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Chestnut
Keywords
Healing, Love, Prosperity
Historical
Background and Folklore
Chestnut trees were introduced into the British Isles by the Romans.
The Celts of Wales used and revered chestnuts in place of hazelnuts.
Prior to a fungus epidemic in the early 1900s that almost completely
eliminated it, the chestnut was a dominant woodland tree in North
America.
The horse chestnut, native to the Balkans, was slowly adopted as
an ornamental tree throughout Europe. In Victorian England, the
Sunday before Ascension Day was called Chestnut Sunday. This was
a special day for middle-class Londoners to visit Kew Gardens and
enjoy the horse chestnuts in bloom.
There are several theories to explain the word “horse”
in its name. One is that “horse” simply meant “coarse”—it
is not a delicate tree. Another theory is that young branches sometimes
carry markings that look like tiny horse hooves. Others believe
that “horse” was mistaken for the Welsh word gwres,
which can mean “hot” or “pungent”. |
Roasted chestnuts are a popular winter snack that contain vitamins
B1, B2 and C. In Medieval Europe, horse chestnuts were widely used
for food by the poor as well as fodder for domestic swine. The word
Aesculus in its name comes from the Greek esca meaning “food”.
Associations
Elements: air, fire, water
Energy: masculine
Goddesses: Artemis, Boann, Diana
Zodiac: Cancer, Gemini, Sagittarius, Virgo |
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Color:
silver
Gemstones: milky quartz, moonstone
Dates: May 15 - 24 and November 12 - 21
Bach Flower Remedies: failure to learn from mistakes; over concern
for the welfare of loved ones (red chestnut); extreme mental anguish
(sweet chestnut); unwanted thoughts and mental arguments (white
chestnut)
Miscellaneous: use to bless a new home to attract abundance; peace
of mind; sabbat: Yule/Winter Solstice
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© Llewellyn - Whispers from the Woods
For more information, refer to the full text in Whispers from
the Woods.
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