Bee Lore

There are many books and resources available regarding the myth, symbolism and folklore of bees.  Here are some books and articles of interest.  Feel free to post other resources as well to share with readers.

• Andrew Gough’s Arcadia website www.andrewgough.com picks up where Hilda Ransome left off with his beautifully illustrated and well researched article ‘The Bee.’  The article is in three parts, Part 1 – ‘Beedazzled,’ Part 2 – ‘Beewildered’ and Part 3 – ‘Beegotten.’  Links to each part of the article can be accessed from the homepage of the site.  Gough’s website also currently features 17 Questions with Simon Buxton, author of the award-winning book The Shamanic Way of the Bee (also not to be missed from this list, published by Destiny Books in 2004 and 2006).  Buxton is a beekeeper and elder in the European tradition known as the Path of Pollen and has much to tell us about the way of the bee tradition in contemporary times.
• Hilda Ransome’s book The Sacred Bee in Ancient Times & Folklore is perhaps the classic in its field and is not to be missed by those interested in bees.  It was originally published by George Allen & Unwin, London, in 1937 and republished by Dover Books in 2004.
• Claire Preston’s Bee, published by Reaktion Books in 2006 is also fascinating and beautifully illustrated.  In addition to examining some of the folklore around bees, she also has a wonderful section on bees in film and media.
• Rudoph Steiner’s Bees:  Nine Lectures on the Nature of Bees, republished by Steiner Books in 1999 is also highly recommended.
• P.L. Travers, ‘What the Bee Knows,’ originally published for Parabola on the theme of Earth & Spirit in 1981, and republished in a compilation of Travers’ essays entitled What the Bee Knows:  Reflections on Myth, Symbol and Story, Penguin Arkana, 1989.  Travers’s essay is beyond inspirational and taps into the ancient magic of the honeybee.

Of course there are many works of fiction and non-fiction about bees but as for bee lore, this list is a good start.  Happy bee reading!