The full moon: What did it mean to the earliest settlers?

When you look at the full moon on September 19, think about what the land’s earliest people thought of the big, bright ball in the night sky.

Historians say it was the Delaware Indian tribe who first named the phases of the same moon: the new moon, the round or full moon, and the half round moon.

Physicians in the 1600s prescribed pulverized mistletoe for those suffering from epilepsy — and it had to be mixed with black cherry juice and sipped during the days around a full moon.

At the start of the hunting season, Virginia’s Powhatan Indians made offerings of fruit to the full moon at the start of the hunting season. They believed the god Ahone had made the moon — as well as the sun and stars — and offered treasures to the god at the beginning of each season.

If you’d like to share your musings about the full moon with the other-worldy, consider tonight’s Tavern Ghost Walk from 8:30-9:20 p.m., beginning at Shield’s Tavern. Tickets are required; reservations are not.

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