batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-2-frazer-gutenberg-l4996-l5066
---
record_id: batch.motif.comparative-golden-bough-volume-2-frazer-gutenberg-l4996-l5066
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
passage_locator:
label: 'The Golden Bough: A Study in Comparative Religion (Vol. 2 of 2) / CONTENTS;
lines 4996-5066'
start: '4996'
end: '5066'
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: Certainly nowhere does the custom of killing the human representative of
a god appear to have been carried out so systematically and on so extensive a
scale as in Mexico.
summary: Frazer argues that Greek and Mexican examples support an analogy for the
killing of a human representative of a god, especially in relation to the Arician
priesthood. The passage describes a Mexican captive or chosen young man treated
as a god’s living image, honored for a fixed period, then sacrificed and replaced.
language: English
quote_policy: quoted
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: The passage says the Greek scapegoat argument removes an objection to the
claim that the priest of Nemi was slain as representative of the spirit of the
grove.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The passage says Asiatic Greeks periodically or occasionally slew a human
being who was treated as an embodiment of a divinity.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: The passage says ancient Mexican practice included taking a captive, naming
him after the idol to whom he would be sacrificed, dressing him like the idol,
and treating him as the idol’s representative.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: During the period of representation, the captive was reverenced and worshipped,
received offerings, and was asked to cure and bless children and sick people.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: The captive was accompanied by ten or twelve men to prevent him from fleeing.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:6
text: At the feast, the captive was killed, opened, and eaten as a solemn sacrifice.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:7
text: At the annual festival of Tezcatlipoca, a young man of unblemished body was
chosen to be the living image of Tezcatlipoca for one year.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:8
text: The young man lived in luxury, wore splendid attire provided under royal oversight,
carried flowers, played the flute, and was adored by people who saw him.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:9
text: Twenty days before the sacrifice, four delicately nurtured damsels bearing
the names of four goddesses were given to the young man as brides.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:10
text: On the final day, the young man was taken by covered barge across a lake to
a small lonely pyramid-shaped temple.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: As the young man ascended the temple stairs, he broke one flute at every step.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:12
text: At the summit, a priest cut open the young man’s breast with a stone knife,
removed his heart, and offered it to the sun.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:13
text: After the sacrifice, the young man’s head was hung among previous victims’
skulls, and his limbs were prepared for the lords’ table.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:14
text: Another young man immediately took the sacrificed youth’s place and underwent
the same yearly treatment and fate.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Priest of Nemi
description: A priest said to be slain as representative of the spirit of the grove
in Frazer’s argument.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Greek scapegoat or sacrificial human embodiment
description: Human beings among Asiatic Greeks and possibly Athenians who are described
as treated as embodiments of divinity and sacrificed.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Mexican captive representing an idol
description: A captive named after an idol, dressed like it, worshipped as its representative,
and later killed and eaten.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Tezcatlipoca
description: The great god whose annual festival involved a young man serving as
his living image for a year.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Young man, living image of Tezcatlipoca
description: An unblemished young man chosen, trained, honored, married to four
named brides, then sacrificed and replaced.
