December. We have seen that Michael’s Mount (family name St. Levan), was known alternatively asdinsol.
[958]Le donseilprobably here meansdonsol, orlord sun. Adonis and all the other Sun lords were supposed to have beep born in a cave on 25th December. We have seen that Michael’s Mount (family name St. Levan), was known alternatively asdinsol.
[959]Adams, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 183.
[959]Adams, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 183.
[960]Ægean Archæologia, p. 156.
[960]Ægean Archæologia, p. 156.
[961]Mr. and Mrs. Hawes,Crete the Forerunner of Greece, p. 65.
[961]Mr. and Mrs. Hawes,Crete the Forerunner of Greece, p. 65.
[962]Myths of Crete and Pre-Hellenic Europe, p. 183.
[962]Myths of Crete and Pre-Hellenic Europe, p. 183.
[963]“Herodotus inBook VIII. says that the ancients worshipped the Gods and Genii of any place under the form of serpents. ‘Set up,’ says some one in Persius’Satires(No. 1), ‘some marks of reverence such as the painting of two serpents to let boys know that the place is sacred.’â€â€”Seymour, F.,Up Hill and Down Dale in Ancient Etruria, p. 237.
[963]“Herodotus inBook VIII. says that the ancients worshipped the Gods and Genii of any place under the form of serpents. ‘Set up,’ says some one in Persius’Satires(No. 1), ‘some marks of reverence such as the painting of two serpents to let boys know that the place is sacred.’â€â€”Seymour, F.,Up Hill and Down Dale in Ancient Etruria, p. 237.
[964]Johnson, W.,Byways, p. 304.
[964]Johnson, W.,Byways, p. 304.
[965]Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society, 1869.
[965]Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society, 1869.
[966]MacKenzie, D. A.,Myths of Crete, p. 138.
[966]MacKenzie, D. A.,Myths of Crete, p. 138.
[967]Light of Britannia, p. 200.
[967]Light of Britannia, p. 200.
[968]Cf. Percy Reliques(Everyman’s Library), p. 21.
[968]Cf. Percy Reliques(Everyman’s Library), p. 21.
[969]The Baron’s Cave at Reigate is “about 150 feet long†(ante,p. 799).
[969]The Baron’s Cave at Reigate is “about 150 feet long†(ante,p. 799).
[970]Percy Reliques, p. 20.
[970]Percy Reliques, p. 20.
[971]Hawes,Crete the Forerunner of Greece, p. 125.
[971]Hawes,Crete the Forerunner of Greece, p. 125.
[972]The Cornish Riviera, p. 265.
[972]The Cornish Riviera, p. 265.
[973]H. O. F.,St. George for England, p. 15.
[973]H. O. F.,St. George for England, p. 15.
[974]A Pilgrimage in Surrey, ii., 177.
[974]A Pilgrimage in Surrey, ii., 177.
[975]At Bristol is White Lady’s Road.
[975]At Bristol is White Lady’s Road.
[976]The curious name Newlove occurs as one of the erstwhile owners of the Margate grotto: the Lovelace family, for whose name the authorities offer no suggestions except that it is a corruption of the depressing Loveless, probably either once worshipped or acted the Lovelass. This conjecture has in its favour the fact that “many of our surnames are undoubtedly derived from characters assumed in dramatic performances and popular festivitiesâ€.—Weekley, A. B.,The Romance of Names, p. 197. “To this class belong many surnames which have the form of abstract nouns,e.g.,charity,verity,virtue,vice. Of similar origin are perhaps,bliss, chance, luck, andgoodluck.â€â€”Ibid., p. 197.
[976]The curious name Newlove occurs as one of the erstwhile owners of the Margate grotto: the Lovelace family, for whose name the authorities offer no suggestions except that it is a corruption of the depressing Loveless, probably either once worshipped or acted the Lovelass. This conjecture has in its favour the fact that “many of our surnames are undoubtedly derived from characters assumed in dramatic performances and popular festivitiesâ€.—Weekley, A. B.,The Romance of Names, p. 197. “To this class belong many surnames which have the form of abstract nouns,e.g.,charity,verity,virtue,vice. Of similar origin are perhaps,bliss, chance, luck, andgoodluck.â€â€”Ibid., p. 197.
[977]With the old English custom of burying the dead in roses, and with the tradition that at times a white lady with a red rose in her mouth used to appear at Pendeencave (Courtney, Miss M. L.,Cornish Feasts and Folklore, p. 9), in Cornwall may be connoted the statement of Bunsen: “The Phœnicians had a grand flower show in which they hung chaplets and bunches of roses in their temples, andon the statue of the goddess Athenawhich is only a feminine form of Then or Thorn†(cf.Theta,The Thorn Tree, p. 40). The probability is that not only was the rose sacred to Athene but that Danes Elder (Sambucus ebulus), and Danes flower (Anemone pulsutilla) had no original reference to the Danes, but to the far older Dane, or donna, the white Lady. Bothdonanddanare used in English, as the equivalent ofdominus, whence Shakespeare’s reference to Dan Cupid.
