Evidence Celtic body painting supported

It’s been a while since we mentioned Pytheas of Massalia (writing in the fourth century BCE), an  explorer from the Greek colony of modern Marseille in Southern France. Although his original writings were lost, he was referred to by many ancient writers such as Strabo. Pytheas may have had the first written description of Britain.

He may also have been the first to have called the people of Britain “the painted ones” or the “tattooed folk,” derived from a Celtic term.

The recent discovery of several hundred ochre fragments at a 6,500-year-old ceremonial site near Carlisle, England seems to confirm the description of the Celts’ body painting:

https://greekreporter.com/2023/08/26/archaeological-find-supports-ancient-greek-explorers-account-britons/