Comb
The comb denotes fertility, rain, sunlight, music, vanity, and entanglement; mermaid and siren lore makes hair-combing an alluring danger or magical taboo.
Our paraphrase of what the sources say it carries.
At a glance
- Type
- Symbol
- Borne by
- 2 figures
- Traditions
- African folklore (general) (1)Basque folklore (1)
Figures that bear it
A model judged each figure against its own description, one term at a time. Is: the figure is, or is partly, this thing. Bears: it carries the thing or is marked by it. What a figure does is filed under motifs and powers. Open "why" for the sentence the judgement rests on.
- Lamiak bears Basque folklore
why
Lamiak are typically associated with freshwater environments, making their homes near rivers, streams, and waterfalls, where they are said to comb their long, golden hair with golden combs.
- Mami Wata bears African folklore (general)
why
In some tellings she appears fully human on land, distinguishable only by unusual beauty, wealth, or a telltale attraction to mirrors, combs, and other vanity items left as offerings at riverbanks and shores.