European Mythology

[kent_allard_jr]

Paul Hamlyn published a series of books on mythology back in the 60s and early 70s. Many of them were painfully dry but I loved them nevertheless, particularly Indian Mythology by Veronica Ions which introduced me to the magnificently baroque layer-cake of Hindu deities. (Hindu philosophy, sadly, was beyond my 8-year old understanding.) In the early 90s I was delighted to find them republished by Peter Bedrick Books, and over the years I amassed the whole library in one edition or another.

European Mythology by Jacqueline Simpson sat on my shelf for years, and I finally got around to reading it. A fascinating book! The title was slightly misleading, as there were no explicit references to pagan gods or practices. It was really a book about folklore: Fairy-folk, charms, witches, festivals, legendary kings and other beliefs of European peasantry. The author took an admirably cautious approach, describing each story or belief while refusing to speculate about their ultimate origins.

Simpson's resistance to theory left her with more room to describe the folklore. A few random tidbits:

• Many of you know the Celts, and other cultures, attributed magic powers to blacksmiths. Powers were also attributed to other professions, such as rat catchers (the Pied Piper being a famous exemplar); Hungarian shepherds, who were thought to have magic crooks that could watch their flocks for them; and Scottish horsemen who could tame wild horses with magic words.
  
• I was unfamiliar with many of the faeries from Eastern and Southern Europe, such as the Vodanoy, a frog-like ogre that hibernates under winter ice and awakes in a fury; the Polevik, a farm-guardian covered with muddy, grassy hair who strangles intruders; and the Pavaro, another farm guardian (Italian in this case), with a dog head and iron teeth and claws.
  
• Apparently "dragon parades" are (or were) common throughout Europe, reenactments of the creature's defeat by a hero or saint. One of them, to my surprise, was the Tarasque, whose effigy was paraded through Tarascon, France twice a year. (Supposedly St. Martha subdued the beast with a sprinkle of holy water; if only it was that easy in D&D!)

These were just a few of the delightful recollections in European Mythology, which is sadly out of print. If you find it, though, I highly recommend buying a copy.