barrows

Barrows

Of course, barrows are mysterious places.

Eerie by their very nature, as the tors and hillforts are.

 There is one other thing which adds to the mix.

Burial. Naturally the interred dead in such places are 

buried with ancient artefacts, and hence treasure.

Wherever you have treasure, you have treasure hunters,

whether there is any treasure there or not.

 Try to convince a treasure hunter that it isn't there!

 The fact is that hidden treasure and the occult

 or hidden lore are inextricably linked.

 There will always be an association between treasure and magic.

 Between the supposed wealth of the dead and the supernatural.

 Both are discussing the possibility of hidden secrets.

 Naturally you will bury your wealthy dead, and their "source of power"

 with a defender... something to protect it from tomb raiders...

A curse, or a being, which represents the curse made manifest.

 Where there is the possibility of treasure 

there must be treasure, and secrets to be discovered,

 and tasks to be performed to reach that treasure.

This series of interconnected motifs run all of the way back

to myth, such as the tale of the minotaur, 

like Orpheus travelling to Hades  to recover his lost love. 

 To the mysteries of Ephesus.  Rituals have been performed

for centuries in magical initiations, depicting mystic journeys.

The shaman took narcotics to travel to the land of the spirits, 

 and gain his precognition of events and occult knowledge.

There is a whole history of human being's association with 

the dead, and the buried treasure, material or magical, which they guard.

Whatever it is, Dan Brown, it's still the holy grail!

None of this explanation of the origin of a tale in any way 

Negates its reality. it isn't a sceptic's dismissal. I believe

  that it strengthens the story.

I'll look at barrow legends more in this light....