batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-1-frazer-gutenberg-l4219-l4263
---
record_id: batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-1-frazer-gutenberg-l4219-l4263
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 4219-4263
start: '4219'
end: '4263'
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: Frazer lists taboos against touching royal bodies in Tahiti, Cambodia,
and Corea, then gives many examples of iron or metal being avoided in relation
to kings, priests, sacrifices, sacred groves, temples, altars, bridges, ritual
fires, and construction.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The bodies of the King or Queen of Tahiti were not allowed to be touched.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The King of Cambodia could not be touched without his express command; after
a carriage accident, his suite did not touch him, and a European carried him to
the palace.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The King of Corea could not be touched; when he touched a subject, the touched
spot became sacred and the subject had to wear a visible mark, generally a cord
of red silk, for life.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: No iron was allowed to touch the Korean king's body, and medical cutting with
a lancet was avoided even in dangerous illness.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: Roman and Sabine priests were not shaved with iron, but with bronze razors
or shears.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: When an iron graving-tool was brought into and removed from the sacred grove
of the Arval Brothers, an expiatory sacrifice of a lamb and a pig was offered
each time.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: In Crete, sacrifices to Menedemus were performed without iron because Menedemus
was said to have been killed by an iron weapon in the Trojan war.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: The Archon of Plataeae could not touch iron except once a year, when he carried
a sword to sacrifice a bull at the commemoration of the dead of Plataeae.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:9
text: A Hottentot priest used a sharp splint of quartz rather than an iron knife
when sacrificing an animal or circumcising a boy.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:10
text: Among the Moquis of Arizona, stone tools were retained in religious ceremonies
after leaving common use.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: Gold Coast worshippers removed iron or steel from their person when consulting
their fetish.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:12
text: Men making the need-fire in Scotland had to remove all metal, and the Burghead
clavie was made without a hammer, using a stone for hammering.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:13
text: No iron tool was used in building the Jerusalem temple or making an altar,
and the Roman Pons Sublicius was made and repaired without iron or bronze.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:14
text: The temple of Jupiter Liber at Furfo was expressly allowed by law to be repaired
with iron tools.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:15
text: The council chamber at Cyzicus was built without iron nails, and Raja Vijyanagram
did not allow iron in buildings within his territory because he associated it
with small-pox and epidemics.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: King or Queen of Tahiti
description: Royal persons whose bodies were not allowed to be touched.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: King of Cambodia
description: Royal person who could not be touched without his express command.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: King of Corea
description: Royal person who could not be touched and whose body could not be touched
by iron.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Subject touched by the King of Corea
description: Person whose touched spot became sacred and who had to wear a visible
mark for life.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Roman and Sabine priests
description: Priests who could be shaved only with bronze razors or shears, not
iron.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Arval Brothers
description: Roman sacred grove association whose grove required expiatory sacrifices
when an iron graving-tool was introduced and removed.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Menedemus
description: Recipient of Cretan sacrifices performed without iron, because he was
said to have been killed by an iron weapon in the Trojan war.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Archon of Plataeae
description: Official who could not touch iron except annually, when he carried
a sword to sacrifice a bull.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Hottentot priest
description: Priest who used a quartz splint rather than an iron knife in sacrifice
and circumcision.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Men who made the need-fire in Scotland
description: Ritual participants who had to divest themselves of all metal.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: Raja Vijyanagram
description: Hindu prince who forbade iron in buildings within his territory because
he believed it would bring small-pox and epidemics.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: untouchable royal body
assigned_to:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
basis: The passage states that these rulers' bodies could not be touched, or could
be touched only under explicit command.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:2
label: person marked by royal touch
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The touched subject's body became sacred at the point of contact and required
a lifelong visible mark.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: ritual specialist under iron restriction
assigned_to:
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:8
- fig:9
basis: These figures or groups are described in connection with ritual conduct that
excludes or restricts iron.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: role:4
label: sacrifice recipient associated with iron death
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Sacrifices to Menedemus avoided iron because he was said to have died by
an iron weapon.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:5
label: metal-free fire makers
assigned_to:
- fig:10
basis: The men making the need-fire had to remove all metal from themselves.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:6
label: ruler prohibiting iron in construction
assigned_to:
- fig:11
basis: The Raja would not allow iron in building construction within his territory.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: iron as prohibited contact material
literal_form: iron, iron tools, iron weapon, iron knife, iron nails, iron or steel
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:11
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: sym:2
label: bronze as non-iron substitute or restricted metal
literal_form: bronze razors or shears; iron or bronze excluded from the Pons Sublicius
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
- id: sym:3
label: stone or quartz implements
literal_form: sharp splint of quartz; stone knives and hatchets; stone used for
hammering
associated_figures:
- fig:9
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:4
label: red silk cord mark
literal_form: cord of red silk worn as a visible mark for life
associated_figures:
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:5
label: need-fire and Yule-tide fire-wheel
literal_form: need-fire; clavie, a kind of Yule-tide fire-wheel
associated_figures:
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:6
label: sacred or ritually governed structures
literal_form: temple, altar, sacred bridge, council chamber, buildings
associated_figures:
- fig:11
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:7
label: sacrificial animals
literal_form: lamb, pig, and bull offered in expiatory or commemorative sacrifice
associated_figures:
- fig:6
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Royal bodies protected from touch
summary: Examples from Tahiti, Cambodia, and Corea describe rulers whose bodies
could not be touched, including an accident in which Cambodian attendants did
not touch the injured king.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: scene:2
label: Sacred effect of Korean royal touch and exclusion of iron
summary: The Korean king's touch makes a subject's touched spot sacred and requires
a lifelong mark; iron may not touch the king's body, affecting medical treatment.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Iron avoided or expiated in priestly and sacred contexts
summary: Roman, Sabine, Arval, Cretan, and Plataean examples connect iron avoidance
or expiation with priests, sacrifice, sacred groves, and commemorative ritual.
