Pictish Mithraism The Religious Purpose Of The Pictish Symbol Stones

A fascinating new study into the Picts, one of Europe’s most enigmatic peoples.

Stuart McHardy examines the Pictish symbols which have been discovered on various items across Scotland. The book sets out a cohesive interpretation of the Pictish past, using a variety of both temporal and geographical sources. This interpretation serves as a backdrop for his analysis of the symbols themselves, providing a context for his suggestion that there was an underlying series of ideas and beliefs behind the creation of the symbols.

Mithras explores the history and practices of the ancient mystery religion Mithraism, looking at both literary and material evidence for the god Mithras and the reception and allure of his mysteries in the present. The genesis and spread of Mithraism remain highly controversial. This book examines our current state of knowledge on the pre-classical Indo-Iranian god, Mitra, and argues that Mithraism was a product of Mitra’s encounter with the religious thought of the classical world. It then charts the life history of Mithraism in the Roman Empire, exploring the social background of its initiates and the reasons for their attraction to the religion. The rituals and beliefs of the cult are as mysterious as its origins; in studying Mithraic "caves" and paintings found in some Mithraic temples, we can better understand and reconstruct the rituals the Mithraists practiced. While "bull-slaying", or tauroctony, lies at the core of the Mithraic mythos, this volume explores other incidents in the god’s life depicted in ancient art, including his miraculous birth and his banquet with the sun, as well as the disconcerting lion-headed "enveloped god". After a fall from grace in the post-classical world, Mithras has resurrected himself in the present, establishing himself as one of the most recognisable if elusive gods of antiquity. Mithras provides a fascinating study of this complex god that will be of interest to scholars and students of Roman and Late Antique religion, mystery cults, as well as those working on society and religion in antiquity more broadly.

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A detailed and extensive search through the history of Arthurian literature and the Island of Britain to discover the true form, nature and purpose of the "Holy Grail".

The 50 or so mysterious Pictish symbols and the stones displaying them have become central to all discussion of the Picts. Generations of scholars have sought to interpret the symbols with little agreement. This book takes an indirect approach to the situation. The present layout of Class I stones hints at an arrangement in chains in which adjacent stones in a chain are linked by a common symbol. This is investigated and the chains identified. Between the River Tay and the Dornoch Firth, virtually all stones belong to a chain and the chains seem to be practically complete. The chains appear to have superseded stones created and positioned independently. The stone pattern is more complicated than isolated chains of stones and special junction stones are used to register the crossing of two or more chains. Auxiliary stones are also identified, which give information about a chain or chains. The identification of the chains and the conventions used in junction and auxiliary stones permit the meaning of more than 20 symbols to be understood as they are used in the chains. These are not suggested to be the original meanings of the symbols but they provide hints to assist in assessing what the original meaning of some symbols might be. This particularly applies to significant symbols called crescent and V rod, Pictish beast, and Z rod. The purpose of the chains can only be hinted at here but Pictish scholarship will soon clarify this.