A look at the life of a Saxon lady
Last time, I told of the discovery of a Saxon lady who was buried,near to where I live, with her crystal ball.
140 years before her death,the ancestors of the lady with the crystal ball,the Jutes,believed to have come from Denmark,and the Frisians,from the coast of the Netherlands had arrived in England.
140 years before her death,the ancestors of the lady with the crystal ball,the Jutes,believed to have come from Denmark,and the Frisians,from the coast of the Netherlands had arrived in England.
As the Roman armies were withdrawn from Britain early in the 5th century, these new settlers were,effectively,their own masters,doing little to keep alive the legacy of the Romans.
Their language was their own and they replaced the stone buildings with those made of wood.
Their language was their own and they replaced the stone buildings with those made of wood.
She was pagan, and whilst her religion would have had similarities with the pre-Roman Celtic beliefs as well as the Scandinavian ones,the supreme deities of her faith were probably goddesses and not gods.
Nerthus, the earth mother,would have been the most important,it was she who looked after the well being of man and beast,Frija, with her associations of love and friendship,
Eostre, the goddess of dawn, spring and new life and Rheda the goddess of winter were amongst the others worshipped.
Nerthus, the earth mother,would have been the most important,it was she who looked after the well being of man and beast,Frija, with her associations of love and friendship,
Eostre, the goddess of dawn, spring and new life and Rheda the goddess of winter were amongst the others worshipped.
Of the gods,Woden,the lord of magic and leader of the Wild Hunt was the most important.
And so, a look at her possessions. The brooches, found with her,reveal to us that she was not of the poorer class, for these were used to clasp her woven woollen gown at the shoulders, whereas those not so wealthy would have had to stitch the garment together. The weaving batten, with the gold braid may have been a project she was working on, a new braid to keep her veil in place as she worshipped her goddesses.
Buckled belts, with personal items hanging from them ,keys, knives, amulets and pouches,and an abundance of jewelry were a common trend in this area of England.
Sometimes a pair of brooches would be used to pin a robe open, to show the undergarment and from one of these would hang a silver caged crystal ball, often with a perforated silver spoon. Although we do not know precisely what these items were used for, we can be fairly certain that they were for ritual use.
Buckled belts, with personal items hanging from them ,keys, knives, amulets and pouches,and an abundance of jewelry were a common trend in this area of England.
Sometimes a pair of brooches would be used to pin a robe open, to show the undergarment and from one of these would hang a silver caged crystal ball, often with a perforated silver spoon. Although we do not know precisely what these items were used for, we can be fairly certain that they were for ritual use.
But there will be no physical evidence of the temple or shrine she worshipped at, as these were not buildings but sacred places, a grove or a pool,for everywhere in England there are places bearing the names of the old gods.
And in the words of Tacitus we see how they perceived them……” They judge that gods cannot be contained inside walls nor can the greatness of the heavenly ones be represented in the likeness of any human face: they consecrate groves and woodland glades and call by the name of ‘gods’ that mystery which they only perceive by their sense of reverence.”
And in the words of Tacitus we see how they perceived them……” They judge that gods cannot be contained inside walls nor can the greatness of the heavenly ones be represented in the likeness of any human face: they consecrate groves and woodland glades and call by the name of ‘gods’ that mystery which they only perceive by their sense of reverence.”
No comments:
Post a Comment