Ancient Celtic Sweat Lodges • Scotland, the Islands & Ireland
Title Ancient Celtic Sweat Lodges • Scotland, the Islands & Ireland Geromy Gordon is in Orkney Islands. February 11 at 2:19 PM · Many people are surprised to learn that the Celtic peoples of Scotland, the Hebridean islands, and Ireland had their own form of sweat lodge. These small stone structures were used for healing, purification, and sometimes before important events or seasonal changes. The old belief was that steam could cleanse the body and spirit, and help restore balance. In Irish Gaelic they are called Teach Allais (“house of sweat”), and in Scottish Gaelic Taigh-fallais. Archaeological evidence shows many of these sweat houses date to the medieval period, with some sites possibly going back as early as around 500–800 AD. Most surviving examples were in use from the 1600s–1800s as part of traditional folk healing. These stone huts were small and low, built to hold heat and steam from hot stones and water. They were often located near streams o...
