In "The Religion of the Ancient Celts" (1911), J. A. MacCulloch noted that "the swine was a frequent representative of the barleycorn-spirit or of vegetation divinities in Europe" and that "the flesh of the animal was often mixed with the seed corn or buried in the fields to promote fertility". MacCulloch speculates that it was Moccus' role as a fertility god that led to his being identified with Mercury, whose Greek equivalent Hermes was associated with "fertility in flocks and herds".