batch.motif.celtic-irish-heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy-gutenberg-l9181-l9351
---
record_id: batch.motif.celtic-irish-heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy-gutenberg-l9181-l9351
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
passage_locator:
label: MORTALS / IMMORTALS / TAIN BO FRAICH / THE RAID FOR THE CATTLE OF FRAECH;
lines 9181-9351
start: '9181'
end: '9351'
translation: Heroic Romances of Ireland
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Fraech wins a three-day chess game against Maev under jewel-light, after
which Maev and Ailill realize their guests have not been fed and provide a feast.
Fraech states he has come in friendship, remains at the dun, and seeks private
speech with Findabar/Finnabar. At dawn by the water he meets Ailill's daughter
and her maid, declares he came for her, and receives her acceptance and a ring
as a pledge, while she rejects secret flight as disloyal. Ailill then sets a large
bride-price and requires Fraech to join the Cualgne Raid, which Fraech refuses
by oath. Ailill and Maev plan Fraech's death to prevent political danger, and
the group goes hunting and then bathing at the river of Croghan.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Fraech and Maev play chess for three days and three nights without recognizing
the passage of night because of light from Fraech's jewels or gems.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Maev is ashamed that visiting youths have not been fed, and Ailill orders
food to be given.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Fraech says in the House of Debate that he has come for a friendly visit and
later says he will stay for a week, though the passage states the group remains
two weeks.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: Fraech is sad because he has not obtained a word with Findabar/Finnabar, for
which he had come from home.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: At the end of night, Fraech goes to a brook to wash his head and finds King
Ailill's daughter with her maid using the water for cleansing.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:6
text: Fraech catches the maiden's hand and tells her he came to that land seeking
her and asks her to stay and hear him woo.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: The maiden says Fraech's speech brings her joy but rejects flight as disloyal
because she is royal-born.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:8
text: The maiden gives Fraech a ring lent by Maev as a token and pledge of their
love and says she will report it as mislaid until it can be openly shown.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:9
text: Ailill fears that Fraech would take the maiden home as his wife and says Fraech
may win her if he rides on the Raid with his cattle.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:10
text: Ailill demands sixty dark-grey steeds with gold bits, twelve milch-cows with
abundant milk, white calves with red ears, and Fraech's participation with harpers
and men in the Cualgne Raid before the marriage price is paid.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:11
text: Fraech swears by sword, arms, and shield that he would not give such a pledge
even for Maev herself.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:12
text: Ailill and Maev discuss killing Fraech because many kings of Erin seek the
maiden and might attack if she is taken away.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:13
text: Ailill announces a hunt with hounds, after which the hunters go to bathe in
the river of Croghan.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Fraech
description: A visiting man with shining jewels, a chess-player, suitor of Findabar/Finnabar,
and leader accompanied by men, harpers, and cattle.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:4
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Maev
description: Queen or royal woman playing chess with Fraech; she is concerned about
unfed guests, lends the ring to her daughter, and later joins Ailill in plotting.
role_refs:
- role:2
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:5
- ev:7
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: King Ailill
description: King, husband of Maev, father of the maiden, host at the court, demander
of bride-price, and planner of Fraech's death.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:5
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Findabar/Finnabar, Ailill's daughter
description: Daughter of King Ailill and royal-born maiden sought by Fraech; she
meets him at the water and gives him a ring as love pledge.
role_refs:
- role:4
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- ev:6
- ev:7
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: The maiden's maid
description: Attendant present with Ailill's daughter at the water for cleansing.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Connaught men
description: Men who press around to view Fraech's company when they return from
hunting.
role_refs:
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Fraech's harpers and men
description: Members of Fraech's company named in Ailill's demand for participation
in the Raid.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Hounds
description: Hunting dogs released to pursue prey before the hunters bathe at the
river.
