batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-2-frazer-gutenberg-l12384-l12547
---
record_id: batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-2-frazer-gutenberg-l12384-l12547
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
passage_locator:
label: CONTENTS / NOTE. OFFERINGS OF FIRST-FRUITS. / INDEX. / FOOTNOTES; lines 12384-12547
start: '12384'
end: '12547'
translation: 'The Golden Bough: A Study in Comparative Religion (Vol. 2 of 2)'
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Footnotes discuss Greek megara and adyta as sacred subterranean chambers;
animal deposition in the adyton at Isis festivals in Tithorea and its analogy
to pigs in Thesmophoria caverns; sacred or sacrificial pigs and boars in Cretan,
Harranian, Cypriot, Jewish, Egyptian, and other examples; Egyptian pig sacrifices
to the moon and Osiris; and animal identifications involving Adonis, Typhon, Apis,
and Mnevis.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The passage defines megara as subterranean vaults or chasms sacred to the
gods and notes a Phoenician derivation meaning cavern or subterranean chasm.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: At spring and autumn festivals of Isis at Tithorea, geese and goats were thrown
into the adyton and left until the following festival, when the remains were removed
and buried near the temple.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The passage states that the Tithorea practice supports the view that pigs
thrown into caverns at the Thesmophoria were left there until the next festival.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: In Crete the pig is described as very sacred and not eaten, while the passage
allows the possibility of sacramental eating at the Thesmophoria.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: The passage reports that Harranians sacrificed swine once a year and ate the
flesh.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: The passage reports a conjecture that wild boars annually sacrificed in Cyprus
represented Adonis himself.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: In the Egyptian sacrifice to the moon, parts of the pig were covered with
fat and burned, while the rest of the flesh was eaten.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: In the Egyptian sacrifice to Osiris, each man slew a pig before his door and
gave it to the swineherd who had sold it.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:9
text: The passage notes that Lefébure recognized the boar in an Osirian story as
Typhon himself.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:10
text: Apis and Mnevis are described as black bulls, with Apis having certain white
spots.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: gods of the megara
description: Unspecified gods to whom subterranean vaults or chasms called megara
were sacred.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Isis at Tithorea
description: Deity associated with spring and autumn festivals at Tithorea where
animals were thrown into the adyton.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: geese and goats
description: Animals thrown into the adyton at Tithorea and left there until the
following festival.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: pigs or swine
description: Animals described as sacred, sacrificial, eaten in some rites, or thrown
into caverns at the Thesmophoria.
role_refs:
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: the moon
description: Recipient of an Egyptian pig sacrifice distinguished by Herodotus from
the sacrifice to Osiris.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Osiris
description: Deity associated with an evening pig sacrifice in which each man slew
a pig before his door.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Adonis
description: Figure whom Robertson Smith conjectured was represented by wild boars
sacrificed annually in Cyprus.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Typhon as boar
description: Figure identified by Lefébure with the boar in an Osirian story.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Apis and Mnevis
description: Black bulls; Apis is further described as having certain white spots.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
roles:
- id: role:1
label: divine recipient or sacred owner
assigned_to:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:5
- fig:6
basis: The passage associates sacred spaces or sacrifices with gods, Isis, the moon,
and Osiris.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:5
- id: role:2
label: sacrificial or deposited animal
assigned_to:
- fig:3
- fig:4
basis: Geese, goats, pigs, and swine are described as thrown into sacred places,
sacrificed, or eaten after sacrifice.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: role:3
label: sacred animal
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The pig in Crete is described as very sacred and not eaten.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:4
label: animal-represented figure
assigned_to:
- fig:7
- fig:8
basis: The passage reports a conjecture that Cypriot sacrificial boars represented
Adonis and states that the boar in an Osirian story is Typhon himself.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: role:5
label: sacred bull
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: Apis and Mnevis are described as bulls with distinctive coloration in a religious
context.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: sacred subterranean chamber
literal_form: megara, adyta, caverns, subterranean vaults or chasms
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs:
- cave
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:2
label: pig, swine, or boar
literal_form: pig, swine, wild boar
associated_figures:
- fig:4
- fig:7
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: sym:3
label: burned sacrificial portions
literal_form: pig tail extremity, spleen, and caul covered with fat and burned
associated_figures:
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:4
label: buried animal remains
literal_form: remains removed and buried near the temple
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:5
label: marked black bull
literal_form: black bulls; Apis with certain white spots
associated_figures:
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Sacred subterranean places
summary: Megara are explained as sacred subterranean vaults or chasms, with adyta
also used for sacred enclosed spaces.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Animal deposition in the adyton
summary: At Tithorea, geese and goats are thrown into the adyton at Isis festivals
and their remains are removed and buried at the next festival; the passage compares
this to pigs left in Thesmophoria caverns.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Sacred or annual swine sacrifice and eating
summary: The passage describes pigs as sacred in Crete and reports annual Harranian
swine sacrifice followed by eating of the flesh.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: scene:4
label: Egyptian pig sacrifices to the moon and Osiris
summary: For the moon, selected pig parts are burned with fat and the remaining
flesh is eaten; for Osiris, each man slays a pig before his door and gives it
to the swineherd.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:5
label: Boars as represented figures
summary: The passage reports that Cypriot sacrificial boars may have represented
Adonis and that an Osirian boar was identified with Typhon.
