- Chapter Twenty-Five -
The symbolism of the healer-deities is varied and interesting. The Celtic Mars, at
such therapeutic shrines as Mavilly (Cote d'Or) and Trier, is not a warrior in the true,
Roman, sense, but instead he fights and protects against ill-health and barrenness.
Sometimes, his image is that of a soldier, as at Mavilly (Figure 25.8) (Green 1989:
65, fig. 26; Thevenot 1968: lI8). Frequently, the motifs of healing and fertility
are blurred and merged. Thus curative goddesses such as Sirona and Damona are
represented with ears of corn, eggs and snakes: the corn is a symbol of plenty; eggs
have strong fertility associations, but may also represent death and regeneration
(since the egg must be broken in order to release new life). Because of their habit of
skin-sloughing, serpents were clear symbols of rebirth. Many curative deities were
partners, such as Apollo and Sirona: in their imagery, it is often the goddess who
possesses the symbolism evocative of function. But many healer-goddesses them-
selves carry no emblems which in themselves are indicative of their curative function:
Sequana, the divine healer of the Seine at its spring-source near Dijon, is depicted as
a woman in a long robe and a diadem, sailing in a duck-prowed boat to reflect her
aquatic symbolism. But it is the presence of dedications and votive offerings that
identify Sequana as a healer (Deyts 1985).
Perhaps the most powerful group of images is that associated with animals. The
close relationship between god and beast is clearly reflected in iconography which
Figure 25.8 Stone relief from a pillar, depicting a healer-god in the guise of a Celtic warrior
(fighter against disease), accompanied by a goddess and a ram-horned snake; from the cura-
tive spring-shrine at Mavilly, Burgundy. First century AD. Ht of monument I m 79 cm.
(Illustrator: Paul Jenkins.)