Grunke UW-L Journal of Undergraduate Research XI (2008)
Celtic pagans maintained the practice of hanging relics, (usually wool, string, ribbons, etc), in trees (Pennick
1996). This tradition was continued by the Christian Celts. Many Celtic saints used trees as stopping places and
several Lives of these saints tell of instances where objects were hung in trees. Often, while traveling, Celtic priests
would spend the night under trees and hang whatever valuables they had in the branches. This had a practical as well
as symbolic purpose: the tree was to protect the traveler physically and at the same time the tree’s spirits would be
honored by the sacred objects that the priests hung from the tree (Pennick 1996). Since sacred trees were so
important to the old Celtic faith, many Christian ceremonies, especially weddings, were held under such trees.
Natural and carved impressions in stones were also thought to be sacred places. Before he or she ascended his
or her office, a chieftain would step on a set of carved stone footprints, symbolizing the entering of the rightful ruler
into his or her post. Because most upper ranks of the clergy of the Celtic Church were drawn from the Celtic
“nobility”, the associations of stone footprints appear to have been transferred to the Christian clergy and there are
many still-existing footprint stones commemorating certain acts of saints. These footprint stones exist in all Celtic
lands (Pennick 1996). There is a set of footprints carved near a chapel of Keil, between Dunaverty Bay and Carskey
in Kintyre, at a place that is reputed to have been where St Columa first landed in Dalriada (Pennick 1996). At
another location, on a rock on the east end of Hollyhead Church in Anglesey, is a single footprint that is said to be of
St. Cybi (Pennick 1996). There were also stone footprints of St. Ólann found on a boulder near St. Ólann’s Well at
Coolineagh, County Cork (Pennick 1996).
Other impressions reputed to have been left by saints includes knee and hand prints. The island of St Kilda at
Portpatrick holds the knee and right hand impressions of St Patrick (Pennick 1996). There are traditions of body-
prints formed naturally within the rocks of rivers. Celtic monks often prayed in rivers, holy wells, and underneath
waterfalls. Perhaps this practice was the continuation of the Celtic druids’ veneration of sacred waters. In a riverbed
at Troedrauer in Dyfed lie the knee marks of St. Gwyndaf Hên on a flat rock in the River Ceri (Pennick 1996).
One Celtic saint in particular seemed to have had many sacred rock impressions dedicated to him. At Llanllyfni,
St. Gredfyw has a rock bed, a rock seat, and a stone with his knee prints upon it. Other rocks also contain the marks
of his horse’s hooves and the mark of St. Gredfyw’s thumb (Pennick 1996). The rock hoof prints are especially
interesting because they are associated with royal horses, which were sacred to the Celtic horse-goddess Epona
(Pennick 1996).
Another practice that the pagan Celts had was leaving stones on cairns. Cairns were usually situated atop hills
and thus became stopping places for Christian pilgrims, who continued the tradition by depositing a stone on
whatever cairn they happened to stop at or pass by. The Priest’s Grave is a cairn near St Buonia’s Well at
Killabuoria in County Kerry that was frequently honored by pilgrims who would place stones on the cairn (Pennick
1996). The leaving of a stone was symbolic with leaving a part of the self behind. Directly related to this is the
custom of putting small stones on Christian tombs and drystone altars (called leachta). Ancient leachta in Irish
Celtic monasteries hold large pebbles, some of which are carved with sacred sigils (Pennick 1996). These stones
were left to carry the prayers of the people who left them or as a votive offering (Pennick 1996).
As mentioned before, sources of water were sacred to the pagan Celts. Offerings were often thrown into waters
to become the property of the Celtic deities. The site of Llyn Cerrig Bach, for example, contains 150 ritually
deposited objects (mostly martial in nature) within a marsh that used to be a lake (Green 1994). Lakes and rivers
were thought of as places of healing. Almost every Irish, British, and Breton tradition has a holy well named after
one or more of their saints. It’s clear that many of the holy wells existed well before the introduction of Christianity
into the Celtic lands. Renaming these holy wells was a “monotheistic reinterpretation of the spirit that dwells within
and guards the (often) healing waters.” (Pennick 1996:68). These wells were usually natural springs that had
buildings built over them for protection and into the Christian tradition, many of them were still believed to contain
healing properties. Some wells reputedly sprang up when a saint was beheaded, such as the wells of St. Reina, St.
Jutwara, St. Ludd, St. Noyala, and St. Gwenfrewi (Pennick 1996).
According to pagan Celtic beliefs, if a person were to go to certain sacred waters at the right time and in the
right frame of mind, they might be fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of “the fish” and the unconscious would then
open up to them. The archetype of this “fully realized human being” became Christ, who was symbolized by the fish
by the Celtic Christians (Pennick 1996). This representation of Christ as a fish can be seen in the Celtic manuscripts.
The fish was a Christian symbol that appealed to the Celts because of the Celtic association of the salmon with
wisdom (Wood 1998). In the Celtic myth of Culhwch and Olwen, many different animals were sought out for
information on where a man by the name of Mabon was located. The last and oldest creature to be asked was a
salmon and because he was the oldest and wisest of the creatures, he was the only one able to give the location of
the elusive Mabon. (Bellingham 1990).
The mountain was another aspect of the landscape that was scared to the Celts. Mountains were places of sun
worship in pagan Celtic belief. Later, certain “mountains of light” were dedicated to St. Michael such as St.
4