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Durham Research Online Deposited in DRO: 24 August 2009 Version of attached le: Published Version Peer-review status of attached le: Peer-reviewed Citation for published item: Petts, David. (2007) 'De Situ Brecheniauc and Englynion y Beddau : writing about burial in early medieval Wales.', Anglo-Saxon studies in archaeology history., 14 . pp. 163-172. 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Durham University Library, Stockton Road, Durham DH1 3LY, United Kingdom Tel : +44 (0)191 334 3042 | Fax : +44 (0)191 334 2971 https://dro.dur.ac.uk Anglo-Saxon Studies in Archaeology and History 14, 2007 De Situ Brecheniauc and Englynion Y Beddau: Writing about Burial in Early Medieval Wales David Petts Early medieval archaeology has always had an uneasy discourse about death and burial that ran through early relationship with textual evidence, bouncing between over medieval Welsh society was expressed in a dialogue optimistic uses ofwritten sources to interpret both events between the textual record and mortuary practice in a and processes recognised in the archaeological record to recursive relationship with each other. By exploring the the cynical rejection of the value of historical evidence ways in which two texts, the Englynion y Beddau and and approaches to the study of material culture. I The use De Situ Brecheniauc, wrote about burials and mortuary of written evidence to illuminate early medieval attitudes monuments, I want to try and explore the discursive and practices surrounding death. burial and com­ relationship between text and material culture in early memoration have a particularly long hjstory of use and medieval Wales. While this is not the place to review abuse. All too often, certain prominent texts. such as the the rich corpus of archaeological evidence for burials. Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf, have been employed as cemeteries as well as inscribed and sculpted monuments illustrations of early medieval burial practices.2 This of early medieval Wales, the paper hopes to illustrate approach focuses on extracting nuggets ofrealia from the that both texts, graves and monuments fonned part of texts to confirm archaeological interpretations, as if texts an emerging ideology and practice about the role of record first-hand observations or objective recollections burial and commemoration in society from the ninth to of mortuary practices. Texts are often adduced to the eleventh centuries AD. supplement archaeological evidence, and in doing so, material culture serves merely as an addendum or illustration to the written sources ofthe period. A range of Englynion y Beddau early medieval Welsh texts, such as the Englynion y The text most frequently adduced in discussions ofburial Beddau, Marwnad Cynddylan and the Historia Briflonum in early medieval Wales is the collection of three-line have been used in this manner to explicate early Welsh englynion (stanzas) known collectively as the Englynion burial practices.) y Beddau (Stanzas ofthe Grave) or Beddau Milwyr ynys It is important to acknowledge the complexity ofsuch Prydein (The Graves of the warriors of the Island of exercises. Whilst documentary evidence may certainly Britain).· This consists of 73 stanzas describing the sh~d light 00 contemporary and past burial practice in mythical burial places of famous, and not so famous, some instances, the relationship between text and practice Welsh warriors. The stanzas have been recorded from is a complex one. It is important to understand the social several sources. but the most extensive collection comes and political context in which the text was produced. from the Black Book ofCarmarthen, the earliest version the choices and selections made in how mortuary rites dating from the second quarter of the thirteenth century. are portrayed and the possible literary elaborations to Although no known manuscript examples predate AD which texts can be subject. Rather than the wholesale 1000, consensus, based on the metrical patterns and adoption or rejection of the written evidence for inform textual history. points to a ninth/tenth century date.' our understanding ofearly medieval mortuary practices, The verses seem to be full of evidence for burial in this paper suggests that a fruitful way forward lies in barrows and cairns in a variety of topographical regarding both as meaningful 'discourses' involving both locations: on the seashore, on mountains, by rivers, in ideas and practices. In this light, early medieval literature churches and at fortified sites. It is noticeable, however, and archaeological evidence were not Iwo separate that out of all the graves mentioned only six are located strands running along in parallel, yet separate, tracks. in ecclesiastical contexts. Dylan is buried at L1anfeuno Instead, as this paper will show, the wider threads of which can probably be identified as Clynnog Fawr in 164 David Pells Caemarvonshire· and the grave of Ceri Long-sword is recorded that the grave of Anhur himself was 'the placed 'in the churchyard of Corbre' at Heneglwys in wonder of the world', as its location was unknown. Anglesey,' eynon is buried at L1anbadam,' Owain ab Again, although perhaps originally from a Nonhem Urieo at L1anforfael' and L1emenig is buried at L1anelwy, British context, they too were localised in Wales. probably 5t Asaph. 