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Epona Horse Goddess of the Gauls by Summer Fey Foovay Did you read the title? Then you have read the entire amount of information most websites and books offer on the subject! There are tantalizing mentions of Epona here and there, but very few sources offer a large body of information. With the resurgence of the old religions, there has been a corresponding surge of interest in some of our oldest, least known gods and goddesses. Sadly, due to the concentrated efforts of the earliest Christian missionaries, most records of these deities have been destroyed. From the small bits of evidence scraped together from sources as diverse as statuary, inscriptions, and linguistics, a picture of Epona is recreated. Although she was originally a goddess of the Gauls – a Celt people – most of our evidence comes from the Roman cavalry, many of who seem to have adopted Epona as their own. There are a number of inscriptions, bas-relief sculptures, and small statues mentioning Epona. These inscriptions often say something on the general line of “In fulfillment of an oath sworn by Commander so and so, in thanks to the Goddess Epona”. I can easily imagine a cavalryman finding himself in a world of trouble, closing his eyes and swearing “Beloved Epona, just get me out of this one and I swear, I’ll have the finest statue ever made carved and dedicated to you when I get home,” patting their horse, and charging into (or away from) battle. There is evidence Epona was also painted on the side of barns and stables to protect the horses and riders therein. Roses would be placed at the foot of the painting as offering. This worship apparently continued among the lower classes well past the time when the upper classes of society had been Christianized. As the neopagan movement grows and explores more and more people are becoming interested in Epona. Although she is most frequently portrayed as a Goddess who protects horses and riders, there is evidence that in her original form among the Gauls, she was a Goddess of fertility and abundance, in essence a very typical Mother Goddess. The annual Feast of Epona, in Roman times, was held on or around December 18th. Her rituals included offerings of sacrificial animals, libations, and of course, the dedication of those blessed cornerstones, inscriptions, and statues. As mentioned earlier, later offerings included roses and possibly nuts or acorns. Many neo-pagans, perhaps because of their natural pull towards nature, are horse people. Perhaps as time goes on we will once again find paintings of Epona on stable walls with small altars covered with roses below them. Until then, I do offer e-cards for the Feast of Epona or any other occasion at my Fre-ecards.com website, and clipart inspired by the ancient depictions of Epona at my graphics site.

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