Wendy Berg

An extraordinary and original re-evaluation of the Arthurian legends, including some of the older, more fragmentary texts which have never been translated into English, which throws a completely new light on the British Mysteries. The presence of faery characters intermingling with humans in these ancient legends is nothing new, but Wendy Berg's essential premise is that King Arthur's queen, Gwenevere (whose name means White Shadow) is herself of faery origin. As bold an assertion as this may be, when you look at the legends afresh from this perspective a whole lot of confusing and conflicting elements in the stories suddenly fall into place. Wendy interprets a number of Gwenevere's "abductions" as excursions into faery, and offers a compelling view of the nature and origin of the Grail Hallows. Her discussion of these ideas is detailed, thorough and fascinating; she draws upon a number of other texts for comparative study, from the earliest tales of the Mabinogion, the book of Genesis, and The Lord of the Rings, unearthing a largely forgotten heritage of the British Mystery Tradition connecting up to ancient stellar deities. Although the ideas presented in the book are bold, they are far from credulous – everything is intelligently and sensitively presented. Wendy Berg is a practising ritual magician with many years' experience working with the Arthurian archetypes – and it shows.… (meer)