1o It is this rarity of church burial The final group includes individuals who were that should warn against using the Eng/ynion y Beddau probably euphemerised pre-Christian gods that may have for understanding contemporary (ninth/tenth century) survived in Christian culture as heroes, such as Dylan burial practice. let alone earlier rites. Whilst it is hard and Lieu Lawgyffes. 17 Most ofthe other names mentioned to be certain about the date that churchyard burial became are otherwise unknown, but Jones has suggested that dominant in early medieval Wales, archaeological and many ofthe names were eponyms derived from the names written evidence would suggest that it was likely to have of landscape features. For example, he equates Epynt been commonplace by the time the Englynion y Beddau with the Epynt mountain, near L1angamarch. 11 In other were composed. The kings ofGwynedd were burying at cases individuals are related to well known landscape L1angadwaladr by the end of the seventh centuryll and features: the crosses from L1antwit Majorl~ suggest that it was a 20 Three graves of three steadfast ones are on a royal burial site in the tenth century. Other documentary conspicuous hill evidence. such as De Situ Brecheniauc and Cognacio in Pant Gwyn Gwynionog Brychan suggest that in the tenth century churches were Mor and Meilu and Madog. seen as the appropriate place for royal burial. Equally unlike Type I stones, the seventh. to tenth-century Type Looking at these groups of identifiable individuals it is 2 cross-marked stones are found almost exclusively on clear that many of the stanzas in the EngJynion y Beddau ecclesiastical sites and excavations at ecclesiastical are not historicizing the Welsh landscape, but centres such as LJandough show a long·sequence of mythologizing it. It is one of the few examples of burials from the seventh century onwards topographical and onomastic lore known from the early It is clear that the Englynion y Beddau do not record Welsh poetic tradition. Two verses describing the route of contemporary burial practices. but neither is there reason rivers are found in Canu HeJedd but there is nothing to believe that the mortuary practices of earlier comparable to the Irish metrical dindsenchar. However, generations were being accurately portrayed. This is there arc Irish parallels in a group oftenth century poems because while cairns, mounds Bnd graves with structures from Leioster, such as 'On the Graves of the leinster are known dated to sixth to ninth centuries AD from Men', written in 972 by Broccan the Pious ofthe monastery Wales, they do not correspond in any direct way with at CloRmon:. the descriptions recorded in the EngJynion y Beddau, A few earlier examples of topographical lore can be Nonetheless. the source does seem to be deliberately found within Wales. The bcst.known examples are the conjure up a vision of monuments that serves to connect 'Wonders of Britain' from the H;slOria Brittonu,"." the contemporary landscape to a perceived, mythical These ",irabiUa first appear in the Harleian text derived past. Indeed, it has even been suggested that the use of from a redaction of AD 829/30. In this short collection, the old-fashioned three-line englynion form rather than however, the emphasis is on miraculous properties of the more usual four-line englynion form was a deliberate certain sites, such as unmeasurable tombs or apples 'archaicizing' literary device. ') If so, then the subject growing on an ash tree, rather than linking the wonders matter and literary style unify to strengthen the message. to particular historical or mythical stories.2G Even when There is also other evidence to suggest that this group one of the sites is connected with a named individual, of poems is not describing a simple historical past, but such as Amr, son of Arthur.21 it is the miraculous nature a more subjective mythic past. Whilst not all of the of the site rather than its historical context that justifies warriors mentioned in the EngJynion y Beddau are its mention.

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