Celtic Mythology and Religion

Awe inspiring in scope and critical rigor, this is a comprehensive overview of the Celtic belief system. A momentous work from the golden age of Gaelic intellectualism, it includes chapters on the character of myth, Elysium, British religion, worship and rites. It is best known for its supplementary essays on Druid circles and Celtic burials. Alexander Machain was born in Glenfeshie in the Scottish Highlands in 1855, Gaelic was still widely spoken and Machain knew no English until the age of eight or nine. "His craving for knowledge of every kind was intense, his means of gratifying it were slender; but he never lost an opportunity." He is generally regarded as one of the greatest Scottish-Celtic scholars. He died in 1907. Cover shows detail from the Gundestrup cauldron (c. first century B.C.E.)