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BLUE MEN OF THE MINCH
Scottish, 9th century CEThe Minch is a strait off the north-
west coast of Scotland said to be
inhabited by aquatic blue creatures
known as “storm kelpies.” These
mermaidlike beings were half-
human, half-fish, and were accused
of luring children into the water
and devouring them. They had the
power to control the waves and
raise storms that could sink ships.
When the blue men approached a
ship, they shouted the beginning
of a rhyme that the captain needed
to complete in order to save his
vessel from being capsized.
See also: The quest of Odysseus
66–71 ■ Numa outwits Jupiter
106 – 07 ■ Finn MacCool and the
Giant’s Causeway 168–69BEOWULF
Anglo-Saxon, 10th century CEKing Hrothgar of Denmark often
hosted his warriors in Heorot, a
huge mead-hall, to celebrate their
victories. Angered by the noise ofshield-maiden Lagertha. Ragnar
was said to have led the siege of
Paris in 845 CE. His final campaign
was in northern England, where he
was captured by a local king and
thrown into a pit of snakes.
See also: War of the gods 140–41
■ Sigurd the dragon slayer 158–59
■ The legend of King Arthur 172–77ROLAND
French, 8th century CERoland was a courageous Frankish
soldier based on a historical figure—
a regional governor under King
Charlemagne who died fighting the
Basques at the Battle of Roncevaux
Pass (778 CE). One of Charlemagne’s
bravest generals, Roland was a
popular subject for medieval
minstrels, with many epic poems
(such as La Chanson de Roland)
describing Roland’s honorable
deeds. Other stories describe
Roland’s victory over Ferragut, a
Saracen giant who was vulnerable
only in the stomach.
See also: The quest of Odysseus
66–71 ■ The voyage of Bran 165
■ The legend of King Arthur 172–77DIRECTORY
T
he all-pervasive nature of myth across the world illustrates its
centrality to the human experience. Since the beginning of time,
people have told stories in order to make sense of their world.
While many of these myths carry a seemingly explicit purpose—for
example, those that center on the founding of a city and, in doing so,
help validate its origins—others, with their cast of heroes and monsters,
speak more generally to latent fears inherent to the human condition.
Myths often share archetypal figures—such as the trickster god and the
noble warrior—yet vary greatly across national and cultural boundaries.
The stories below all belong to their respective cultures yet share
characteristics with those explored earlier in the book.these celebrations, for many years
the demon Grendel came from the
swamplands and killed the Danes.
Beowulf, the young warrior, came
to Denmark’s aid and killed Grendel.
All seemed well until Grendel’s
mother emerged from her lair to
avenge him. Beowulf destroyed her
and returned to Geatland, where he
became king. When a thief awoke a
local dragon, Beowulf defeated it in
battle, but was mortally wounded.
Dying, his body was burned on a
giant funeral pyre and placed in a
burial mound overlooking the sea.
As the oldest extant poem written
in (Old) English, Beowulf is now
regarded as a foundational epic.
See also: Sigurd the dragon
slayer 158–59 ■ The legend of
King Arthur 172–77 ■ The epic
of Gilgamesh 190–97RAGNAR LODBROK
Norse, 9th century CERagnar Sigurdsson was a semi-
mythical Viking warrior who
featured prominently in several
Norse sagas (stories). The first of
his three wives was the legendaryUS_336-343_Directory.indd 336 05/12/17 4:17 pm
DIRECTORY 337
BAYARD THE MAGICAL
HORSE
French, 12th century CEBayard, the horse of Renaud, a
knight of Charlemagne, was said
to have understood human speech
and grown in size magically in
order to carry Renaud and his three
brothers into battle on his back.
Renaud had fallen into dispute with
Charlemagne after killing the king’s
nephew. After a series of battles,
Renaud was pardoned on the
condition that he go on crusade
and give up Bayard. When Renaud
agreed to this, Charlemagne tried
to kill the horse by chaining him to
a stone and throwing him into a
river—but Bayard smashed the
stone and fled to live in the forest.
See also: The labors of Herakles
72–75 ■ Perseus and Medusa 82–83
■ The legend of King Arthur 172–77REYNARD THE
TRICKSTER-FOX
French/Dutch/German,
mid-12th century CEThe red fox Reynard was a central
figure in the mid-12th-century
epic Yseng r i mus. This series of
fables described how Reynard
was able to consistently defeat
his larger and stronger foe, the
wolf Isengrin, through his wits and
cunning. In one episode, Reynard
used quick thinking to persuade
Isengrin to catch fish using his
tail, so that the wolf became stuck
in the ice when the water quickly
froze over again.
See also: Numa outwits Jupiter
106 – 07 ■ The adventures of Loki
and Thor in Jötunheim 146–47
■ Finn MacCool and the Giant’s
Causeway 168–69LORELEI THE SIREN
German, 19th century CELorelei is a rock on the bank of the
Rhine in Germany. It is associated
with a legendary maiden called
Lore Lay, who was found guilty of
enchanting men and causing their
deaths. She was sentenced to
confinement in a nunnery. En route,
she persuaded her guards to allow
her to climb the rock so she could
view the Rhine one more time.
When she got to the top, she
thought she saw one of her lovers in
the waters and jumped off, falling
to her death. Her spirit became a
siren that lured passing fishermen
seductively to their deaths.
See also: The quest of Odysseus
66–71 ■ Jason and Medea 84
■ Pyramus and Thisbe 124THE RETURN OF KING
SEBASTIAN
Portuguese, 16-17th century CESebastian of Portugal was born in
1554, succeeding his grandfather
John III as king in 1557. When
he came of age in 1578, King
Sebastian launched a crusade
against the Muslim Sultanate
of Morocco. A devout and pious
Catholic, he disregarded his
advisers and quickly advanced
inland. The Portuguese army was
completely encircled and defeated,
and the 24-year-old king was killed
in the battle, although his body was
never recovered. As a result, a myth
arose that Sebastian would one day
return to save Portugal. This belief
became known as “Sebastianism.”
See also: The quest of Odysseus
66–71 ■ Aeneas, founder of Rome
96 –101 ■ The legend of King
A r t hu r 172 –7 7MARI AND SUGAAR
Basque, pre-4th century CEIn the mythology of the Basque
people of northern Spain and
southern France, nymphlike beings
called “lamiak” inhabited the
countryside. One of the best-known
was Mari, who lived in mountain
caves and was served by a group of
witches called “sorginak.” Her
husband was a serpentlike being
called Sugaar. Every Friday they
met and made storms. In another
tale, Mari was a human who was
transformed into a witch with the
power to control the weather.
See also: Apollo and Daphne
60–61 ■ Aeneas, founder of Rome
96 –101 ■ Carna and Janus 121LIBUŠE THE FOUNDER OF
PRAGUE
Czech, 8th century CELibuše was the youngest daughter
of Duke Krok, a mythical figure who
ruled the Czech people benevolently.
Libuše was wise and beautiful, and
because of this, Krok chose her to
be his successor. Libuše also had
the gift of prophecy. While looking
over the Vltava River, she predicted
that this location would one day be
home to a great city. Later, a castle
was built there, and around it grew
the city of Prague. The Council of
Prague resented female rule and
demanded that Libuše marry, so
she selected a humble ploughman
called Premysl. They were the
mythical ancestors of the Premyslid
dynasty—rulers of the Czech lands
from the 9th century CE until 1306.
See also: The lost city of Atlantis
91 ■ Aeneas, founder of Rome
96 –101 ■ The founding of
Rome 102– 05US_336-343_Directory.indd 337 06/12/17 5:15 pm