The Celtic World (Routledge Worlds)

• Burial and the Other World -

the rest of the burials. Just over half are identified as male - only one is definitely
female. Most were buried supine and oriented to the north (partaking of some aspects
of the normative traditions). Otherwise they appear normal. The purpose of the
decapitation is unknown, but a convincing explanation is that the soul and body were
prevented from participating in the normal transition from this life to the
Otherworld. This has previously been attributed to the preservation of Celtic beliefs
through three centuries of romanization, conceivably representing a class of people
whose life style was reprehensible, such as witches or criminals.

SUMMARY

It is difficult to summarize this very brief review without falling into the trap of
creating a misleadingly timeless and traditional picture of the Celtic world. The
various themes touched upon are particular to the Celtic cultural contex~ in which
they appear, not to the whole of the Celtic world. Some key themes in Ceitic beliefs
include the concept of a familiar Otherworld of the dead, who possibly become
'ancestors' and possibly become associated with the gods. This may be reflected in
the practice of providing grave goods; the use of objects symbolizing social relation-
ships of power and authority in this world is most likely to indicate that those
relationships derived legitimacy by being linked to the Otherworld. The belief in an
Otherworld to which the dead go also has another ramification in practice. Many
Celtic societies differentiated people according to both social and religious precepts,
and access to the Otherworld was based upon those precepts. The elite were sent
to the Otherworld with their symbols of worldly power; the ordinary Celt went as
an ordinary soul; but the abnormal Celt was treated very differently, as if to keep
that abnormal soul from polluting the Otherworld and jeopardizing the society's
relationship to the Otherworld. It is likely that the precise ways in which people
were differentiated varied through time and across space, and much work is required
in order to understand either the practice or the belief. Detailed information
about the age, sex, pathology, orientation, body position, etc. for both normal
and abnormal mortuary practices is required before any single society's practices will
be understood. It is through such study that progess is being made in the under-
standing of the Celtic world.

REFERENCES

Biel, J. (1985) Der Keltenfurst von Hochdorf, Stuttgart: Theis.

Binford, L. (1971) 'Mortuary practices: their study and potential' in J.A. Brown (ed)

Approaches to the Social Dimensions of Mortuary Practices, New York, 6-29.

Bretz-Mahler, D. (1971) 'La civilisation de la Hne en Champagne', Gallia, Supplement 5.

Brunaux, J.L. (1987) The Celtic Gauls: gods, rites and sanctuaries, trans. D. Nash, Seaby.

Brunaux, J.L., Meniel, P. and Poplin F. (1985) 'Gournay I: les fouillcs sur Ie sanctuaire et

I'oppidum (1975-84)', Revue.

Chadwick, N. (1966) The Druids, Cardiff.

Collis, J. (1984) The European Iron Age, London.