batch.motif.islamicate-folklore-arabian-nights-lang-gutenberg-l3445-l3549
---
record_id: batch.motif.islamicate-folklore-arabian-nights-lang-gutenberg-l3445-l3549
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
passage_locator:
label: The Arabian Nights Entertainments; lines 3445-3549
start: '3445'
end: '3549'
translation: The Arabian Nights Entertainments
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Sindbad reaches King Mihrage's capital, waits for a route back to Bagdad,
explores reports about Cassel island and sea creatures, then discovers his own
cargo on a newly arrived ship. The captain first believes him to be an impostor
because Sindbad had been thought drowned when a whale mistaken for an island plunged
into the sea after a fire was kindled on it. Sindbad proves his identity, recovers
his goods, gives presents, trades successfully, returns wealthy to his family,
and later rewards Hindbad before beginning the account of his second voyage.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Sindbad is received by King Mihrage and provided with what he needs after
reaching the capital.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The capital is on the sea-shore and is visited by vessels from many parts
of the world.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Sindbad seeks foreign merchants in hopes of hearing news from Bagdad and finding
a way to return there.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:4
text: An island named Cassel is said to belong to King Mihrage and to be inhabited
by a spirit named Deggial; sailors say timbals are sometimes heard there at night.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: Sindbad sees very large fish and smaller fish with heads like owls during
his voyage near Cassel.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:6
text: At the quay, Sindbad sees a newly anchored ship unloading cargo and recognizes
packages marked with his own name.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: The captain says the packages belonged to a Bagdad merchant named Sindbad,
whom he believed had drowned.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: The captain recounts that passengers landed on what they thought was an island,
but it was an enormous whale asleep on the waves.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:9
text: The whale plunged into the sea after feeling the heat of a fire kindled on
its back, causing several people to perish in the water.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:10
text: Sindbad declares himself to be the man believed dead and identifies the cargo
as his own property.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: After Sindbad tells of his escape and reception at the palace, merchants recognize
him and the captain accepts his identity.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:12
text: The captain returns Sindbad's goods and refuses a offered reward of several
bales.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:13
text: Sindbad presents choice goods to King Mihrage; the king accepts and gives
him many valuable things in return.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:14
text: Sindbad trades for sandalwood, aloes wood, camphor, nutmegs, cloves, pepper,
and ginger, then returns to Balsora wealthy.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:15
text: Sindbad's family receives him joyfully, and he buys land and slaves and builds
a great house.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:16
text: In the frame narrative, Sindbad rewards Hindbad with a purse of one hundred
sequins and invites him to return the next day.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:17
text: The next day Hindbad returns, a banquet is held, and Sindbad begins the story
of his second voyage.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: obs:18
text: Sindbad says he had resolved to live quietly after the first voyage but soon
grew tired of idleness and longed for the sea again.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Sindbad
description: A merchant of Bagdad and voyager who narrates his recovery of cargo,
return home, and beginning of a second voyage.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:9
- ev:12
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: King Mihrage
description: The king who receives Sindbad, owns Cassel island, accepts Sindbad's
gift, and gives valuable things in return.
role_refs:
- role:4
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:8
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Ship captain
description: The captain who believes Sindbad drowned, later recognizes him, and
returns his goods.
role_refs:
- role:6
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Foreign merchants and other merchants
description: Merchants whom Sindbad seeks for news and who later show joy at seeing
him alive.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:6
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Deggial
description: A spirit said to inhabit Cassel island.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Enormous whale
description: A whale floating asleep on the waves and mistaken by passengers for
an island.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Hindbad
description: The porter who receives money from Sindbad and returns to hear more
adventures.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Sindbad's family
description: Sindbad's family receives him joyfully after his return.
