Britons and Celts
Buddy, They Won’t Even Let Me Blow on the Fire
“As soon as he was brought there, his mouth was so parched that he drank so much that, while still in their hands, he burst in the middle and died.” […]
Gerald of Wales
Britons and Celts
The Island of the Living
“When there is no hope left; when as the strength decreases they are eventually so distressed that they prefer to die in death than drag out a life of death, they get themselves finally transported in a boat to the larger island.” […]
Britons and Celts
The Strange Power of the Moon
“When she is deprived of her full light you will notice that all things lose their fullness. But when she has attained her complete roundness, you will find that bones are full of marrow, head of brains, and other things of sap.” […]
Britons and Celts
The East Brings Both Wealth and Death
“If you put your naked foot upon the ground, death is upon you; if you sit upon marble without taking care, death is upon you; if you drink unmixed water, or merely smell dirty water with your nostrils, death is upon you.” […]
Britons and Celts
A Poison-Proof Isle
“They found toads brought in by chance in the bottom of the holds. They threw them out still living on to the land; but immediately they turned their bellies up, burst in the middle, and died, while everybody saw and wondered.” […]
Britons and Celts
Billions of Blistering Blue Birds
“Accordingly in some parts of Ireland bishops and religious men eat barnacles without sin during a fasting time, regarding them as not being flesh, since they were not born of flesh.” […]
Britons and Celts
Natural Predators Make Tough Parents
“Bird of this kind “that live by prey, throw their weak young offspring out of their nests, lest they should accustom themselves to soft living.” […]
Britons and Celts
Plague of Toads
“They chose a tall tree, cut off all its branches and removed all its leaves. Then they hoisted him up to the top in a bag. He was still not safe from his venomous assailants. The toads crawled up the tree looking for him.” […]