batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-1-frazer-gutenberg-l7493-l7525
---
record_id: batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-1-frazer-gutenberg-l7493-l7525
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
passage_locator:
label: MACAULAY. / CHAPTER II. THE PERILS OF THE SOUL. / HEINE. / CHAPTER III. KILLING
THE GOD.; lines 7493-7525
start: '7493'
end: '7525'
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 describes threshing-floor customs in which the corn-spirit is believed
to occupy the last sheaf or a human representative. The last sheaf is called Mother-corn,
Old Woman, or Corn-woman; a last thresher, stranger woman, or farmer’s wife may
be wrapped in straw or corn, carried through the village, placed on a dunghill
or at a neighbor’s barn, or ritually imitated as threshed and winnowed.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The passage says some customs previously associated with the harvest field
are also practiced on the threshing-floor.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The corn-spirit is described as fleeing before reapers, taking refuge in the
barn, and appearing in the last sheaf threshed.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The last corn to be threshed is called Mother-corn or the Old Woman.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: In several reported customs, the person who gives the last stroke with the
flail is called Old Woman or Baba and is wrapped or tied in straw or corn.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: In Lithuania, the last sheaf may be left unthreshed, fashioned into female
shape, and carried to a neighbor’s barn.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: In Sweden, a stranger woman on the threshing-floor may be adorned with a flail,
corn-stalks, and a crown of ears while threshers call her the Corn-woman.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:7
text: In Vendée, the farmer’s wife and the last sheaf are tied in a sheet, carried
to a threshing machine, and the woman is then tossed in the sheet in imitation
of winnowing.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: corn-spirit
description: A spirit of the corn said to flee before reapers, take refuge in the
barn, and appear in the last sheaf threshed.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Mother-corn / Old Woman
description: Name given to the last corn to be threshed.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: last-stroke thresher
description: The person or man who gives the last stroke with the flail and may
be called Old Woman or Baba, wrapped in straw or corn, and carried or wheeled
through the village.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: female-shaped last sheaf
description: The last sheaf in a Lithuanian custom, not threshed but fashioned into
female shape and carried to a neighbor’s barn.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: stranger woman on the threshing-floor
description: A stranger woman treated as Corn-woman by being encircled with a flail,
wound with corn-stalks, and crowned with ears of corn.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: farmer’s wife
description: In Vendée, the farmer’s wife is tied up in a sheet along with the last
sheaf and ritually handled in imitation of threshing and winnowing.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
roles:
- id: role:1
label: fleeing corn-spirit
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage explicitly describes the spirit fleeing, taking refuge, appearing
in the last sheaf, and possibly perishing or fleeing again.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: personified last corn
assigned_to:
- fig:2
- fig:4
basis: The last corn or last sheaf is named Mother-corn or Old Woman and, in one
case, fashioned into female shape.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: role:3
label: human bearer of the Old Woman designation
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: The last-stroke thresher is called Old Woman or Baba and is wrapped in straw
or corn.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: role:4
label: human representative of the corn-spirit
assigned_to:
- fig:5
- fig:6
basis: The passage says the stranger woman is taken to be the expelled corn-spirit
and that the farmer’s wife represents the corn-spirit.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: last sheaf
literal_form: The final sheaf of corn threshed, or in one case left unthreshed and
shaped as a female figure.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: sym:2
label: flail
literal_form: Threshing implement used for the last stroke and placed around a stranger
woman’s body in a Swedish custom.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:5
- id: sym:3
label: straw or corn wrapping
literal_form: Straw or corn used to wrap, tie, or attach to a person associated
with the last threshing.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: sym:4
label: crown of ears
literal_form: A crown of ears placed on the head of a stranger woman called the
Corn-woman.
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:5
label: sheet and litter
literal_form: A sheet and litter used to bind and carry the farmer’s wife with the
last sheaf in the Vendée custom.
associated_figures:
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:6
label: threshing and winnowing imitation
literal_form: The farmer’s wife is shoved under the threshing machine and tossed
in a sheet in imitation of winnowing.
associated_figures:
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: corn-spirit in the last sheaf on the threshing-floor
summary: The corn-spirit is described as moving from cut corn to the barn and appearing
in the last sheaf, where it may perish under the flail or flee to unthreshed corn
elsewhere.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: scene:2
label: last-stroke thresher carried through the village
summary: The person who gives the last flail stroke is called Old Woman or Baba,
wrapped or tied in straw or corn, and carried, carted, or wheeled through the
village, sometimes to a dunghill or another farm.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: female-shaped sheaf transferred to a neighbor
summary: In Lithuania, the last sheaf is not threshed; it is shaped as a female
figure and carried to a neighbor who has not finished threshing.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: stranger woman called Corn-woman
summary: In parts of Sweden, a stranger woman appearing on the threshing-floor is
adorned with threshing and corn objects and proclaimed Corn-woman by the threshers.
