Please note: due to customs regulations we can only ship inside the European Union. Please ensure you have a valid EU shipping address before placing a bid. Celtic bronze medicinal or woad grinder. Complete with integral suspension loop to wear as an amulet pendant. Size: ± 36,5 mm Condition: Intact and complete condition, some earth encrustations. Signs of wear consistent with age and use. Certificate of Authenticity: available upon request (pdf-format) for items with a hammer price of € 100 or more. The lasting image of the blue-painted Celtic warrior is closely associated with woad which they used as blue body paint. Woad (isatis tinctoria) was an important source of blue dye and was cultivated throughout Europe. The Celts used the blue pigment for ritual, warfare or personal decoration, as a dye for textiles or for its medicinal properties to treat wounds. Hippocrates, Gaelen, and Pliny the Elder all wrote about woad’s use in treating wounds, ulcers, and haemorrhoids. Julius Caesar reported in the 'Commentarii de Bello Gallico' that the Britanni used it to colour their bodies blue, likely as a form of war paint to frighten enemies.