Oak Moon

The first Full moon after the Winter Solstice and the last full moon of the year, December’s full moon was once known to ancients as the ‘Oak Moon’. It was a time in which Celtic Druid priests honoured the sacred Oak tree for its endurance and noble presence as a symbol of strength and eternity, and made ritual sacrifices to the gods to ask for the great strength of the Oak, to ensure survival and to ease the burden of living through the harsh months of winter. Also at this time of year during the midwinter celebrations, the Mari Lwyd appears in the towns and villages of the Welsh valleys. The tradition involves a horse’s skull, mounted on a pole carried by a man hidden beneath a draped cloth. In Celtic Britain the horse was seen as a symbol of power, strength, and fertility, and the use of animal skulls in ritual practices represented the annual miracle of death, rebirth and the power of nature