[977]With the old English custom of burying the dead in roses, and with the tradition that at times a white lady with a red rose in her mouth used to appear at Pendeencave (Courtney, Miss M. L.,Cornish Feasts and Folklore, p. 9), in Cornwall may be connoted the statement of Bunsen: “The Phœnicians had a grand flower show in which they hung chaplets and bunches of roses in their temples, andon the statue of the goddess Athenawhich is only a feminine form of Then or Thorn†(cf.Theta,The Thorn Tree, p. 40). The probability is that not only was the rose sacred to Athene but that Danes Elder (Sambucus ebulus), and Danes flower (Anemone pulsutilla) had no original reference to the Danes, but to the far older Dane, or donna, the white Lady. Bothdonanddanare used in English, as the equivalent ofdominus, whence Shakespeare’s reference to Dan Cupid.
[978]Adams, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 177.
[978]Adams, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 177.
[979]Davidson, P.,The Mistletoe and its Philosophy, p. 51.
[979]Davidson, P.,The Mistletoe and its Philosophy, p. 51.
[980]The term Christ is interpreted as “the anointedâ€.
[980]The term Christ is interpreted as “the anointedâ€.
[981]Akerman, J. Y.,Ancient Coins, p. 25.
[981]Akerman, J. Y.,Ancient Coins, p. 25.
[982]We shall consider Robin Hood whom the authorities already equate with Odin in a subsequent chapter. In Robin Hood’s Cave have been discovered remains of paleolithic Art representing a horse’s head. In Kent the ceremony of the Hooden Horse used until recently to survive, and the same Hood or Odin may possibly be responsible for “Woodstockâ€.
[982]We shall consider Robin Hood whom the authorities already equate with Odin in a subsequent chapter. In Robin Hood’s Cave have been discovered remains of paleolithic Art representing a horse’s head. In Kent the ceremony of the Hooden Horse used until recently to survive, and the same Hood or Odin may possibly be responsible for “Woodstockâ€.
[983]Crutched Friars in London marks the site of a priory of the freres of the Crutch or Crouch.
[983]Crutched Friars in London marks the site of a priory of the freres of the Crutch or Crouch.
[984]The Sancreedchalice may be connoted ideally and philologically with the Sangraal, Provençalgradal: the apparition of a child in connection with the graal or gradal also permits the equationgradal=cradle. At Llandudno is the stone entitledcryd Tudno, i.e., the cradle of Tudno.
[984]The Sancreedchalice may be connoted ideally and philologically with the Sangraal, Provençalgradal: the apparition of a child in connection with the graal or gradal also permits the equationgradal=cradle. At Llandudno is the stone entitledcryd Tudno, i.e., the cradle of Tudno.
[985]Cyclops, p. 137
[985]Cyclops, p. 137
[986]The Mistletoe and its Philosophy, p. 31.
[986]The Mistletoe and its Philosophy, p. 31.
[987]“The young people being all assembled in a large meadow, the village band strikes up a simple but lively air, and marches forward, followed by the whole assemblage, leading hand-in-hand (or more closely linked in case of engaged couples) the whole keeping time to the tune with a lively step. The band or head of the serpent keeps marching in an ever-narrowing circle, whilst its train of dancing followers becomes coiled around it in circle after circle. It is now that the most interesting part of the dance commences, for the band, taking a sharp turn about, begins to retrace the circle, still followed as before, and a number of young men with long, leafy branches in their hands as standards, direct this counter-movement with almost military precision.â€â€”Cf.Courtney, Miss M. L.,Cornish Feasts and Folklore, p. 39.
[987]“The young people being all assembled in a large meadow, the village band strikes up a simple but lively air, and marches forward, followed by the whole assemblage, leading hand-in-hand (or more closely linked in case of engaged couples) the whole keeping time to the tune with a lively step. The band or head of the serpent keeps marching in an ever-narrowing circle, whilst its train of dancing followers becomes coiled around it in circle after circle. It is now that the most interesting part of the dance commences, for the band, taking a sharp turn about, begins to retrace the circle, still followed as before, and a number of young men with long, leafy branches in their hands as standards, direct this counter-movement with almost military precision.â€â€”Cf.Courtney, Miss M. L.,Cornish Feasts and Folklore, p. 39.
[988]The name Kent here appears to be of immemorial antiquity, and was apparently first printed in a 1769 map which shows “Kent’s Hole Fieldâ€.
[988]The name Kent here appears to be of immemorial antiquity, and was apparently first printed in a 1769 map which shows “Kent’s Hole Fieldâ€.
[989]Num. xxiv. 21.
[989]Num. xxiv. 21.
[990]In modern Egyptiankunjeymeanskinship.
[990]In modern Egyptiankunjeymeanskinship.
[991]1 Sam. xv. 6.
[991]1 Sam. xv. 6.
[992]Adam, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 167.
[992]Adam, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 167.
[993]Adams, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 163.