role_refs:
- role:2
- role:4
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: King
description: The king ensured that the future victim was splendidly attired and
stayed in his palace during the final honors.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Eight pages
description: Attendants in royal livery who accompanied the young man.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Four damsels bearing goddess names
description: Four delicately nurtured women, named after four goddesses, given to
the young man as brides before the sacrifice.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Sacrificing priest
description: A priest who cut open the young man’s breast with a stone knife and
removed his heart.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Sun
description: Recipient to whom the extracted heart was offered.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
roles:
- id: role:1
label: slain grove representative
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The priest of Nemi is described in Frazer’s argument as slain as representative
of the spirit of the grove.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: human representative of a divinity selected for sacrifice
assigned_to:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:5
basis: The passage repeatedly describes humans treated as divine embodiments or
living images and later killed sacrificially.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: role:3
label: represented deity
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Tezcatlipoca is the god whose living image the young man becomes for a year.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:4
label: honored substitute or living image
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The young man is worshipped, luxuriously maintained, and adored as a god
before sacrifice.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:5
label: sacrificial victim
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The young man is finally cut open, his heart is offered to the sun, and his
body parts are treated after death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:6
label: royal sponsor of ritual honor
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The king oversees the future victim’s splendid attire and withdraws while
the court follows the destined victim.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:7
label: attendant
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The pages attend the young man in royal livery.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- id: role:8
label: ritual brides bearing goddess names
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The four damsels bear goddess names and are given to the young man as brides
before the sacrifice.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:9
label: sacrificial officiant
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: The priest performs the cutting and extraction of the heart.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:10
label: recipient of heart offering
assigned_to:
- fig:10
basis: The extracted heart is offered to the sun.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: grove
literal_form: Arician Grove / spirit of the grove
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- tree
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:2
label: idol ornaments and name
literal_form: Name and ornaments of the idol assigned to the captive
associated_figures:
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:3
label: flute
literal_form: Small flute sounded to signal worship; flutes later broken on the
temple stairs
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:5
- id: sym:4
label: flowers
literal_form: Flowers carried by the young man while roaming the capital
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:5
label: water crossing
literal_form: Lake crossed in a covered barge before the final sacrifice
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:6
label: pyramid temple
literal_form: Small and lonely pyramid-shaped temple
associated_figures:
- fig:5
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:7
label: stone knife
literal_form: Stone knife used by the priest to cut open the young man’s breast
associated_figures:
- fig:5
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:8
label: heart offering
literal_form: Extracted heart offered to the sun
associated_figures:
- fig:5
- fig:9
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:9
label: skulls of previous victims
literal_form: Head hung among the skulls of earlier victims
associated_figures:
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Argument from Greek scapegoat to Nemi
summary: Frazer links Greek scapegoat sacrifice and the priest of Nemi by proposing
that humans could be treated as divine embodiments and killed.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Captive treated as idol and sacrificed
summary: A captive is named and dressed as an idol, worshipped during a fixed period,
guarded from escape, then killed, opened, and eaten.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Year as living image of Tezcatlipoca
summary: A chosen young man becomes Tezcatlipoca’s living image for a year, is maintained
in luxury, carries flowers, plays the flute, and receives adoration.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Brides and intensified honors before sacrifice
summary: Twenty days before the sacrifice, four women named after goddesses become
the young man’s brides; in the last five days, he receives heightened divine honors
while the court follows him.
figure_refs:
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:8
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Final journey and heart sacrifice
summary: The young man crosses the lake to a pyramid temple, breaks flutes while
ascending, is cut open by a priest, and has his heart offered to the sun.
figure_refs:
- fig:5
- fig:7
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:5
- sym:6
- sym:7
- sym:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:6
label: Replacement of the sacrificed image
summary: After the sacrifice, the victim’s remains are displayed or prepared, and
another young man immediately replaces him for the next yearly cycle.
figure_refs:
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:6
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: human representative of a god killed in sacrifice
taxonomy_refs:
- sacrifice
basis: The passage’s central repeated pattern is a human being treated as an embodiment,
representative, or living image of a god and then killed sacrificially.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
confidence: high
cautions: The extraction follows Frazer’s comparative framing and does not independently
verify the historical descriptions.
- id: motif:2
label: temporary divine kingship or divine embodiment followed by death
taxonomy_refs:
- death_rebirth
basis: The Tezcatlipoca representative is honored as divine for a year, then killed
and immediately replaced by another youth who undergoes the same cycle.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage describes replacement of the representative, not literal rebirth
of the same individual.
- id: motif:3
label: ritual brides of a destined sacrificial divine image
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_marriage
basis: Four women bearing goddess names are given as brides to the young man shortly
before his sacrifice.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage does not elaborate the meaning of the marriages beyond their
placement in the ritual sequence.
