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The ancient Celts took boasting of their conquests to an extreme: They hung the severed heads of their victims around the necks of horses to parade the gory trophies around. And now, archaeologists have found the macabre evidence — embalmed, severed heads dating back more than 2,000 years in France.
Ancient Greek and Roman texts suggested Celts in the region of Gaul — what is now France and neighboring areas — cut off the heads of their enemies after battle and hung them around the necks of their horses as they brought these grisly trophies back home. Sculptures depicting this practice found in the Iron Age settlement of Entremont in Provence in southern France corroborated these stories.
Past records also suggested that the Celts embalmed these decapitated heads to display them in front of their homes "as trophies to increase their status and power, and to frighten their enemies," study senior author Réjane Roure, an archaeologist at Paul Valéry University of Montpellier in France, told Live Science.
These 2,000-Year-Old Embalmed Heads Show How Ancient Celts Celebrated Victory
Celts were crazy wild.
Ancient Greek and Roman texts suggested Celts in the region of Gaul — what is now France and neighboring areas — cut off the heads of their enemies after battle and hung them around the necks of their horses as they brought these grisly trophies back home. Sculptures depicting this practice found in the Iron Age settlement of Entremont in Provence in southern France corroborated these stories.
Past records also suggested that the Celts embalmed these decapitated heads to display them in front of their homes "as trophies to increase their status and power, and to frighten their enemies," study senior author Réjane Roure, an archaeologist at Paul Valéry University of Montpellier in France, told Live Science.
These 2,000-Year-Old Embalmed Heads Show How Ancient Celts Celebrated Victory
Celts were crazy wild.
