Pages: 17 - 31

Today’s concept of the Iron Age Celtic society, as a vertical social structure with a hierarchically organized priesthood and nobility on top of it, relies mainly on the accounts left by Posidonius of Apameia and Caesar. The author argues that both of them were ideologically biased and had reasons to exaggerate the role of druids in the political life of the Celts. While the archaeological accounts on the La Tène burial rite, animal and human sacrifices confirm a certain kind of religious unity of most of the Iron Age Celts from the Atlantic coast to Asia Minor, there is no single proof that the druids wielded an extraordinary power. The druids had never acted as a cohesive political force and, in general, they were not much different from the priests of other contemporary societies (i. e. Roman). The author states that the idea of the polarized Celtic society ruled by the class of high-ranking nobility is inconsistent with the archaeological sources. The middle and late La Tène burial grounds and settlements demonstrate that the Iron Age Celtic society possessed rather a horizontal social structure. It consisted of small groups headed by the family chiefs. In conclusion, it is emphasized that one must distinguish between the descriptions of the Celtic social institutes made by classical authors and the historical accounts of the events in which these Celtic social institutes were involved. The latter group of evidences usually aligns with the archaeological data.

Keywords: Early Celts, Iron Age, La Tène culture, Gaius Iulius Caesar, Posidonius of Apameia, druids, sacrifice, military aristocracy, social structure

Information about author:

Gennadiy Kazakevich (Kiev, Ukraine). Doctor of Historical Sciences. Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv. Volodimerska St., 64/13, Kiev, 01601, Ukraine
E-mail: [email protected]