The colour red is often associated with the runes and rune-stones. To redden the runes implies the addition of blood in the dyes used to create them. One of the more common ingredient used to redden the runes was the OE tēafor or red ochre, (the name sometimes used for other red dyes) however red ochre was widely used and also known for its magical properties in its own right. The OE tēafor had cognates in the Dutch ‘toverij’, German ‘zauber’ and Icelandic ‘töfrar’, all of which mean ‘magic’. All these words come from the root *taubrą meaning magic or spells. The way we create the runes and the materials used are perhaps as important as the way we use and read them.

Veistu, hvé rísta skal? Veistu, hvé ráða skal?
Veistu, hvé fáa skal? Veistu, hvé freista skal?
Veistu, hvé biðja skal? Veistu, hvé blóta skal?
Veistu, hvé senda skal? Veistu, hvé sóa skal?

Tomorrow sees in the first full moon of the year, at around 10am UK time. As Sagnamaðr Stark points out in his post here, this moon is known as Wolf Moon, amongst other names. In OE we find this in the name wulf-monaþ, when hunger forced wolves to chance encounters with shepherds and farmers. The plant we know as teasel (OE tæsel) was once also known as wulfes-camb or wolf's comb and if you've ever brushed your skin against a teasel head you'll know it feels like a bristly comb. I've no doubt that the same shepherds and farmers would have, in years passed, walked the outskirts of their fields looking for wolf hair trapped in the teasel, which would indicate their presence.

Old Norse and Germanic Graves by J Hoynck van Papendrecht depicting (1) Old Nordic megalithic tomb of the Young Stone Age (3000 B.C.) (2) Barrow of Leuningen. Early Bronze Age. First half of 2nd Millennium B.C. (3) Tree Trunk Coffin from Jutland. Middle Bronze Age. Midst of 2nd Millennium B.C. (4) The royal tomb of Seddin. Late Bronze Age around 800 B.C. (5) Ashes graves of the Iron Age. 800-500 A.C. (6) Tomb of Leuna. Early Iron Age around 300. A.C. (7) Oseberg-grave. Viking-Age. Around 900 A.C.

But there rose up a man most ancient, and he cried: "Hail Dawn of the Day!
How many things shalt thou quicken, how many shalt thou slay!
How many things shalt thou waken, how many lull to sleep!
How many things shalt thou scatter, how many gather and keep!
O me, how thy love shall cherish, how thine hate shall wither and burn!
How the hope shall be sped from thy right hand, nor the fear to thy left return!
O thy deeds that men shall sing of! O thy deeds that the Gods shall see!
O SIGURD, Son of the Volsungs, O Victory yet to be!"

from The Story of Sigurd the Volsung by William Morris (1922)

A stone weoh at Bede's World museum in Jarrow. The face is based on the faces found on the Sutton Hoo sceptre /whetstone whilst the bottom part of the design is in the shape of an Anglo-Saxon buckle.

One of the faces from the Sutton Hoo whetstone, in my opinion having a similar beard and hair pattern as the imagery found on the many Woden head pendants.

On top of the sceptre / whetstone sits a red deer (or High Deer). In OE the High Deer or Heahdeor was a symbol of Anglo-Saxon royalty. Heah meant tall, high, proud or exalted and is cognate with Hár – a byname used by Woden.

Reconstructed sceptre, helmet and clothing for the Wuffinga king Raedwald.

British Museum

At our larger folk-moots we often use drums whilst chanting galdor, which helps keep rhythm. These are normally Irish Bodhráns. It’s believed the Bodhrán was once a farming tool, used to remove husk from grains. A very similar drum can be found in English folk music called the riddle drum. This is a modern name for a type of drum possibly having been once called a ‘hylsung’ in Anglo-Saxon times. Just like the Bodhrán this was originally a farming tool designed to remove husk from grains, a process called winnowing or riddling – hence the name. The instrument was played across the British isles, including Cornwall and Ireland where it was known as the English riddle.

Image – Butser Ancient Farm.

Photo of a recently discovered carnyx from a site in Thetford. Only two others have ever been found in Britain and this one is the most complete carnyx ever discovered. Along with the carnyx was a bronze boar head war standard.

Three Carnyx players are depicted in this scene on the Gundestrup Cauldron.

Os byþ ordfruma ælere spræce,
wisdomes wraþu ond witena frofur
and eorla gehwam eadnys ond tohiht

Os is the origin of all language
Wisdom’s foundation and wise man’s comfort
And to every hero blessings and hope.

Os rune and Woden artwork by Brian Partridge

The Gesta Herewardi Saxonis, the early 12th century translation of an older (and lost) Old English text on the English outlaw Hereward the Wake contains within a description of a pagan practise, normally performed by women, called ‘wylle-weorðung’ or well-weirding, also recorded as ‘waking the well’. The ritual involved asking the spirit or guardian of a sacred well or spring questions to which the spirit would provide the answer.

...In the middle of the night Hereward saw them go out in silence to a spring; of water that flowed to- wards the east near the garden of the house, so he followed them immediately, and heard them at a distance conversing, questioning, and getting replies from some unknown guardian of the spring...

The only planet in our solar system with a Germanic name is Earth. The name is rooted in the Proto- Germanic *erþō and is cognate with another Proto-Germanic word *erwô, itself perhaps cognate with Celtic terms for Earth such as the Welsh erw (field). This name seems to be for the physical earth – the soil and land, fields and ground.

The much debated name Erce is one many English heathens use for Mother Earth or Mother of Earth. The line ‘Erce Erce Erce’ from the Æcerbot field-remedy charm seems to have its parallel in the Latin prayer ‘sanctus, sanctus, sanctus’ (sacred, sacred, sacred). The name Erce possibly comes from the root eorcnan meaning holy.

If the English had a separate name for Earth Mother in her harvest aspect, this might have been a name formed from the verbs gifan, to give, or gifian, to bestow gifts, such as Giefu, grace, favour; Gifole, generous, bountiful; Gifiende, bestowing gifts. Such a name would be related to the Norse Gefn, giver, a by-name of Freya and to Gefjon, the giving one.

- Kathleen Herbert 'Looking for the Lost gods of England'

Artwork 'gyfu rune' by Brian Partridge

Swa þes middangeard
ealra dogra gehwam dreoseð ond fealleð;
forþon ne mæg weorþan wis wer ær he age
wintra dæl in woruldrice. Wita sceal geþyldig,
ne sceal no to hatheort, ne to hrædwyrde,
ne to wac wiga, ne to wanhydig,
ne to forht ne to fægen, ne to feohgifre,
ne næfre gielpes to georn ær he geare cunne.

So this earth declines and falls, every single day;
And so a man cannot become wise
before he has his share of winters in the world. A wise person should be patient,
should not be too hot-hearted, nor too hasty with words,
neither too weak a warrior, nor too reckless,
neither too fearful, nor too quick to rejoice, nor too greedy,
nor ever too eager to boast before he knows for sure.

- The Wanderer

Woodcut by W. G. Collingwood (1908) depicting Svipdagr listening to his deceased mother and völva, Gróa who shares with him Galdor that will protect him when he goes to charm the goddess Menglöð.