Gwahoddwr

Sikes describes the old-time gwahoddwr as a person of social importance, knowledgeable about pedigrees and family traditions. A chieftain could take the role on behalf of a vassal, and the representative moved between households while being respected by hostile clans. The illustration emphasizes a tall flower-wound staff held beside a seated gathering, rather than supplying the portrait of a named individual.

The following page explains that the staff was an emblem of office. On entering a dwelling, the representative struck it on the floor to secure attention before speaking. This entry concerns the role in the book’s account of wedding bidding; it does not identify the pictured figure as a particular historical person or independently certify the author’s statements about the antiquity and prestige of the office.

The staff is presented as a sign of recognized social authority in this account, rather than a magical implement inferred from its decorated appearance.