Re: The Archaeology of a Monumental Mound | Forum

Branwen wrote:

I was thinking more along the lines of the hearth goddesses that live in or under the hearth stone, and connecting them to the instances of archeological finds of remains under such stones, some of them showing evidence of having been reinterred, perhaps when a family moved house.

Then again there is the belief that the "devoted one" that takes the blackened portion of bannock, (or whatever short straw custom is being followed)used to have to do more than just jump the bonfire three times. People in the highlands whispered about how in the bad old days the devoted one was sacrificed and his body put on the bone fire, their remains to be left under the stone. Even latterly, people up there believed a body under a cairn of stones left it's part of it's spirit there which you could connect with if you touched the stones of the cairn.

Then theres the stones called soul-stones or god-stones, said to be alive.

I think the stories of dancers or fiddlers turned to stone, or stones that walk and return is a later evolution of the idea of the stones being alive.

It was the small highland examples that i was thinking of in the non legendary way . The dancing , fiddler (usually an outlier ) maidens , sabbath midnight stuff does have undertones of religious stricture although the living stone aspect could be older , whatever it is , it's historical and we can only imgaine /hope for some continuity from prehistory .