Treasure
Treasure denotes either perilous material desire ending in disaster or a guarded spiritual quest for knowledge, enlightenment, paradise, and one’s true nature.
Our paraphrase of what the sources say it carries.
At a glance
- Type
- Symbol
- Borne by
- 3 figures (1 is this, 2 carry it)
- Traditions
- Irish folklore (2)Slavic 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.
- Lia Fail is Irish folklore
why
… the first-named of the four treasures of the Tuatha De …
- Leprechaun bears Irish folklore
why
Folklore holds that a human who physically catches a Leprechaun can compel him to reveal the location of this treasure or grant three wishes, but the Leprechaun is renowned for using trickery and wordplay to escape captivity or to break his end of the bargain through deceptive technicalities.
- Zlatorog bears Slavic folklore
why
The Zlatorog's most distinguishing feature is its pair of magnificent golden horns, which are believed to possess extraordinary healing powers and the ability to unlock hidden treasures within the mountains.