figure_refs:
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: Non-iron implements and metal removal in rites
summary: Hottentot, Moqui, Gold Coast, Scottish, and Burghead examples describe
quartz or stone tools and the removal or avoidance of metal in religious consultation,
fire-making, and ritual construction.
figure_refs:
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:3
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:5
label: Iron avoided or regulated in sacred and civic construction
summary: The passage lists temple, altar, bridge, council chamber, and building
practices in which iron is avoided, expressly permitted, or prohibited because
of feared epidemics.
figure_refs:
- fig:11
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: taboo against touching a sacred ruler
taxonomy_refs:
- royal_legitimacy
basis: Several royal examples define the king or queen's body as not to be touched,
with special consequences when the Korean king touches a subject.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage describes contact taboo more directly than political legitimation;
taxonomy link is approximate.
- id: motif:2
label: iron taboo in sacred persons, rites, and structures
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The passage repeatedly describes iron excluded from royal bodies, priestly
grooming, sacrifices, sacred groves, ritual tools, consultations, fire-making,
temples, altars, bridges, and buildings.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: No specific iron-taboo taxonomy reference is supplied in the available
list.
- id: motif:3
label: archaic or non-iron tool retained for ritual use
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Bronze, quartz, and stone implements are retained or substituted in contexts
where iron is avoided.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
confidence: high
cautions: The passage gives examples but does not provide a single indigenous explanation
for all substitutions.
- id: motif:4
label: expiatory or commemorative sacrifice under material restrictions
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The passage mentions expiatory sacrifice when iron enters the Arval grove,
sacrifices to Menedemus without iron, and the Archon of Plataeae's annual bull
sacrifice with a sword exception.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: The material restriction is the central comparative feature; sacrifice
is one setting where it appears.
- id: motif:5
label: ritual fire made under metal prohibition
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The need-fire makers had to remove all metal, and the Burghead Yule-tide
fire-wheel was made without a hammer, using stone.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage is brief and does not explain the fire ritual's wider mythic
context.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: 'The passage explicitly juxtaposes Tahitian, Cambodian, and Korean royal
customs as examples of a shared functional pattern: the ruler''s body is protected
from ordinary touch.'
claim_level: same_function
target: cross-cultural taboo on touching royal bodies
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The passage does not establish historical contact or common origin
among the customs.
- id: claim:2
claim: The passage presents many societies as sharing a functional avoidance of
iron or metal in sacred, royal, ritual, or construction contexts.
claim_level: same_function
target: iron or metal taboo in sacred practice
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
counter_evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: high
limitations: One example notes a legal permission to use iron tools at Furfo, showing
that the restriction was not universal even within the listed material.
- id: claim:3
claim: The passage supports a cautious comparison between bronze, stone, and quartz
implements as non-iron substitutes preserved in ritual settings.
claim_level: same_function
target: ritual retention of non-iron implements
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage does not state that all such substitutes had the same meaning;
it only places them in analogous iron-avoiding contexts.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: 4219-4225
quote_or_summary: Tahiti forbids touching the King or Queen's body; Cambodia forbids
touching the king without command, and attendants avoided touching him after a
carriage accident.
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: 4225-4234
quote_or_summary: In Corea no one may touch the king; his touch makes a subject's
touched spot sacred and requires a lifelong visible mark, and iron may not touch
the king's body.
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: 4234-4241
quote_or_summary: Roman and Sabine priests used bronze rather than iron for shaving;
the Arval Brothers offered expiatory sacrifices when an iron graving-tool entered
and left the sacred grove.
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: 4241-4248
quote_or_summary: Cretan sacrifices to Menedemus avoided iron due to his death by
an iron weapon; the Plataean Archon avoided iron except for an annual sword-carried
bull sacrifice.
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: 4248-4257
quote_or_summary: Hottentot, Moqui, Gold Coast, Scottish, and Burghead examples
describe quartz or stone implements and removal or avoidance of iron or metal
in religious rites and fire-making.
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: 4257-4263
quote_or_summary: Examples from Jewish, Roman, Furfo, Cyzicus, and Vijyanagram contexts
concern use, avoidance, or prohibition of iron in temples, altars, bridges, chambers,
and buildings.
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: high
notes: The passage is itself a comparative list, so functional comparison claims
are well supported; taxonomy mapping is limited because the supplied taxonomy
lacks a direct iron-taboo category.
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: |-
All claims are limited to the supplied passage and metadata; no external historical connections are inferred.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:comparative-golden-bough-volume-1-frazer-gutenberg__l4219-l4263
passage_sha256=e8ba02b3e43bb3b7960396a90e5996f5520bfba14b0bed024e08cd5a828f25cf