Polybius was right up to a point", as around one third of surviving swords from the period might well
have behaved as he describes.[161] In addition to these long bladed slashing swords, spears and
specialized javelins were also used.[162]
Polybius also asserts that certain of the Celts fought naked, "The appearance of these naked warriors
was a terrifying spectacle, for they were all men of splendid physique and in the prime of
life."[163] According to Livy, this was also true of the Celts of Asia Minor.[164]
Head hunting
Stone head from Mšecké Žehrovice, Czech Republic, wearing a torc,
late La Tène culture, 150-50 BC
Celts had a reputation as head hunters.[165] Paul Jacobsthal says, "Amongst the Celts the human
head was venerated above all else, since the head was to the Celt the soul, centre of the emotions as
well as of life itself, a symbol of divinity and of the powers of the other-world."[166] Writing in the first
century BC, Greek historians Posidonius and Diodorus Siculus said Celtic warriors cut off the heads of
enemies slain in battle, hung them from the necks of their horses, then nailed them up outside their
homes.[165] Strabo wrote in the same century that Celts embalmed the heads of their most esteemed
enemies in cedar oil and put them on display.[165] Roman historian Livy wrote that the Boii beheaded a
defeated Roman general after the Battle of Silva Litana, covered his skull in gold, and used it as a ritual
cup.[165] Archaeologists have found evidence that heads were embalmed and displayed by the southern
Gauls.[167][168] In another example, at the southern Gaulish site of Entremont, there stood a pillar carved
with skulls, within which were niches where human skulls were kept, nailed into
position.[169] Roquepertuse nearby has similar carved heads and skull niches. Many lone carved heads
have been found in Celtic regions, some with two or three faces.[170] Examples include the Mšecké
Žehrovice Head and the Corleck Head.
Severed heads are a common motif in Insular Celtic myths, and there are many tales in which 'living
heads' preside over feasts or speak prophecies.[165][170] The beheading game is a motif in Irish myth and
Arthurian legend, most famously in the tale Sir Gawain and the Green Knight , where the Green
Knight picks up his own severed head after Gawain has struck it off. There are also many legends in
Celtic regions of saints who carry their own severed heads. In Irish myth, the severed heads of warriors
are called the mast or nuts of the goddess Macha.[171]