A lot of nonsense has been written about Celtic calendars in recent years, but there is one Celtic calendar that is both ancient and authentic, and that is the Coligny Calendar.
Author Archives: Gwilym Morus-Baird
The Tablet of Chamaliẻres
About two thousand years ago, a Gaulish Celt scratched a few words onto a piece of lead and gave it as an offering to a sacred spring. Why? You’re about to find out.
The Oldest Celtic Text in the World?
A Welsh Wisdom Tradition?
There are some basic similarities between The Four Branches of the Mabinogi and later Welsh folktales of the 19th century. Is this a sign of a Welsh wisdom tradition?
Bardic Trickery
Taken from the Gafael Tir tour 2018, a show I perform with my good friend Owen Shiers. Gafael Tir is a history of land-rights and protest in Wales, telling a thousand years of the common folks’ history through folk song, story and verse. Mwynhewch:
Celts from the West
I’ve been asked a few times in the last month or so about the recent turn (or revolution?) in the academic understanding of Celtic history. At the centre of this new perspective is Prof. Barry Cunliffe (with help from John Koch in Aberystwyth). This is the best (most thorough) video presentation I’ve found. Enjoy: HisContinue reading “Celts from the West”
Christianised Myths?
Part of a talk I gave for an online conference called ‘A Year With Our Gods‘:
What is mythology?
What is a myth? That’s a question that rarely stays answered for long. In my own experience, I’ve rarely been able to settle on a single definition of myth that covers all of its many uses. The situation today is more complicated because myth was redefined in some scholarly circles during the 20th century, suchContinue reading “What is mythology?”
The 5th Branch of the Mabinogi
Here’s a couple of talks I gave at the brilliant Aberystwyth Storytelling Festival. Such a rare opportunity to enjoy the company of professional storytellers, artists, musicians and fully-engaged audiences. I really couldn’t have managed to pull off such mad scheme anywhere else. New Cloth From Old Thread Crowd sourcing The Fifth Branch with festival participants:Continue reading “The 5th Branch of the Mabinogi”
The bard as druid
Medieval Welsh bards had a taste for the theatrical. Like many men of high standing they had an appreciation of the power of drama. In the 12th century, Cynddelw Brydydd Mawr composed a poem blessing the Lord Rhys’ court gates, probably declaimed in a pounding voice as the old bard swished into the hall followedContinue reading “The bard as druid”