Frazer's Golden Bough
Frazer's Golden Bough
a comprehensive work on comparative religion and mythology by Sir James George Frazer (1854-1941), Scottish scholar and anthropologist. Its opening passages describe an ancient Italian folk custom regarding the King of the Wood: Near Lake Nemi (a lake near Rome) in Italy was a sacred grove of the goddess Diana. In it was a special golden tree. To become a priest of Diana and King of the Wood one had to succeed in pulling down a bough of this tree and thus earn the right to duel to the death with the current King of the Wood. If he won he would then assume the position until another, stronger aspirant came along and succeeded in killing him, becoming in his turn the King of the Wood. Frazer's initial intent was to trace the source of this legend. Drawing from similar traditions and rituals of other peoples, his work expanded and tied together (sometimes incorrectly) many myths and legends from around the world.
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