figure_refs:
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:5
label: farmer’s wife ritually threshed and winnowed
summary: In Vendée, the farmer’s wife and last sheaf are tied together in a sheet,
carried to the threshing machine, separated, and the woman is tossed in the sheet
as an imitation of winnowing.
figure_refs:
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:5
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: corn-spirit embodied in the last sheaf
taxonomy_refs:
- seasonal_cycle
basis: The passage repeatedly connects the last sheaf or last corn of threshing
with the corn-spirit or with names such as Mother-corn, Old Woman, and Corn-woman.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: The available taxonomy has no exact corn-spirit or harvest-spirit category;
seasonal_cycle is a broad fit based on harvest and threshing context.
- id: motif:2
label: human representative identified with the grain spirit
taxonomy_refs:
- seasonal_cycle
basis: The last-stroke thresher, stranger woman, and farmer’s wife are each treated
as or said to represent the corn-spirit or Old Woman figure associated with the
last corn.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: The passage reports customs through Frazer’s comparative interpretation;
individual local meanings may require source review.
- id: motif:3
label: ritual striking or mock processing of a grain-spirit representative
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
- seasonal_cycle
basis: The corn-spirit may perish under blows of the flail, and the farmer’s wife
is handled in a graphic imitation of threshing and winnowing.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage describes mock or symbolic handling rather than an explicit
literal killing of a human participant; sacrifice is therefore only a broad candidate.
- id: motif:4
label: transfer of the grain-spirit to unthreshed grain or a neighbor’s farm
taxonomy_refs:
- seasonal_cycle
basis: The corn-spirit may flee to still-unthreshed corn of a neighboring farm,
and the last sheaf or the straw-wrapped thresher may be taken to a neighbor who
has not finished threshing.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage gives several parallel customs, but not all explicitly state
that the transfer is understood locally as movement of the spirit.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage itself presents Bavarian, Thüringen, Polish, Lithuanian, Swedish,
and Vendée threshing customs as variants of a shared pattern in which the last
sheaf or a human participant is identified with a female corn-spirit figure.
claim_level: same_motif
target: European threshing-floor customs involving Mother-corn, Old Woman, Baba,
or Corn-woman figures
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The claim follows Frazer’s comparative framing and does not independently
verify historical relation or local interpretation.
- id: claim:2
claim: Across the examples, the last sheaf and associated human figures serve a
similar function as carriers or representatives of the corn-spirit at the end
of threshing.
claim_level: same_function
target: last-sheaf and human-representative roles in the reported threshing customs
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:5
- ev:6
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The functional similarity is explicit in the passage, but it does not
establish common inheritance or direct contact.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 7493-7499
quote_or_summary: The customs are practiced on the threshing-floor; the corn-spirit
flees before reapers, takes refuge in the barn, appears in the last sheaf, and
may perish under the flail or flee to a neighboring farm’s unthreshed corn.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 7499-7505
quote_or_summary: The last corn threshed is called Mother-corn or Old Woman; sometimes
the last person to strike with the flail is called Old Woman, wrapped in straw
or given straw on the back, and carted through the village with laughter.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 7505-7512
quote_or_summary: In parts of Bavaria and Thüringen the last thresher is said to
have the Old Woman or Old Corn-woman, tied in straw, carried or carted around,
and left on a dunghill or taken to a neighbor’s threshing-floor; in Poland he
is called Baba, wrapped in corn, and wheeled through the village.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 7512-7515
quote_or_summary: In Lithuania, the last sheaf may be left unthreshed, fashioned
into female shape, and carried to a neighbor’s barn if that neighbor has not finished
threshing.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 7515-7521
quote_or_summary: In parts of Sweden, a stranger woman on the threshing-floor is
fitted with a flail, corn-stalks, and a crown of ears while threshers call her
Corn-woman; the passage says she is taken to be the corn-spirit expelled by the
flails.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 7521-7525
quote_or_summary: 'In Vendée, the farmer’s wife represents the corn-spirit: she
and the last sheaf are tied in a sheet, carried to the threshing machine, the
sheaf is threshed separately, and the woman is tossed in the sheet in imitation
of winnowing.'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-1-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary generated from supplied passage.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: Literal extraction is strong because the passage explicitly names figures,
actions, and Frazer’s identifications. Motif and comparison labels are broader
and should be reviewed against the project taxonomy and Frazer’s source citations.
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: |-
No taxonomy symbol refs were assigned because the available symbol list does not include corn, sheaf, straw, flail, ears, threshing-floor, or winnowing.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:comparative-golden-bough-volume-1-frazer-gutenberg__l7493-l7525
passage_sha256=27531c84f66617a7754aabb3317a08748c322f1fab3f69c7d760211c98261daf