[993]Adams, W. H. D.,Famous Caves and Catacombs, p. 163.
[994]Usher, Dr. J.,A Discourse on the Religion Anciently Professed by the Irish and British, p. 77.
[994]Usher, Dr. J.,A Discourse on the Religion Anciently Professed by the Irish and British, p. 77.
[995]At the foot of this emblem the designer has introduced an intreccia or Solomon’s knot between his initials R. S.
[995]At the foot of this emblem the designer has introduced an intreccia or Solomon’s knot between his initials R. S.
“I can affirm that I have brought it from an utter darknesse to a thin mist, and have gonne further than any man before me.â€â€”John Aubrey.
“But for my part I freely declare myself at a loss what to say to things so much obscured by their distant antiquity; and you, when you read these conjectures, will plainly perceive that I have only groped in the dark.â€â€”Camden.
Fig.484.—FromMythology of the Celtic Races(Rolleston, T. W.).
Fig.484.—FromMythology of the Celtic Races(Rolleston, T. W.).
Fig.485.—Ibid.
Fig.485.—Ibid.
One may perhaps get a further sidelight on the marvellous labyrinthic cave temples of the ancients by a reference to the so-called worm-knots or cup-and-ring markings on cromlechs and menhirs. With regard to these sculptures Mr. T. W. Rolleston writes: “Another singular emblem, upon the meaning of which no light has yet been thrown, occurs frequently in connection with megalithic monuments. The accompanying illustrations show examples of it. Cup-shaped hollows are made in the surface of the stone, these are often surrounded with concentric rings, and from the cup one or more radial lines are drawn to a point outside the circumference of the rings. Occasionally a system of cups are joined by these lines, but more frequently they end a little way outside the widest of the rings. These strange markings are found in Great Britain and Ireland, in Brittany, and at various places in India, where they are calledmahadeos. I have also found a curious example—for such it appears to be—in Dupaix’Monuments of New Spain. It is reproduced in Lord Kingsborough’sAntiquities of Mexico, vol. lv. On the circular top of a cylindrical stone, known as the TriumphalStone, is carved a central cup, with nine concentric circles round it, and a duct or channel cut straight from the cup through all the circles to the rim. Except that the design here is richly decorated and accurately drawn, it closely resembles a typical European cup-and-ring marking. That these markings mean something, and that wherever they are found they mean the same thing, can hardly be doubted,but what that meaning is remains yet a puzzle to antiquarians. The guess may perhaps be hazarded that they are diagrams or plans of a megalithic sepulchre. The central hollow represents the actual burial-place. The circles are the standing stones, fosses, and ramparts which often surrounded it: and the line or duct drawn from the centre outwards represents the subterranean approach to the sepulchre. The apparent avenue intention of the duct is clearly brought out in the varieties given herewith, which I take from Simpson. As the sepulchre was also a holy place or shrine, the occurrence of a representation of it among other carvings of a sacred character is natural enough; it would seem symbolically to indicate that the place was holy ground. How far this suggestion might apply to the Mexican example I am unable to say.â€[996]
Mr. Rolleston is partially right in his idea that the designs are as it were ground plans of monuments, but that theory merely carries the point a step backward and the question remains—Why were monuments constructed in so involved and seemingly absurd a form? I hazard the conjecture that the Triumphal Stone with its central cup andnineconcentric circles was a symbol of Life, and of theninemonths requisite for the production of Human Life; that the duct or channel straight from the cup through all the circles to the rim implied the mystery of creation; and that the seemingly senseless meander of long passages was intended as a representation of the maw or stomach. That the Druids were practised physiologists is deducible from the complaint made against one of them, that he had dissected 600 bodies: the ancient anatomists might quite reasonably have traced Life to agerm or cell lying within a mazy and seemingly unending coil of viscera: we know that auguries were drawn from the condition of the entrails of sacrificial victims, whence originally the entrails were in all probability regarded as the seat of Life.Mahadeo, the Indian term for a worm-knot or cup-marking, resolves as it stands intomaha, great; anddeo, Goddess: our English wordmaw, meaning stomach, is evidently allied to the Hebrewmoi, meaning bowels; withmoeder, the Dutch for womb, may be connoted Mitra or Mithra, and perhaps Madura. It is well known that the chief Festival celebrated in the Indian cave temples at Madura and elsewhere is associated with thelingam, or emblem of sex, and it may be assumed that the invariable sixfold form of the Kentish dene holes was connected in some way with sex worship. The wordsixis for some reason, which I am unable to surmise, identical with the wordsex: the Chaldees—who were probably not unconnected with the “pure Culdees†of Caledonia—taught that Man, male and female, was formed upon thesixthday: Orpheus calls the numbersix, “Father of the celestial and mortal powers,†and, says Davidson, “these considerations are derived from the doctrine of Numbers which was highly venerated by the Druidsâ€.[997]Six columbas centring in the womb of the Virgin Mary were illustrated on page 790, and it will probably prove thatcolumbameant holy womb, just asculverseemingly meant holy ovary.