[HPforGrownups] YEW

[MadameSSnape at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 87254

sydenmill at msn.com wrote:


> 
> I am wondering what the significance of YEW is beyond the fact that
> Voldemort's wand is made of it for JKR to make such a point of
> mentioning it so often. Does anyone have a theory?


Sherrie here:

Here's a bit from "Sacred Celtic Sites" on some of the ancient Celtic 
associations of Yew:

"Especially important and highly revered was the yew tree, which was 
associated with the winter solstice. It was forbidden to cut off any of the yew's 
branches as the Celts believed that the gods lived in its branches. The yew was 
often a meeting place as well as a burial site for important tribesmen. Ogham 
script, which is the early language of the Irish Celts, was believed to have 
been carved on yew wood. It was also believed that the yew, together with the 
Ogham script posessed magical properties. Yew wood was also often used in the 
carving of sacred Celtic objects in the Celtic Christian Church, such as the 
reliquary, and the presence of the yew trees in churchyards is a testament to its 
sacred nature. However, through recent research, it has been found that often, 
the trees were there long before the church itself, suggesting the idea that 
churches were built near yews because of its aura of holiness and sanctity 
that the tree had for the pre-christian people."
IIRC, yew was also the wood from which that legendary weapon, the English 
longbow, was made.
Sherrie


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