Cauldron of the Dagda

The Cauldron of the Dagda (Coire Ansic, "Cauldron of Plenty" or "Undry") is one of the Four Treasures of the Tuatha De Danann, the divine race who ruled Ireland before the coming of the Milesians. This miraculous vessel possessed the power to feed any number of people, producing an inexhaustible supply of food so that none would ever leave its presence unsatisfied.

The cauldron was brought to Ireland from Murias, one of the four cities in the mythical northern islands where the Tuatha De Danann learned their divine arts. Each treasure came from one city: the Stone of Fal from Falias, the Spear of Lugh from Gorias, the Sword of Nuada from Findias, and the Cauldron from Murias.

The Good God

The Dagda (literally "Good God" or "Great God") was the chief deity of the Tuatha De Danann, a father figure characterized by immense appetites and equally immense generosity. He was portrayed as a powerful, somewhat rustic figure with a club so large it required wheels to transport, capable of killing nine men with one end and restoring life with the other.

His cauldron complemented his role as provider and protector. The duty of a Celtic chieftain or king was to ensure the prosperity and sustenance of his people, and the Dagda embodied this responsibility in divine form. The cauldron's endless provision symbolized perfect kingship, where no subject would ever want for food.

The Four Treasures

Together with the other treasures, the Cauldron represented one aspect of sovereignty:

• Stone of Fal: Would cry out under the rightful king (legitimacy)
• Sword of Nuada: No enemy could escape once drawn (military victory)
• Spear of Lugh: Guaranteed victory in battle (conquest)
• Cauldron of Dagda: Fed all who came (prosperity and generosity)

Many scholars identify Celtic cauldrons, particularly the Dagda's, as precursors to the Holy Grail legend. Both are vessels of miraculous provision, both satisfy all who partake, and both are associated with divine/royal authority. When Christianity came to Celtic lands, the sacred cauldron may have transformed into the sacred cup, retaining its essential symbolism of divine nourishment.

The Preiddeu Annwfn, a Welsh poem describing Arthur's voyage to the Otherworld to capture a magic cauldron, explicitly links Arthurian quest narrative to Celtic cauldron mythology, forming a bridge to the later Grail romances.