Many heathens in the English-speaking world and the public at large are unaware of the history of the continental Germanic god, Donar and his mythical associations. They may be vaguely aware of his existence and the equivalency of Thor with Donar but that is usually the extent of their knowledge.
The name, Donar is the Old High German (OHG) for the Germanic thunder deity, also known as Thunar in Old Saxon (OS), Thuner in Old Frisian (OF), Thunor in Old English (OE) and Thor in Old Norse (ON). The reconstructed Proto-Germanic name, from which these names all derive is *Thun(a)raz. Along with the Celtic, Baltic and Slavic god names *Thun(a)raz may be traced back to the Proto-Indo-European (PIE) *Perkwunos, which has the meaning of 'the Striker'/Lord of Oaks'.
The weapon associated with the Germanic thunder god is generally perceived to be the hammer, or to give its personal name in ON, Mjollnir, derived from the Proto-Norse *melluniaR. There are various scholarly theories as to the meaning of this term, but I am not going to examine them in this essay as this would take me 'off the beaten track' of the subject I am discussing, which is the Hercules-Thor connection.
The Hercules' Club amulet began to appear in the archaeological record between the 2nd and 3rd century CE in the Roman Empire. From 2-5cm in length they were initially made from gold but later on from silver, bronze, antler or bone, shaped like a miniature mace or wooden club with small knobs on the surface of the lower part of the pendant. The appearance of the Hercules' Club or to give its German name, Herkuleskeule is contemporary with the migration age which saw large-scale Germanic tribal movements across continental Europe. A gold specimen from the 3rd century CE found in the Nippe district of Koeln bears the inscription, DEO HER [culi], which has the meaning 'to the god Hercules'. This is explicit proof for the association of the club (and its amulet form) with the god Hercules, or to give his original and Greek name, Herakles.
The Herkuleskeule was widely spread throughout the Roman province of Germania Inferior and were found in late Roman cremations. Once this amulet had become established in the Germanic lands it transitioned into what we now know as the Donarkeule among the pre-Christian Germanic tribes. Donarkeulen have been found in graves from the 5th to the 7th centuries CE, generally made of bone and antler and often placed in the graves of women. 80-90% of the finds come from women's graves. The remainder are found in men's graves and less rarely, those of children (usually girls).
The reasons for the disparity between men's and women's graves may be due to the Germans regarding the amulet as a fertility symbol. The Donarkeule may also have been associated with protection in childbirth and household magic, which are generally preserves of the female in a ritualistic sense. Studies of migration-era cemeteries in Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony) and Schleswig-Holstein indicate that Donarkeulen are often found alongside bead necklaces, broaches and other female associated wares. In Thueringen (Thuringia) Donarkeulen are almost exclusively found in women's graves and usually as part of necklace assemblages. In the Alemannic and Bavarian regions they are predominately found in female graves and sometimes with bundles of other amulets. In the Frankish areas of the Rhineland female graves dominate the finds but a few are found in male graves, which scholars interpret as inherited or symbolic items.
To summarise the reasons for the gender imbalance:
. Donarkeulen functioning as amulets, charms and household magic, the preserve of women.
. Donarkeulen included as part of necklace assemblages, which were rarely worn by men.
In contrast to the Donarkeule, the Herkuleskeule of the Romans was also a protective amulet and in late Roman finds it appears in the graves of both men and women. It is only with the adoption of this amulet form by the Germans that it became heavily gendered.
The Donarkeule differs from the Herkuleskeule in style and construction; the majority of Herkuleskeulen were made from various metals, usually gold, but also silver and bronze. By contrast, most Donarkeulen were carved from antler and bone, and were of a much rougher and less symmetrical design. Herkuleskeulen had tapered handles and bulbous heads with integrated suspension loops. Donerkeulen tended to have short and stubby proportions and a hole drilled for suspension. They also often have ring and dot symbols, indicating an association with the hailstone symbolism found on Thor's Hammer pendants and certain Thor idols. Herkuleskeulen lack that kind of lightning symbolism. From 3-6cm in length the Donarkeulen are slightly longer in length than the Herkuleskeulen. Donarkeulen could be made more cheaply than Herkuleskeulen due to their carving from natural materials such as antler or bone, while the predominately gold or bronze Herkuleskeulen were the preserve of an elite.
While the two types of amulet have both similarities and differences, they relate to two different deities and cultures, so the question arises, why did the Germans adopt the Herkuleskeule form? The Germanic peoples of the Rhine and Danube lived alongside the Romans and inevitably through the process of cultural exchange adopted and adapted some Roman practices. The Herkuleskeule was already a widespread and powerful symbol in Germania Inferior and so the Germans adopted its shape and transformed it into a symbol of their god, Donar and their own religious Weltanschauung.