role_refs:
- role:12
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
roles:
- id: role:1
label: victorious chess-player
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Fraech declares that he has conquered Maev at chess after three days and
nights of play.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: royal host and chess opponent
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Maev plays chess with Fraech and then responds to the lapse in hospitality
toward the visiting youths.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: king and host
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Ailill is called king and orders that food be given; he later speaks in the
House of Debate.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:6
- id: role:4
label: suitor and beloved pair
assigned_to:
- fig:1
- fig:4
basis: Fraech says he came seeking the maiden, and she gives him a ring as pledge
of their love.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: role:5
label: father setting marriage terms
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Ailill answers Fraech's request for his daughter by naming a marriage price
and military condition.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:6
label: plotters against guest
assigned_to:
- fig:2
- fig:3
basis: Ailill and Maev plan how to slay Fraech after he refuses the demanded pledge.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: role:7
label: guest in danger
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Fraech is present as a guest and becomes the target of Ailill and Maev's
planned killing.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:7
- id: role:8
label: royal daughter and pledge-giver
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: The maiden identifies her royal birth and gives Fraech a ring as a token
and pledge.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: role:9
label: attendant
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The maid accompanies Ailill's daughter at the water.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:10
label: onlookers
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The Connaught men gather to view Fraech's company after hunting.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:11
label: retinue named in marriage demand
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Ailill requires Fraech to ride with his harpers and men on the Cualgne Raid.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:12
label: hunting animals
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The hounds are sent to pursue prey during the planned hunt.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: chess game
literal_form: A chess game played by Fraech and Maev for three days and three nights.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:2
label: shining jewels or gems
literal_form: Jewels of Fraech whose sparkling light makes night indistinguishable
from day.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: sym:3
label: feast and meat
literal_form: Food and meat given to the guests after the hosts realize the lapse
in hospitality.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:4
label: brook water for cleansing
literal_form: Brook or water where Fraech goes to wash his head and where the maiden
and maid seek cleansing.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:5
label: ring token
literal_form: A ring lent by Maev and given by the maiden to Fraech as token and
pledge of love.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:6
label: marriage price animals
literal_form: Sixty dark-grey steeds with gold bits, twelve milch-cows with flowing
milk, and white calves with red ears.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs:
- milk
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: sym:7
label: sword, arms, and shield oath
literal_form: Fraech swears by the edge of his sword and by his arms and shield.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: sym:8
label: hounds and hunt
literal_form: Hounds sent out to pursue prey during a hunt arranged after the killing
plot.
associated_figures:
- fig:3
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: sym:9
label: river of Croghan
literal_form: River where the hunters go to bathe after the hunt.
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Three-day chess under jewel-light
summary: Fraech and Maev play chess for three days and nights, with Fraech's jewels
giving light so that night is not recognized.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Delayed hospitality and feast
summary: Maev and Ailill realize the guests have not been fed during the game and
then provide food and a long feast.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Fraech received in the House of Debate
summary: Fraech is brought to the House of Debate, says he has come in friendship,
and remains at the dun while Connaught men watch his company returning from hunting.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:6
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Dawn meeting at the brook
summary: Fraech goes to wash at the brook at dawn, finds Ailill's daughter and her
maid, takes the maiden's hand, and declares he came to woo her.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Accepted wooing and ring pledge
summary: The maiden rejects secret flight as disloyal, declares willingness to marry
Fraech, and gives him Maev's ring as a pledge of love.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:6
label: Bride-price and raid condition
summary: Ailill fears Fraech may carry off the maiden and sets a marriage price
of animals and service in the Cualgne Raid.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: scene:7
label: Refusal and plot to kill Fraech
summary: Fraech refuses the pledge by oath, and Ailill and Maev plan to kill him
to avoid the danger of other kings attacking over the maiden.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: scene:8
label: Hunt and bathing at Croghan
summary: After the plot is arranged, Ailill calls for a hunt with hounds; the hunters
pursue prey until tired and then go to bathe at the river of Croghan.
figure_refs:
- fig:3
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:8
- sym:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Game that obscures the passage of time
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The chess game lasts three days and three nights, but the players do not
know night has come because Fraech's jewels shine like daylight.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: The passage gives no explicit supernatural explanation beyond the jewel-light.
