Show respect for the spirit of the wild with this striking Celtic stag or buck silvertone pendant. A majestic antler-crowned stag is beautifully carved with intricate knot work. Antiqued silvertone zinc alloy (nickel free). Pendant measures approximately 1” wide x 1.5” tall.
For your pendant, you may select either a 17.5” silvertone snake chain with 3” extender chain, an 18” silvertone cable chain, or an 18” or 20” leather cord necklace with lobster clasp and 2” extender chain. (2MM round black leather cord with silvertone findings.)
The Stag (male deer) represents
- Stamina and Virility
- Grace
- Maturity and Experience
- Instincts
- Regeneration
- Nobility and Leadership
- Spiritual Enlightenment
The totem or icon of the stag or male deer is rich with symbolism, both Christian and pre-Christian/pagan.The stag – sometimes referred to as hart – is exalted among other deer. He is mature and experienced, having endured life’s challenges, and he has a massive crown of antlers to show for it. Because stags are native to every continent, except Australia and Antarctica, they are subjects in the mythology and folklore of many ancient cultures. In addition, the stag spirit animal appears in the spiritual belief systems of cultures around the world.
Many ancient cultures revered this majestic creature as something god-like. To the ancient Celts, it held a particular mystical energy inherent within nature. The ancient Celts didn’t just observe nature, they were a part of it. This means they held reverence for every aspect of the earth. They honored all creatures because they believed each possessed a spirit and consciousness.
Of all the beloved creatures of the forest, the stag was a major symbol of power, magic, and transformation.
The creature’s flesh and skin provided food, clothing, blankets, and other coverings. The bones went into making tools and weapons. Therefore, hunting was a crucial element to the Celtic economy and The survival of early people
In Christianity, the stag is a symbol for Christ, who tramples and destroys the Devil. Early bestiaries describe the stag as a relentless enemy of snakes. The stag was believed to pursue snakes into their holes or rock crevices, flushing them out by flooding the hole with the breath or water from its mouth, and devouring them.
Because the snake is a symbol of Satan, the stag's war against them made the stag a symbol of Christ in his battle against the evil one. The water used to flush out snakes became symbolic of Christ's wisdom and purity, the Gospel, and the water that flowed from His pierced Side on the Cross.
It was also believed that a stag that was ill or old would draw a snake out of hiding and swallow it. The stag then would drink large amounts of water to overcome the serpent’s poison, and thus be rejuvenated. So also, says the Bestiary, is the Christian saved, for ”sin’s trace is lost when in the baptismal font he is washed.” (Biedermann, 93)
When the stag is rejuvenated it sheds its horns after drinking from the spring, so those who drink from the Spring of the Living Waters are rejuvenated and shed their sins.
In the Old Testament King David makes the stag a symbol of the soul's longing for God: “As the hart pants after the fountains of water; so my soul pants after thee, O God.” (Ps 42:1) Because of this passage, in Christian art the stag and deer became associated with the soul’s desire for purification through Baptism and the Holy Eucharist.
For this reason it is often found on baptismal fonts, Communion rails and chalices. The mosaic over the 3rd century altar in Rome’s Basilica of St. Clement, for example, depicts stags drinking the water of life from the running stream. to symbolize life and sustenance.
In Norse mythology, four stags or harts (male red deer) eat among the branches of the World Tree Yggdrasill. According to the Poetic Edda, the stags crane their necks upward to chomp at the branches. The morning dew gathers in their horns and forms the rivers of the world.