Melusine

Melusine or Melusina is a figure in European folklore and mythology (Celtic, Brittany). A female spirit of fresh water in a sacred spring or river. She is usually depicted as a woman who is a serpent or fish from the waist down (much like a mermaid). In some cases she is depicted as having two tails instead of one, and also is said to have wings. Melusine was a water fairy who married a mortal.

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Melusine ~ The Split Tail Siren Ever wonder where the Starbucks logo comes from? Curious about the origin of the Little Mermaid? Melusine or Melusina is a figure in European folklore and mythology. A female spirit of fresh water in a sacred spring or river. She is usually depicted as a woman who is a serpent or fish from the waist down (much like a mermaid). In some cases she is depicted as having two tails instead of one, and also is said to have wings. Melusine was a water fairy who married a mortal. Tales of Melusina folklore can be found throughout Celtic, France, Spain, English and Germanic regions. Her story originated around the 14th century. In her youth Melusine entombed her father in a mountain leaving her mother heartbroken. The deed displeased her mother and as punishment Mélusine was condemned to transform into a serpent from the waist down every Saturday. While out hunting in the forests (typically sites for magical encounters in fairy stories) of the Ardennes, Raymond, Lord of Forez in Poitou, a poor but noble gentleman, meets Melusine. She was sitting beside a fountain in “glimmering white dresses, with long waving golden hair, and faces of inexpressible beauty”. In discovering Melusine by a watersource, this indicates a connection between her and the supernatural world. Raymond, so taken by her beauty and her amiable manners, falls totally in love with her. Mélusine agrees to marry Raymond, but on the condition he vows not to attempt to see her on Saturday when she will go into seclusion. Raymond unfortunately broke that oath to his wife Melusina and found out she was a water fairy. He spied on her on a Saturday and saw her tail and wings. He was suspicious of her activities and seclusion and needed to find out her secret. Once he did, she transformed into the shape of a dragon and flew off, she immediately vanished. Tales have said she periodically returned to where he husband and children were and she would often check on them in human form. There are many tales of Melusina throughout Euro and Celtic folktales. She is the creature who inspired the book The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen.

A post shared by Myths and Beyond (@mythsandbeyond) on Jul 24, 2020 at 3:48pm PDT