- id: motif:2
label: Courtship encounter at water
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Fraech meets the king's daughter at a brook where both parties are associated
with washing or cleansing, then declares his suit.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage presents the setting literally; no ritual meaning is stated.
- id: motif:3
label: Love token or pledge ring
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: The maiden gives Fraech a ring as a token and pledge of their love and plans
to conceal its transfer temporarily.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: medium
cautions: The exchange is explicitly a love pledge, but the passage does not call
it sacred.
- id: motif:4
label: Bride-price with animals and military service
taxonomy_refs:
- sacred_exchange
basis: Ailill demands horses, milch-cows, calves, and Fraech's participation in
the Cualgne Raid as the price for his daughter's hand.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
confidence: medium
cautions: The taxonomy reference is approximate; the passage frames the demand as
marriage price and political condition rather than sacred exchange.
- id: motif:5
label: Host plots death of a guest-suitor
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: After Fraech refuses the demanded pledge, Ailill and Maev plan to kill him
while discussing the shame or danger of the deed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
confidence: high
cautions: The actual attack has not yet occurred within this passage.
- id: motif:6
label: Hunt as setup for danger
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: After the killing plot is planned, Ailill announces a hunt with hounds, and
the company proceeds to the river to bathe.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage does not yet state how the hunt or bathing will be used in
the plot.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 9181-9198
quote_or_summary: Fraech and Maev play chess for three days and nights; sparkling
light from Fraech's jewels prevents recognition of night, and Fraech says he has
conquered Maev at chess.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized from supplied passage.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 9199-9225
quote_or_summary: Maev is ashamed that the visiting youths have not been fed; Ailill
attributes it to the chess game, food is given, and the feast lasts through repeated
days and nights.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized from supplied passage.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 9226-9240
quote_or_summary: Fraech is brought to the House of Debate, says he has come in
friendship, remains at the dun, and Connaught men gather to view the visitors
after hunting.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized from supplied passage.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 9241-9258
quote_or_summary: Fraech is sad because he wants a word with Findabar/Finnabar;
at dawn he goes to the brook to wash and finds Ailill's daughter and her maid
at the water, then takes the maiden's hand and says he came seeking her.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized from supplied passage.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 9259-9282
quote_or_summary: The maiden says Fraech's words bring joy, rejects flight as disloyal
for a royal-born woman, agrees to him as beloved, and gives him a ring lent by
Maev as love pledge while planning to say it is lost.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized from supplied passage.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 9283-9305
quote_or_summary: 'Ailill fears Fraech will take the maiden home and states terms
for winning her: sixty dark-grey steeds with gold bits, twelve milch-cows with
abundant milk, white calves with red ears, and service with Fraech''s harpers
and men on the Cualgne Raid.'
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized from supplied passage.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 9306-9327
quote_or_summary: Fraech swears by sword, arms, and shield that he will not give
the demanded pledge; Ailill and Maev discuss killing him to prevent attacks by
other kings seeking the maiden, with Maev objecting that killing a guest would
bring shame.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized from supplied passage.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 9328-9351
quote_or_summary: After the plot is planned, Ailill calls for a hunt with hounds;
the hunters pursue until the hounds are spent and then go to bathe where the river
of Croghan flows.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized from supplied passage.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Passage actions, figures, and objects are explicit. Motif taxonomy assignments
are cautious where the available taxonomy uses broad categories not named in the
passage. No comparison claims were made because the passage itself does not explicitly
compare traditions or motif families.
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 evidence is drawn only from the supplied passage and metadata. Findabar and Finnabar are treated as the same named royal daughter because both spellings occur in this passage context.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:celtic-irish-heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy-gutenberg__l9181-l9351
passage_sha256=709cfb191c9f47082fc3bcb4d89320577b1eafc7f63ff41379be0255d52b17c4