batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-1-frazer-gutenberg-l4039-l4102
---
record_id: batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-1-frazer-gutenberg-l4039-l4102
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
passage_locator:
label: CHAPTER I. THE KING OF THE WOOD. / MACAULAY. / CHAPTER II. THE PERILS OF
THE SOUL. / HEINE.; lines 4039-4102
start: '4039'
end: '4102'
translation: 'The Golden Bough: A Study in Comparative Religion (Vol. 1 of 2)'
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: The passage surveys taboos that confine or conceal sacred kings in several
societies, describes indirect means by which petitioners seek royal judgment,
and then compares beliefs that food remains, dishes, or drinking vessels can expose
a person or sacred office-holder to magical harm. It closes with a ritual rice
priest who must eat and drink separately and use only his own vessel during his
term of office.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Some kings are described as forbidden to leave their palaces, houses, chairs,
or palace precincts.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The King of Ibo is said not to leave his house for the town unless a human
sacrifice is made to propitiate the gods.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The kings of Aethiopia are described as worshipped as gods and mostly kept
shut in their palaces.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: The kings of Sabaea are said to be forbidden to leave their palaces, and to
be stoned by the mob if they did so.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: In Sabaea a wronged person could pull a chain attached to a palace window,
after which the king perceived him, called him in, and gave judgment.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: A Korean suitor seeking royal justice is described as sometimes lighting a
large bonfire on a mountain facing the palace so the king will see it and investigate
the case.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:7
text: The King of Tonquin could appear abroad only a few times a year for religious
ceremonies, and the people were forbidden to look at him.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:8
text: In Mandalay, people had to remain behind lattice-palings when the king or
queens passed, and were not supposed to look through the lattice holes.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:9
text: The passage states that magical mischief may be worked through leftover food
or dishes from which someone has eaten.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:10
text: Narrinyeri practice is described as requiring a man who eats his totem to
consume all of it or conceal or destroy the remains, lest an enemy use them to
harm him.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:11
text: In Tana, leftovers are buried or thrown into the sea to keep them from disease-makers,
who may burn remnants in a fire to make the eater ill.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: obs:12
text: The King of Loango’s leftover food is buried, no one may touch it, and no
one may drink from the king’s vessel.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: obs:13
text: The King of Fida is said to have a cup or glass kept for himself and never
reuses one that has touched another person’s lips.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: obs:14
text: The Alfoer priest called the Leleen must not eat or drink with anyone else
and may drink only from his own vessel during his ritual term connected with rice
growth.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Confined sacred kings
description: A composite group of kings described as confined, hidden, or restricted
in movement, including rulers of Shark Point, Loango, Ibo, Aethiopia, Sabaea,
Corea, Tonquin, and Mandalay.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Petitioners and suitors
description: Persons seeking justice from a secluded king by indirect signals such
as a palace chain or a mountain bonfire.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Subjects and onlookers
description: People required to avoid seeing the king abroad or to remain behind
barriers during royal passage.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Disease-makers
description: Persons in Tana said to use meal remnants, such as a banana skin, by
slowly burning them in order to make the eater ill.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: King of Loango
description: A king whose leftover food is buried and whose vessel may not be used
by others.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: King of Fida
description: A king who keeps a drinking vessel for himself and discards any vessel
touched by another person’s lips.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Leleen
description: An Alfoer priest of Celebes whose duty is described as making the rice
grow and who observes eating and drinking taboos during his term.
role_refs:
- role:7
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
roles:
- id: role:1
label: sacred or restricted ruler
assigned_to:
- fig:1
- fig:5
- fig:6
basis: The passage describes rulers as sacred, godlike, confined, or protected by
taboos.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:6
- ev:12
- ev:13
- id: role:2
label: confined royal presence
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Several kings are said to remain in palaces, houses, or behind restrictions
on public appearance.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: role:3
label: justice seeker
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The figures seek royal judgment by pulling a chain or lighting a bonfire.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: role:4
label: forbidden viewer
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Subjects are forbidden to see or look at the king during royal movement.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: role:5
label: magical harm-doer
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Disease-makers are described as using food remnants to cause illness.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: role:6
label: protected eater or drinker
assigned_to:
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
basis: These figures are associated with taboos on food remains, shared drinking,
or use of vessels.
