Druids

Anne Ross examines the Druids as religious specialists within the Celtic world, considering their origins, authority and relationship with kings, warriors and wider society. The study brings together evidence from classical commentators, archaeology, and the vernacular literatures of Ireland and Wales, while acknowledging the limitations of those sources.

Topics include Druidic ideas about death and burial, the symbolic importance of the human head, assemblies and calendar festivals, and the Druids’ place in stories of the Fenians. Ross also traces connections between religious practice, folklore and later tradition, using Gaelic and Welsh material to challenge modern assumptions about who the Druids were and what they believed.