Daily Life of the Pagan Celts

This book presents an introduction to the daily life of the Celts living in Britain, Ireland and Europe during the Iron Age and into the Roman period. This book reveals that the Celts were not merely a collection of barbaric tribes but that their civilization compared favourably with those of other [...]
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This book presents an introduction to the daily life of the Celts living in Britain, Ireland and Europe during the Iron Age and into the Roman period. This book reveals that the Celts were not merely a collection of barbaric tribes but that their civilization compared favourably with those of other ancient civilizations. The detail includes political and social groups, domestic and family life, social hierarchies, housing, food, clothing, religion, superstition, mythology and legend, poetry, warfare and warriors, crime and punishment, bog burials and the interaction of this society with Greek and Roman civilization. It includes extracts from Celtic literature and classical literature relating to the Celts.The Celtic world covered Western Europe from Ireland to the southern Mediterranean and extending into Galatia (Asia Minor). Drawing on a wide variety of sources, including the latest archaeological evidence, and Celtic and classical literature, the author provides an accessible and up-to-date account of daily life in the Celtic world.Joan Alcock vividly brings to life the civilisation of the Celts, a world with complexities and nuanced variations like any of the other great ancient civilizations.The book details the structure of the Celtic world, its constituent territories and cultures and the interrelationships of these tribes and lands, the roles within each society, including warriors, farmers, craftsmen (who still influence fashions today), slaves, women and children. Detail is given of religion and superstition, feasts and festivals, burial practices, building types and materials, domestic life, family customs, marriage, the raising of children and more. The final chapter examines the decline of the Celts, and the survival and re-emergence of Celtic cultural traditions in the modern era.There is little direct competition (few other books concentrate on daily life of the Celts). The author is an experienced archaeologist. The book features up-to-date coverage, incorporating the most recent research and archaeological discoveries.