Chapter 12

But that AS. Sæteresbyrig from the middle of the 11^th century irresistibly recalls the 'burg' on the Harz mts, built (according to our hitherto despised accounts of the 15^th century in Bothe's Sachsenchronik) to the idol Saturn, which Saturn, it is added, the common people called Krodo; to this we may add the name touched upon in p. 206 (Hrêðe, Hrêðemônað), for which an older Hruodo, Chrôdo was conjectured. (21) We are told of an image of this Saturn or Krodo, which represented the idol as a man standing on a great fish, holding a pot of flowers in his right hand, and a wheel erect in his left; the Roman Saturn was furnished with the sickle, not a wheel (see Suppl.). (22)

Here some Slav conceptions appear to overlap. Widukind (Pertz 5, 463) mentions a brazen simulacrum Saturni among the Slavs of the tenth century, without at all describing it; but Old Bohemian glosses in Hanka 14ª and 17ª carry us farther. In the first, Mercurius is called 'Radihost vnuk Kirtov' (Radigast grandson of Kirt), in the second, Picus Saturni filius is glossed 'ztracec Sitivratov zin' (woodpecker, Sitivrat's son); and in a third 20ª, Saturn is again called Sitivrat. Who does not see that Sitivrat is the Slavic name for Saturn, which leads us to the first glance to sit = satur? Radigast = Mercury (p. 130n.) is the son of Stracec = Picus; and in fact Greek myths treat Picus (Pikoj) as Zeus, making him give up the kingdom to his son Hermes. Picus is Jupiter, son of Saturn; but beside Sitivrat we have learnt another name for Saturn, namely Kirt, which certainly seems to be our Krodo and Hruodo. Sitivrat and Kirt confirm Saturn and Krodo; I do not know whether the Slavic word is to be connected with the Boh. krt, Pol. kret, Russ. krot, i.e., the mole. (23) I should prefer to put into the other name Sitivrat the subordinate meaning of sito-vrat, sieve-turner, so that it would be almost the same as kolo-vrat, wheel-turner, and afford a solution of that wheel in Krodo's hand; both wheel (kolo) and sieve (sito) move round, and an ancient spell rested on sieve-turning. Slav mythologists have identified Sitivrat with the Hindu Satyâvrata, who in a great deluge is saved by Vishnu in the form of a fish. Krodo stands on a fish; and Vishnu is represented wearing wreaths of flowers about his neck, and holding a wheel (chakra) in his fourth hand. (24) All these coincidences are still meagre and insecure; but they suffice to establish the high antiquity of a Slavo-Teutonic myth, which starts up thus from more than one quarter.  



ENDNOTES:

21. To Hrôdo might now be referred those names Roysel (later spelling Reusel) and Roydach in Gramaye, who understands them of Mars; ancient documents must first place it beyond doubt, which day of the week is meant. There is an actual Hruodtac, a man's name in OHG. (Graff 5, 362), and an OS. Hrôddag is found in Trad. corb. § 424, ed. Wigand; these may be related to Hruodo, Hrôdo as Baldag to Balder, and the contraction Roydag, Rodag would be like Roswith for Hrôdsuith. If Roydag should turn out to be the seventh day of the week, it would be a strong testimony to the worship of Chrodo; if it remain the third, we have to add, that the third month also was sacred to Mars, and was called Hréðemonað by the Anglo-Saxons. Back

22. 'The Kaiserchr. 3750 says, to Saturn we offer quicksilver; whereas now Saturn's symbol signifies lead. In Megenberg, Saturn is called Satjâr. The Saxon Saturn is supported by Hengest's reference to that god'. (Extracted from Suppl., vol. iii.) Back

23. Hardly with Crete, where Kronos ruled and Zeus was born. Back

24. Edw. Moore's Hindu Pantheon, 1810, tab. 13 and 23.---'Sitivrat, who corresponds to Saturn, is the Indian Satyâvrata, i.e., according to Kuhn, he that hath veracious (fulfilled) vows; so Dhritavrata, he that hath kept-vows = Varunas, Ouranos.' (Quoted from Suppl., vol iii.) Back