role_refs:
- role:12
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
roles:
- id: role:1
label: voyaging merchant
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Sindbad is described as a merchant seeking news and transport and later trading
goods on the homeward voyage.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:9
- id: role:2
label: apparent dead man returned alive
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The captain believes Sindbad drowned, but Sindbad identifies himself and
is recognized alive.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:3
label: host and storyteller
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Sindbad commands music, hosts feasting, rewards Hindbad, and begins the account
of another voyage.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- ev:12
- id: role:4
label: royal patron
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: King Mihrage receives Sindbad and orders him cared for.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:5
label: recipient and giver in royal exchange
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The king accepts Sindbad's present and gives valuable things in return.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: role:6
label: custodian of believed-dead merchant's goods
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The captain says he kept Sindbad's merchandise to dispose of it for the benefit
of Sindbad's family if he met them.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:7
label: recognizer and restorer
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: After recognition, the captain returns Sindbad's goods.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: role:8
label: witness community
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Merchants provide a social setting for news and later show joy at Sindbad's
survival.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:6
- id: role:9
label: reported island spirit
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: Cassel is supposed to be inhabited by a spirit named Deggial.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:10
label: living false island
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The whale is mistaken for an island before plunging into the sea.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:11
label: rewarded listener
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Hindbad receives a purse and is invited to return for more adventures.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- id: role:12
label: joyful receivers of the returned voyager
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: Sindbad's family receives him with joy when he arrives home.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: sea
literal_form: sea-shore, sea voyage, waves, waters, and homeward voyage
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- ev:9
- ev:12
- id: sym:2
label: fire on the whale-island
literal_form: fire kindled on the back of the whale mistaken for an island
associated_figures:
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:3
label: marked cargo packages
literal_form: packages marked with Sindbad's name
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- id: sym:4
label: purse of one hundred sequins
literal_form: a purse containing one hundred sequins given to Hindbad
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: sym:5
label: Cassel island
literal_form: a little island named Cassel, reportedly inhabited by Deggial
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:6
label: false island whale
literal_form: an enormous whale floating asleep on the waves, mistaken for an island
associated_figures:
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Reception at King Mihrage's capital
summary: Sindbad reaches the capital, is received by the king, and seeks merchants
and ships as a way to return to Bagdad.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Cassel island and strange sea creatures
summary: Sindbad explores near Cassel island, hears reports of Deggial and night
timbals, and observes unusual large and owl-headed fish.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Discovery of the lost cargo
summary: At the quay Sindbad sees a ship unloading and recognizes packages marked
with his own name.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Captain recounts the whale-island disaster
summary: The captain explains that Sindbad was thought to have drowned when passengers
landed on a whale mistaken for an island and lit a fire on it.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Recognition and restoration
summary: Sindbad declares his identity, narrates his escape, is recognized by merchants
and captain, and receives his goods back.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: scene:6
label: Gift exchange and prosperous return
summary: Sindbad gives choice goods to King Mihrage, receives valuables, trades
on the homeward voyage, and returns wealthy to his family.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: scene:7
label: Frame banquet and reward to Hindbad
summary: Sindbad pauses the tale, gives Hindbad one hundred sequins, and invites
him to return for further stories.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- id: scene:8
label: Opening of the second voyage
summary: Sindbad says that after intending to live quietly, he became tired of idleness
and longed again for the sea.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: living creature mistaken for an island
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The captain says passengers landed on what they thought was an island, but
it was an enormous sleeping whale that plunged into the sea when heated by fire.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: No supplied taxonomy family directly names this specific motif; it is
recorded as a passage-level motif without taxonomy reference.
- id: motif:2
label: apparent death and return alive
taxonomy_refs:
- death_rebirth
- return
basis: Sindbad is believed drowned by the captain, later declares himself alive,
is recognized, and returns to his family.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:9
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage describes survival after presumed death, not literal death
and resurrection.
- id: motif:3
label: lost goods miraculously restored
taxonomy_refs:
- return
basis: Sindbad discovers his own cargo after being thought dead, proves his identity,
and has the goods restored to him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: high
cautions: The word 'miraculously' is used in the passage for the restoration, but
no divine agent is specified in this excerpt.