- id: motif:4
label: annual ritual cycle of selection, honor, sacrifice, and replacement
taxonomy_refs:
- seasonal_cycle
- sacrifice
basis: The Tezcatlipoca festival is annual; the young man serves for a year, is
sacrificed, and is immediately replaced by another who shares the same fate after
a year.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: The passage places the festival around Easter but does not explicitly
interpret the rite as agricultural or seasonal renewal.
- id: motif:5
label: final ascent to elevated temple before sacrifice
taxonomy_refs:
- ascent
- sacrifice
basis: The victim ascends the stairs of the pyramid-shaped temple, breaking flutes
at each step, before being sacrificed at the summit.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage describes a physical ascent; any broader symbolic meaning
would require external evidence.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: Frazer explicitly presents ancient Mexican rites of killing a human representative
of a god as close parallels to his reconstruction of the Arician priesthood rule.
claim_level: same_motif
target: Arician priesthood / priest of Nemi
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: This is a comparison made by Frazer within a later comparative-religion
work; the passage does not provide independent primary-source confirmation for
all traditions compared.
- id: claim:2
claim: Frazer uses the alleged Greek practice of treating sacrificial humans as
divine embodiments to support the plausibility of a similar custom among early
Latins at the Arician Grove.
claim_level: same_function
target: Greek scapegoat rites and Arician Grove priesthood
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: high
limitations: The claim is framed as Frazer’s argument and depends on his interpretation
of Greek scapegoat material.
- id: claim:3
claim: The passage groups the Mexican captive, the Tezcatlipoca living image, Greek
sacrificial embodiments, and the priest of Nemi under the broad pattern of a human
divine representative being killed.
claim_level: same_motif
target: human divine representative killed in sacrifice across Greek, Latin, and
Mexican examples
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:5
counter_evidence_refs: []
confidence: medium
limitations: The passage asserts structural similarity, but it does not establish
historical contact or common inheritance among the traditions.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 4996-5014
quote_or_summary: Frazer argues that Greek scapegoat evidence supports the idea
that the priest of Nemi was slain as representative of the spirit of the grove;
he says Asiatic Greeks and perhaps Athenians sacrificed people regarded as divine
embodiments.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 5016-5035
quote_or_summary: 'Frazer quotes Acosta describing Mexican practice: a captive was
named and dressed as an idol, worshipped while representing it, guarded from flight,
asked to bless and cure, then killed, opened, and eaten in sacrifice.'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 5035-5047
quote_or_summary: At Tezcatlipoca’s annual festival, an unblemished young man was
chosen as the god’s living image for a year, maintained in luxury, dressed splendidly
under the king’s care, attended by pages, and adored while carrying flowers and
playing the flute.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 5047-5054
quote_or_summary: Twenty days before sacrifice, four damsels bearing goddess names
were given to the young man as brides; during the last five days, divine honors
increased and the court followed the destined victim.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 5054-5064
quote_or_summary: On the final day the young man crossed the lake by covered barge
to a pyramid temple, broke flutes while ascending, was held on a stone block,
had his breast cut open with a stone knife, and his heart was offered to the sun;
his head and limbs were then treated as described.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 5064-5066
quote_or_summary: The sacrificed young man’s place was immediately filled by another
young man, who was honored for a year and then shared the same fate.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/comparative/project-gutenberg/golden-bough-volume-2-frazer.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: medium
notes: The passage is explicit about the ritual sequence and Frazer’s own comparisons.
Motif labels are cautious because they reflect a secondary comparative interpretation
and not primary-source verification.
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 are limited to supplied available refs and applied only where directly supported by the passage.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:comparative-golden-bough-volume-2-frazer-gutenberg__l4996-l5066
passage_sha256=d94356dc1edf4575f51077d0bf1a0e33f9b6b71aadeddc92c2bf0b2ef0150bbf