I have finished my second Lino of my winter print series. (If you missed the first one it’s here)
About 10,000 years or more ago, before the gradual shift from Neolithic hunter gatherers to Bronze Age farmers, female deities were worshipped more often than the gods that finally took their place once a patriarchal society was established.
In Celtic inspired folklore circles today the winter gods become prominent around Yuletide, in particular Herne the Hunter.
Herne was one of the leaders of the ‘Wild Hunt’ (a hunt leading animals across the sky that represented winter, war, famine and plague).
But what of the goddesses? Were any present in the wild hunt?
It turns out that yes they were indeed. As a European folktale there were several:
Roman goddess ‘Diana’, Greek ‘Artemis’, Germanic ‘Perchta’ and the Celtic ‘the Morrigan’ (who was goddess of war) to name a few.
And there was the ‘Winter Queen’, who not only rode the sky with the other riders of the storm to make winter, but who also created the landscape.
The Winter Queen is a Scottish and Irish Celtic goddess also known as the ‘Cailleach’ and ‘Beira’.
In my new lino print her long flowing hair makes the strong winds, while she blows frost into the air and makes it snow, and throws stones from her creel to make the landscape.
I’ve based the landscape on Dartmoor scenes but it could easily be the highlands of Scotland where she comes from.