News

The headdresses of Star Carr

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NORTH YORKSHIRE, England — Researchers have completed the first scientific study on the techniques used to create the oldest shamanic or ritual headdresses discovered in Europe. The red deer skull and antler artefacts were unearthed at Star Carr in North Yorkshire, England, and date to some 11,000 years ago in the Mesolithic era. When the site was discovered in the 1940s it yielded the largest haul of ritual items from the period ever found in Europe, and it is considered the most important area for Mesolithic study on the continent. Now, 24 headdresses have been analysed under a five-year project led by the University of York. Twenty-one of them were from the original trove and three were discovered by the team during fresh excavations at Star Carr. The University of York’s Professor Nicky Milner, co-director of excavations at Star Carr, said, “These headdresses are incredibly rare finds in the archaeological record.”  She added, “This is the only site in Britain where they are found and there are only a few other headdresses known from Germany.

News

Goddess House open in Glastonbury

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GLASTONBURY, England  – The Glastonbury Goddess Temple has opened the doors on its latest offering to the public: The Goddess House. This facility is a spiritual and educational place of healing, dedicated to promoting Goddess awareness.The Goddess Temple organization and its affiliated ventures support the vision of Motherworld, a society that places Mother Earth, mothers and the values of mothering – love, care and support for each other – at society’s centre rather than at its periphery. The Goddess House is located in the market town of Glastonbury, Somerset, England on Magdalene Street, directly across from the historic ruins of Glastonbury Abbey. The house itself is a large and impressive Georgian building complete with treatment rooms, workshop space and other group-use rooms. The Goddess House offers a large menu of natural healing options, provided by therapists and other professionals, including several types of massage, spiritual consults, counseling, yoga, tarot and meditation training. The original Goddess Temple space, located in the Glastonbury Experience Courtyard, at 2-4 High Street, was opened on Imbolc 2002. The following year, the space was recognized officially as a Place of Worship, and is believed to be the first such place to receive official recognition like this in the UK for 1500 years.

News

Column: Pagan Handfastings Legal in England and Wales

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London — Many Pagans dream of being able to say ‘I do’ in a handfasting and have their vows recognised in law. ‘Why can’t a handfasting be legal?’ is a complaint we heard around the UK for decades. Well, in 2004, the Scottish Pagan Federation addressed it first and then, finally, England and Wales followed suit in a groundbreaking case. 

The Glastonbury Goddess Temple was licensed for legal weddings after a whirlwind one-year process. In a first for Paganism, the Temple’s marriages are legally binding. The approval can now be used in precedent, which is incredibly important for the long term.

News

Should England replace ‘God Save the Queen?’

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UNITED KINGDOM –In the United Kingdom, “God Save the Queen” (or king, depending upon the current monarch) has been considered the national anthem since the early 19th century. It is used for the combined kingdom by custom only and for England alone when referred to during athletic competitions and the like. The other three portions of the United Kingdom — Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland — already sport their own anthems.

Recently, members of Parliament have agreed to consider replacing the song as the anthem for England alone. Under the new proposal, “God Save the Queen” would continue to be used when the four act as one body, such as during the Olympic games. The Wild Hunt asked some English Pagans what they think of the current debate, and what they might like to see “God Save the Queen” replaced with, if anything. In supporting the idea, Labour minister Toby Perkins said it would “re-establish the idea that the United Kingdom is a union of four separate nations with their own identities,” and that he personally favors “Jerusalem,” with words written by William Blake.

Paganism

Column: Solstice on the Hill

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England is small, green and – apart from a bit in the East – rolling. So hills are plentiful. English Pagans are great clamberers up these hills. However it’s less than half of all sunrises that we will see from these green and luscious vantage points, because the sky is clear so rarely. We stand attentively and enraptured; though a little disappointed on those many visits when the overcast British ‘sunrise’ is actually just a gradual lightening of the sky from a dark grey to light grey over a slow meditative hour.