figure_refs:
- fig:7
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: scene:6
label: Distinctive sacred bulls
summary: Apis and Mnevis are described as black bulls, with Apis bearing certain
white spots.
figure_refs:
- fig:9
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Animals deposited in a sacred underground chamber until a later festival
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
- seasonal_cycle
basis: The passage describes animals thrown into an adyton and left until the following
festival, and compares this with pigs in Thesmophoria caverns.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: The passage notes that the Pausanias passage used for part of the inference
is incomplete and apparently corrupt.
- id: motif:2
label: Sacred animal sacrificed and eaten
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The passage describes Harranian annual swine sacrifice followed by eating,
Egyptian pig sacrifice in which flesh is eaten, and possible sacramental eating
of pigs at the Thesmophoria.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: Some statements are framed as possibility or as examples from cited authorities
rather than as a single unified ritual pattern.
- id: motif:3
label: Animal sacrifice linked to representation of a divine figure
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The passage reports a conjecture that Cypriot wild boars represented Adonis
and notes an Osirian boar identified as Typhon.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The Adonis example is explicitly conjectural; the Typhon example is reported
through Lefébure's interpretation.
- id: motif:4
label: Pig sacrifice with burning of selected parts
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: In the Egyptian sacrifice to the moon, selected pig parts are covered with
fat and burned while the rest is eaten.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: high
cautions: This motif is limited to the specific practice summarized from Herodotus
in the passage.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The passage explicitly treats the Tithorea Isis adyton practice as analogous
to the Thesmophoria practice of pigs placed in caverns, because in both cases
animals are deposited in a sacred enclosed or underground place until a later
festival.
claim_level: same_function
target: Tithorea Isis animal deposition and Thesmophoria cavern pigs
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage states that one supporting Pausanias text is incomplete
and apparently corrupt.
- id: claim:2
claim: The passage cautiously groups several swine-sacrifice examples under a recurring
pattern of pig or boar sacrifice with eating or divine association.
claim_level: same_motif
target: Annual or ritual swine sacrifice across Harranian, Cypriot, and Egyptian
examples
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: low
limitations: The passage provides notes and citations rather than a fully argued
historical connection among these examples.
- id: claim:3
claim: The passage supports a cautious functional comparison between boars associated
with Adonis and Typhon as cases where a boar is treated as representing or embodying
a named mythic figure.
claim_level: same_function
target: Boar as Adonis in Cyprus and boar as Typhon in an Osirian story
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: low
limitations: The Adonis case is explicitly a conjecture, and the Typhon case is
reported as a scholarly recognition rather than narrated in detail.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: note 168; lines 12384-12389
quote_or_summary: Megara are explained as subterranean vaults or chasms sacred to
the gods; the word is linked to a Phoenician term meaning cavern or subterranean
chasm.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source text.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: note 169; lines 12390-12398
quote_or_summary: At Isis festivals at Tithorea, geese and goats were thrown into
the adyton and left until the next festival, when remains were removed and buried;
the passage says this supports the view that Thesmophoria pigs were similarly
left in caverns until the next festival.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source text.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: note 179; lines 12415-12420
quote_or_summary: In Crete the pig was esteemed very sacred and was not eaten; the
passage says this would not exclude sacramental eating at the Thesmophoria.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source text.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: note 189; lines 12431-12436
quote_or_summary: Harranians sacrificed swine once a year and ate the flesh; Robertson
Smith conjectured that wild boars annually sacrificed in Cyprus represented Adonis
himself.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source text.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: note 196; lines 12444-12454
quote_or_summary: 'Herodotus distinguishes Egyptian pig sacrifices to the moon and
to Osiris: for the moon, selected parts were covered with fat and burned while
the rest was eaten; for Osiris, each man slew a pig before his door and gave it
to the swineherd.'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source text.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: notes 213-215; lines 12477-12484
quote_or_summary: The passage cites a story repeated by Pliny and notes that Lefébure
recognizes the boar in the story as Typhon himself.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source text.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: note 221; lines 12503-12546
quote_or_summary: Apis and Mnevis are described as black bulls, with Apis bearing
certain white spots.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source text.
confidence:
extraction: medium
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: low
notes: The passage consists of scholarly footnotes and citations rather than a continuous
mythic narrative. Several items are reported as analogies, conjectures, or interpretations
by cited scholars.
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. Taxonomy references were limited to the provided lists.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:comparative-golden-bough-volume-2-frazer-gutenberg__l12384-l12547
passage_sha256=09e4c6f62a7a3b6e70e74d460ea77342f05a91859b7e0500a2690b77ee36d7c3