The Law on Bees

In our modern world it’s hard to believe that that 30 pages of law could address the issue of how to deal with swarms of bees.  Yet according to Alistair Moffat in his book The Sea Kingdoms, both Irish and Welsh law had much to say on the subject.  Honey was a valuable commodity, the only sweetener available before the advent of sugar, and those pesky bees had a habit of moving.  And so Celtic lawmakers had the challenge of trying to regulate the management and ownership of bees.  As we worry about the demise of the bee population of today, perhaps our lawmakers might find some inspiration in their Celtic predecessors.