- id: motif:4
label: royal gift exchange after ordeal
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: Sindbad gives choice goods to King Mihrage after recovering his cargo, and
the king gives valuable things in return.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The exchange is royal and reciprocal; the passage does not present it
explicitly as sacred.
- id: motif:5
label: renewed departure after successful return
taxonomy_refs:
- departure
- return
basis: After returning and resolving to live quietly, Sindbad grows tired of idleness
and longs again for the sea, introducing the second voyage.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:12
confidence: high
cautions: The actual departure for the second voyage is only anticipated at the
end of this passage.
- id: motif:6
label: benefactor rewards humble listener
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: Sindbad gives Hindbad a purse of one hundred sequins and invites him back
to hear more adventures.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
confidence: medium
cautions: The exchange is generous and socially significant, but the passage does
not frame it as sacred.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 3445-3456
quote_or_summary: Sindbad reaches the capital, is graciously received by the king,
is provided for, and seeks merchants and ships in hopes of returning to Bagdad;
the capital lies on the sea-shore and receives vessels from many places.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 3456-3466
quote_or_summary: Sindbad explores Cassel island, said to be inhabited by the spirit
Deggial, hears sailors' reports of night timbals, and sees very large fish and
smaller fish with heads like owls.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 3467-3477
quote_or_summary: Sindbad sees a newly anchored ship unloading at the quay, notices
his own name on packages, recognizes them as goods loaded at Balsora, and recognizes
the captain.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 3478-3489
quote_or_summary: The captain says the goods belonged to Sindbad of Bagdad, who
was believed drowned after passengers landed on a supposed island that was actually
an enormous sleeping whale; the whale plunged into the sea when it felt the heat
of a kindled fire.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: quote
locator: lines 3490-3492
quote_or_summary: "“I am that Sindbad whom you believe to be dead, and these are
my possessions!”"
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 3502-3509
quote_or_summary: Sindbad tells the captain of his escape, meeting with the king's
grooms, and reception at the palace; other merchants arrive, rejoice to see him
alive, and the captain also recognizes him.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 3510-3514
quote_or_summary: The captain praises heaven for Sindbad's escape, tells him to
take and dispose of his goods, and refuses Sindbad's offered bales of merchandise.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 3514-3521
quote_or_summary: Sindbad prepares choice goods as a present for King Mihrage, explains
how his bales were restored, and receives many valuable things from the king in
return.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 3521-3529
quote_or_summary: Sindbad trades for sandalwood, aloes wood, camphor, spices, and
other goods; reaches Balsora with about one hundred thousand sequins; is joyfully
received by his family; and establishes a great house.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: lines 3530-3536
quote_or_summary: Sindbad pauses the tale, has the musicians play, continues the
feast, and gives Hindbad a purse of one hundred sequins while inviting him to
return the next day.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:11
type: summary
locator: lines 3537-3545
quote_or_summary: Hindbad goes home, where his family is grateful for his benefactor;
the next day he returns to Sindbad's house, is received warmly, and attends another
banquet before the second voyage is introduced.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:12
type: summary
locator: lines 3546-3549
quote_or_summary: Sindbad says that after resolving to spend the rest of his days
quietly in Bagdad, he soon tired of idleness and longed again to be at sea.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/islamicate-folklore/project-gutenberg/arabian-nights-lang.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal extraction is well supported by the passage. Motif taxonomy mapping
is cautious, especially where available taxonomy lacks a direct whale-island category
or where sacred_exchange is only loosely applicable.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-29'
notes: |-
No comparison claims were added because the passage does not itself make an explicit cross-textual or cross-traditional comparison.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:islamicate-folklore-arabian-nights-lang-gutenberg__l3445-l3549
passage_sha256=2e6a90ea75534369d948bdbd05e9def1bb76f9f5ad6138b24648b3db1044d89b