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:13
- ev:14
- id: role:7
label: crop-growth ritual specialist
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The Leleen’s duty is described as making rice grow during a defined agricultural
period.
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: palace or house confinement
literal_form: palace, house, chair, or royal precinct
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: sym:2
label: palace window and chain
literal_form: window at the top of the palace with a chain attached
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:3
label: bonfire signal
literal_form: great bonfire
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:4
label: mountain facing the palace
literal_form: mountain
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs:
- mountain
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:5
label: screening lattice
literal_form: six-foot lattice-paling with partly blocked holes
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: sym:6
label: dangerous food remains
literal_form: leftover flesh, banana skin, meal remnants, food left on a plate
associated_figures:
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
- ev:11
- ev:12
- id: sym:7
label: exclusive drinking vessel
literal_form: king’s vessel, cup, glass, or priest’s own vessel
associated_figures:
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:13
- ev:14
- id: sym:8
label: fire used on food remnant
literal_form: fire slowly burning a banana skin
associated_figures:
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: sym:9
label: burial or sea disposal of leftovers
literal_form: hole in the ground; sea disposal
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- ev:12
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Secluded or invisible kingship
summary: The passage lists rulers whose movement outside palace, house, chair, or
procession route is forbidden or heavily restricted, and whose subjects may be
barred from seeing them.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: scene:2
label: Indirect appeal to the hidden king
summary: Petitioners seek justice from a secluded ruler by pulling a palace chain
or lighting a bonfire on a mountain facing the palace.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: scene:3
label: Human sacrifice before royal emergence
summary: The King of Ibo is said not to go into the town unless a human sacrifice
has first been made to propitiate the gods.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:4
label: Food remains as a magical vulnerability
summary: The passage compares practices in which remains of eaten food are consumed,
concealed, destroyed, buried, or thrown into the sea because they may be used
to harm the eater.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:6
- sym:8
- sym:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
- ev:11
- ev:12
- id: scene:5
label: Exclusive vessels for sacred or ritual persons
summary: Kings and a rice priest are described as using special vessels or avoiding
shared eating and drinking.
figure_refs:
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:13
- ev:14
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: secluded sacred king
taxonomy_refs:
- royal_legitimacy
basis: Multiple rulers are treated as sacred, godlike, or ritually dangerous, and
are confined or made invisible to subjects.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The supplied taxonomy does not contain a precise tabooed-king or royal-seclusion
category; royal_legitimacy is an approximate higher-level reference.
- id: motif:2
label: forbidden sight of the ruler
taxonomy_refs:
- royal_legitimacy
basis: The King of Tonquin is not to be looked at, and Mandalay subjects must remain
behind barriers and not look through lattice holes when royalty passes.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: This is a passage-level pattern rather than a named taxonomy item.
- id: motif:3
label: indirect petition to concealed sovereign
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Justice seekers communicate with a hidden or confined king through a chain
at a palace window or a bonfire visible from the palace.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: The passage gives only two examples and does not assign a named motif.
- id: motif:4
label: sacrifice enabling royal public movement
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
- royal_legitimacy
basis: The King of Ibo is said not to step into the town unless a human sacrifice
has been made to propitiate the gods.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: Only one example in the passage directly links human sacrifice with royal
movement.
- id: motif:5
label: leftover food as magical link to the eater
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Narrinyeri and Tana examples describe enemies or disease-makers using remains
of eaten food to cause harm, prompting concealment, destruction, burial, or sea
disposal.
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
- ev:11
confidence: high
cautions: No exact available taxonomy reference matches contagious magic through
food remains.
- id: motif:6
label: exclusive vessel taboo for sacred or ritual persons
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Kings of Loango and Fida and the Alfoer Leleen are associated with restrictions
on sharing or using vessels with others.
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- ev:13
- ev:14
confidence: high
cautions: The passage does not state the same rationale for every vessel taboo.
