Cauldron
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[[Image:Lotsane Matric preps.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Three-legged [[iron]] pots being used to cater for a [[school]]-leavers' [[party]] in [[Botswana]]. Everyday cooking is done in the school kitchens.]]
[[Image:Bulgur-making.jpg|right|thumbnail|300px|Boiling wheat grains to make [[bulgur]] in [[Turkey]], 1990.]]
[[Image:GuyFawkes.JPG|thumb|300px|Cauldrons were also used for [[execution]] purposes. Wax figure depiction taken in [[Madame Tussauds]], [[London]].]]
A '''cauldron''' or '''caldron''' (from Latin ''[[caldarium]]'', hot bath) is a large [[metal]] [[Cooking pot|pot]] ([[kettle]]) for cooking and/or boiling over an open fire, with a large mouth and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger.
==Symbolism and mythology==
Cauldrons have largely fallen out of use in the industrialized world as cooking vessels. While still used, a more common association in [[Western culture]] is the cauldron's use in [[witchcraft]]—a ''[[cliché]]'' popularized by various [[fiction]]s, such as [[Shakespeare]]'s play ''[[Macbeth]]''. In fantastic fiction, witches often prepare their potions in a cauldron. Also, in legend, a cauldron is purported to be where [[leprechaun]]s keep their treasure.
In [[Wicca]], a cauldron can be placed in a sacred circle and used to burn items that will be set alight during a ritual (e.g. Tuitéan & Daniels 2001, pp.175-176). It is a [[symbol]] of the womb of the Goddess (Zimmermann & Gleason 2000, p. 74; Iles 2005, p. 689) and rebirth (Starhawk 1999, p.109; Tuitéan & Daniels 2001, p. 330; Iles 2005, p. 689) as it was in ancient British Celtic religion (Webster 1987 pp. 60-61) and is sacred to the [[Wiccan views of divinity|Goddess]]. Water can be placed into a cauldron for [[scrying]] (a method of divining the future) or it can hold the ingredients necessary for a spell or incantation.
In some forms of Wicca which incorporate aspects of [[Celtic mythology]], the cauldron is associated with the goddess [[Cerridwen]]. [[Celts|Celtic]] legend also tells of a cauldron that was useful to warring armies: dead warriors could be put into the cauldron and would be returned to life, save that they lacked the power of speech. It was suspected that they lacked souls, like [[golem]]. These warriors could go back into battle until they were killed again.
The [[holy grail]] of [[Arthurian legend]] is sometimes referred to as a "cauldron", although traditionally the grail is thought of as a hand-held cup rather than the large pot that the word "cauldron" usually is used to mean. This may have resulted from the combination of the grail legend with earlier Celtic myths of magical cauldrons.
Real symbolic cauldrons include:
* the [[Gundestrup cauldron]], made in the second or first century BC, found at Gundestrup, Denmark
* a [[Bronze Age]] cauldron found at [[Hassle]], [[Sweden]]
* the cauldron where the [[Olympic flame]] burns for the duration of the [[Olympic Games]]
Mythical cauldrons include:
* [[Dagda's Cauldron]]
* [[The Cauldron of Dyrnwch the Giant]]
==See also==
* [[Kama (Japanese tea ceremony)]]
* [[Gulyásleves]]
* [[Hassle]]
* [[Sacrificial tripod]]
* [[Amrit Sanskar]]
==External links==
* [http://www.mystical-www.co.uk/grail/ Holy Grail]
* [http://www.carlfordcoven.co.uk/tools/ItemsUsed/cauldron_JPG.html A cauldron in a circle]
[[Category:Containers]]
[[Category:Cookware and bakeware]]
{{history-stub}}
[[zh-yue:釜]]
[[de:Kochkessel]]
[[es:Pebetero]]
[[eo:Kaldrono]]
[[fr:Chaudron]]
[[ja:釜]]
[[nds:Ketel]]
[[sv:Kittel]]
== References ==
Iles, J., ''THE ELEMENT ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WITCHCRAFT''. London: HarperElement, 2005.
Starhawk, ''THE SPIRAL DANCE, A REBIRTH OF THE ANCIENT RELIGION OF THE GODDESS. SPECIAL 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION''. New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 1999.
Tuitéan, P. and Daniels, E., ''ESSENTIAL Wicca''. Freedom, CA: The Crossing Press, 2001.
Webster, G., ''CELTIC RELIGION IN ROMAN BRITAIN''. Totowa, NJ: Barnes & Noble Books, 1987.
Zimmermann, D. and Gleason, K.A., ''THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE® TO Wicca and Witchcraft''.Indianapolis, IN: Alpha Books, 2000.