The Celtic Warriors: Fearless, Gold-Adorned, Feared

The Celtic warriors of the La Tène period were notorious in antiquity. Greek and Roman authors describe tall, strong fighters who attacked with a long iron sword, tall shield and wild charge – often accompanied by deafening noise from war horns (the carnyx).

The torc – gold around the neck

Their most striking mark was the torc, an open neck ring, often of gold. It was jewellery, a mark of rank and a protective sign at once. Ancient authors even report warriors who went into battle wearing only the torc – naked fearlessness as a demonstration of power. The torc is to this day one of the best-known pieces of Celtic jewellery.

The cult of the head

For Celts the head counted as the seat of the soul and of power. Ancient sources report that warriors took the heads of slain enemies as trophies and kept them. Archaeological finds (such as skull niches in sanctuaries of southern Gaul) support that the head held special significance – how much of this was everyday and how much exceptional remains open.

"Wits must he have who wanders wide, but all is easy at home."Hávamál 5, after Henry A. Bellows 1923 (public domain)

The Celtic warriors are the image of courage, gold and terror – fearless, splendidly adorned and fascinating to this day. More on their world in the Celtic princely graves.

Read more with us

Celtic Princely Graves · Celtic Religion · The Druids · The Morrígan · Esus.

Sources & literature

Polybius; Diodorus; Livy; Bernhard Maier, The Celts; archaeological torc and skull finds; quote public domain (Bellows 1923).

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