The Real Camelot: Paganism and the Arthurian Romances

by John Darrah

Fine Hardcover Dorset Press, 1981. Book. Fine. Hardcover. First Thus. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Mauve 1/4 cloth, gray paper covered boards, lettered in gold foil. As issued, illus. dust jacket now in mylar. 1st ptg..

Genres: History, Arthurian, Mythology, Nonfiction

160 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1981

Reviews

[Jeffrey Dixon · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 'reality' of Camelot in the title of John Darrah's fascinating book is not the archaeological reality of excavations of fifth- and sixth-century mounds and earthworks but the mythical reality of a prehistoric Bronze Age pagan religious cult site and its sacred kings. The pre-Christian inhabitants of Camelot, the French Grail texts tell us, were Sarrasins - referring originally, Darrah argues, not to 'Saracens' in the mediaeval sense of Muslims, but to the 'sarsen' stones of the Giants' Dance which, from prehistoric times to the present day, has been the centre of a pagan cult. The elements of this cult are traced throughout the Arthurian legends, often relying on a close reading of French romance. It is easy for the reader to lose the thread of his argument in the masses of erudite detective work, and the Frazerian emphasis on cult sacrifice might seem anachronistic to readers familiar with contemporary studies of comparative religion, but it is worth the effort for those who have read Weston and Loomis to follow a different path into the 'adventurous forest' of pagan Arthuriana where all roads lead to Camelot.

[Linda Malcor · Rating 3 out of 5]

While interesting when I first read it, the volume has not aged well. Published 39 years ago, it is now way behind the times. Even at my first reading, it seemed to me that he had Arthur in the wrong time period. It's a very quick read.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good fodder for Arthurian plot bunnies, but I did find some of the author's conclusions to be stretching things a bit, with little in the way of proofs to support his claims. Worth reading just the same.

[John · Rating 1 out of 5]

So bad!!