Hretha

One of my paintings of the Heathen gods and goddesses.

This is Hretha an Anglo-Saxon goddesses recorded by Bede. She gave her name to the month of March in the Anglo-Saxon calender.

I have shown her with symbols of the season which was called the Lengthening, a name which survives in Lent. A time of hardship when food and fuel were scare.

The symbols used are hazel catkins, blackthorn flowers, daffodils, fighting hares and badgers clearing out their sets. The rune is \'victory\' a blessing for a time of hardship.