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- For the Doctor Who audio drama see Caerdroia (Doctor Who audio).
Caerdroia: Literal translation from the Welsh language means "Castle of Turns". It is also thought to be a reference to Troy - since Caerdroia is also the modern Welsh word for that famous ancient city. In medieval times Caerdroia was a turf labyrinth usually in the seven fold Cretan Labyrinth design. They were created by shepherds on hilltops and were apparently the setting for ritual dances the nature of which have been lost. However, at the centre of each Caerdroia was a small hillock - in Welsh, "twmpath." A gathering for folk dancing in Wales is still called a "twmpath dawns."
Mythical link
Peculiarly, there is another tenuous connection between Wales and Troy that has been disproven by historians but remains a resilient myth. Geoffrey of Monmouth, following the monk Nunnias, created a Christian genealogy which placed Brutus of Troy, grandson of Aeneas of Troy and liberator of enslaved Trojans, as founder of Britain. This Brutus is generally considered a medieval fiction, created to provide a distinguished genealogy for one or more Welsh royal families.
Glastonbury Tor
Glastonbury Tor is thought by many to be a very large Caerdroia, and modern imaging techniques seem to confirm this theory. It is also known as a "Cretan maze".
See also
Further reading
- Adrian Fisher & Georg Gerster, The Art of the Maze, Weidenfeld & Nicolson (1990) ISBN 0297830279
- Jeff Saward, Magical Paths, Mitchell Beazley (2002) ISBN 1840005734
- Janet & Colin Bord, Mysterious Britain, Paladin Granada (1974) ISBN 0586081577
External links
- W.H. Matthews, Mazes and Labyrinths (1922) online version of W.H. Matthew's classic book
- Labyrinthos Jeff Saward's website
- Labyrinth Society
- The Megalithic Portal
- Labyrinth Locator (Veriditas & Labyrinth Society)
- Well-illustrated labyrinth site (in German)
Folklore | Mazes | Mythology | Ritual dances
"Caerdroia"