- id: motif:7
label: ritual specialist taboo during crop-growth period
taxonomy_refs:
- seasonal_cycle
basis: The Leleen’s duties begin before rice sowing and end after the crop is housed,
during which time he observes taboos on eating, drinking, and vessels.
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
confidence: medium
cautions: The seasonal-cycle reference is approximate; the passage focuses on office
taboos rather than a narrative seasonal myth.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage itself presents royal confinement and restricted visibility as
a recurring pattern across several named kingships.
claim_level: same_function
target: tabooed or secluded sacred kingship pattern
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:7
- ev:8
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The comparison is typological within Frazer’s survey; the passage does
not establish historical contact or common inheritance.
- id: claim:2
claim: The Sabaean chain and Korean mountain bonfire function similarly as ways
for petitioners to reach a king who is otherwise physically or ritually removed.
claim_level: same_function
target: indirect appeal to a concealed ruler
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The mechanisms differ materially, and only functional similarity is
supported.
- id: claim:3
claim: The Narrinyeri, Tana, Loango, Fida, and Alfoer examples are grouped around
the idea that eating remains or vessels can require special protection or separation.
claim_level: same_function
target: food and vessel taboo as protection from magical or ritual danger
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- ev:10
- ev:11
- ev:12
- ev:13
- ev:14
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage explicitly states magical harm for food remnants, but the
rationale for all vessel taboos is not equally specified.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 4039-4047
quote_or_summary: Some kings are forbidden to leave palaces; examples include Shark
Point and Loango, where the king may not leave his house, chair, or palace.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 4047-4050
quote_or_summary: The King of Ibo does not go from his house into the town unless
a human sacrifice is made to propitiate the gods.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 4050-4052
quote_or_summary: The kings of Aethiopia are described as worshipped as gods but
mostly kept shut in their palaces.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 4052-4055
quote_or_summary: The kings of Sabaea were not allowed to go out of their palaces;
if they did, the mob stoned them to death.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 4055-4058
quote_or_summary: At the Sabaean palace a window had a chain; a wronged person pulled
it, and the king saw him, called him in, and gave judgment.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 4058-4064
quote_or_summary: Korean kings are shut in the palace from youth; a suitor may light
a bonfire on a mountain facing the palace so the king sees it and investigates
the case.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 4064-4073
quote_or_summary: The King of Tonquin could appear abroad only for certain religious
ceremonies, and people were ordered not to look at him under penalty of death.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 4073-4082
quote_or_summary: In Mandalay lattice-palings lined routes where the king might
pass; people stayed behind them and were not supposed to look through the holes.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 4083-4085
quote_or_summary: The passage introduces the idea that magical mischief can be wrought
through remains of food or dishes from which a person has eaten.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: lines 4085-4091
quote_or_summary: Narrinyeri people are said to fear that an enemy can use a portion
of a man’s eaten totem to make it grow inside him and kill him; therefore remains
are eaten, concealed, or destroyed.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:11
type: summary
locator: lines 4091-4098
quote_or_summary: In Tana, leftovers are buried or thrown into the sea; disease-makers
may burn remnants such as banana skin so the eater falls ill and offers presents
for the burning to stop.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:12
type: summary
locator: lines 4098-4100
quote_or_summary: The King of Loango’s plate leftovers may not be touched and are
buried in a hole; no one may drink from the king’s vessel.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:13
type: summary
locator: lines 4100-4102
quote_or_summary: No one may drink from the same cup or glass as the King of Fida;
he keeps one for himself and never reuses one touched by another’s lips.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:14
type: summary
locator: lines 4102
quote_or_summary: Among the Alfoers of Celebes, the Leleen is a priest connected
with making rice grow; during his term he may not eat or drink with others and
may drink only from his own vessel.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: Literal extraction is strong because the passage is explicit. Motif and taxonomy
assignments are more cautious because several patterns in the passage do not have
exact matches in the supplied taxonomy.
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: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
Only the supplied passage and metadata were used. Comparison claims are limited to typological and functional comparisons made or supported within the passage itself.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:comparative-golden-bough-volume-1-frazer-gutenberg__l4039-l4102
passage_sha256=74f6e2fab69bf9b78762dda2d00b1d0791b7fc41a539cf63276bb5c72425d69d