We know from the writings of Tacitus that already in the first century CE, there was an association between the Roman Hercules and the Germanic peoples:
'They say that Hercules, too, once visited them; and when going into battle, they sing of him, first of all heroes.' (Germania 3, translation by Church and Brodribb, 1876)
It is clear from the context that the 'Hercules' referred to in Germania 3 is Hercules, the man, rather than the deified Hercules. Further on in Germania there is the following reference:
'Mercury is the deity whom they chiefly worship, and on certain days they deem it right to sacrifice to him even with human victims. Hercules and Mars they appease with more lawful offerings. Some of the Suevi also sacrifice to Isis.' (Germania 9, Church and Brodribb).
The 'Hercules' referred to in the aforementioned quotation, obvious from the context, is the deified Hercules, the god. In the 'interpretatio Romana', Hercules was often equated with the Germanic thunder god due to their shared focus as being defenders of mankind against forces of chaos. In other contexts, the Germanic thunder god would be equated with the Roman 'Iupiter' (anglicised as 'Jupiter' even though the initial 'I' is silent in Latin).
In gesta Danorum (History of the Danes) by Saxo Grammaticus, there is a reference to the god Thor wielding not a hammer but a club:
'However, Thor was swinging his club with marvellous might, and shattered all interposing shields, calling as loudly on his foes to attack him as upon his friends to back him up. No kind of armour withstood his onset; no man could receive his stroke and live. Whatsoever his blow fended off it crushed, neither shield nor helm endured the weight of its dint, no greatness of body or of strength could serve.' (Book III, translation by Elton, 1905)
The above quotation is concerned with a naval battle which took place between Thor and Hother. We are informed that Hother cut short Thor's club. This may be compared to the Icelandic sources which also confirm that Thor's other weapon, the hammer was cut short at the handle but the explanation for this is quite different.
'Thus the victory would have passed to the gods, but that Hother, though his line had already fallen back, darted up, hewed off the club at the haft, and made it useless. And the gods, when they had lost this weapon, fled incontinently.'
Moving outside of the world of Germanic mythology but remaining in the Indo-European tradition, we find other examples of thunder gods wielding a club:
. Indra-a club and a thunderbolt.
. Perun-an axe or a club.
. Taranis-a wheel and sometimes a club.
Another example of a club-wielding deity is The Dagda, the chief god of the Irish Tuatha De Danann, but he is not a thunder deity.
In the past, I have explored in my blogs, the antiquity of the axe in relation to the Germanic and other Indo-European thunder gods, but this is the first time that I have discussed in any detail, the club. It may very well be that just as the antiquity of the thunder axe is greater than the hammer, the club may exceed them both, being probably the most ancient hand weapon known to man. The evidence for my speculation is as follows:
. The isolated textual evidence of Saxo Grammaticus.
. The widespead finds of Donarkeulen in continental Germania.
. Stylistic differences between the Herkuleskeule and the Donarkeule. Did the Germans only just copy the idea from the Romans or was their tradition older, despite the lack of archaeological evidence to support this theory? The lack of earlier Germanic club amulets does not prove that they had no oral traditions linking the club to Donar.
. The evidence form other Indo-European cultures suggests an ancient, shared tradition.
However, there are no find of club amulets from Scandinavia. The hammer as an amulet may have developed from the club. Saxo's myth does draw a connection between the shortened haft of the club with the shortened haft of the hammer although the explanation is completely different. The Icelandic sources indicate that Loki was to blame for the hammer's short haft. It is possible that the club marked a transition to the hammer. The earliest hammer finds from Scandinavia (7th-8th century CE) have short handles and broad, flat heads.
The inceasing popularity of the hammer may be due to the strong tradition of iron-smithing in Scandinavia and deities related to this activity, such as Volundr. The hammer is not merely a weapon but a tool for consecration, used at both weddings and funerals, as well as the hallowing of land and for the ritual protection of the community. The popularity of the hammer increased and spread due to the inroads made by Christianity in the North, making it a symbol in opposition to the Christian cross: one culture's magic against another's! The hammer thus became a more recogniseable religious symbol in comparison to the club. By the beginning of the Viking Age in the 8th century, the hammer became the most recogniseable symbol of pre-Christian Germanic heathenry. By 8th century, it had replaced the symbol of the club. However, this statement should be balanced against the fact that heathenry was already beginning to die out in continental Germania by this time.
There is a misconception that the hammer only arose as a heathen symbol with the spread of Christianity, but this is incorrect. There are hammer finds predating the Viking Age from continental Germania and also from Anglo-Saxon England, dating back to the 6th century. The fact that the earliest hammer find are from territories occupied by the Anglo-Saxons, Old Saxons and Frisians demonstrates that the hammer as a heathen symbol did not originate in Scandinavia. In fact, the hammer as a religious symbol can also be considered a development of the axe, finds of which go back to the Bronze Age and continued in use in Germania up to the time of its replacement by the hammer in the 8th century. Indeed, the axe continued as the thunder weapon of choice in the Baltic and Slavic lands.
It is my intention to discuss the club-axe-hammer development and its probable timeline in a future essay. I also intend to discuss the use of the club in Irish and Welsh mythology and in a wider Indo-European perspective; this essay is merely intended to be a short introduction to a subject which I have reflected on for many years.
