a less whimsical illustration that encapsulates the fun of searching an archive of over 15

The Archive...

Have a wander through the Fireside folktale archive below, and see what you stumble into. Use the filters to narrow the world down, or fling the doors wide and browse by country, region, theme, collector, or whatever takes your fancy, then let the table do the rest. A few clicks can carry you from storm-tossed coasts to mountain villages, from clever tricksters to quiet miracles, and you will often find that the story you meant to read is not the one that chooses you.

Archive under construction...

Structured Filters

Use these drop down lists to choose one or more filters to select groups of tales to investigate in more detail

Other than my own versions of tales (as indicated), the stories in this archive are in the public domain

Stories in this view:

3988

Title	Book	Author / Collector	Country	Subject	Year
The Witch Of The Porta Alla Croce	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Witch Of The Porta Alla Croce: city-gate witch, sorcery, fear, crossroads, curse, old Florence, transformation, local superstition	1895
Legends Of Or’ San Michele	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	Legends Of Or’ San Michele: church legends, saints, miracles, sacred art, civic piety, supernatural intervention, Florence landmarks, devotion	1895
The Devil Of The Mercato Vecchio	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Devil Of The Mercato Vecchio: old market, devilry, temptation, trickster evil, bargaining, street folklore, moral warning, comic menace	1895
La Fortuna	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	La Fortuna: fate, luck, fortune personified, sudden reversal, moral lesson, prosperity, uncertainty, popular belief	1895
The Three Horns Of Messer Guicciardini	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Three Horns Of Messer Guicciardini: magical horns, prosperity, greed, abundance, moral testing, household fortune, comic justice, cautionary tale	1895
The Column Of Cosimo, Or Della Santa Trinita	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Column Of Cosimo, Or Della Santa Trinita: monument legend, civic pride, Medici Florence, public memory, sacred sign, historical landmark, symbolism, urban identity	1895
The Pills Of The Medici	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Pills Of The Medici: Medici emblem, family legend, satire, heraldry, power, rivalry, popular explanation, civic history	1895
The Frair’s Head Of Santa Maria Maggiore	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Frair’s Head Of Santa Maria Maggiore: relic lore, friar legend, church humour, sacred fraud, confession, holy remains, anti-clerical wit, miracle culture	1895
The Spirit Of The Porta San Gallo	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Spirit Of The Porta San Gallo: gate spirit, guardian presence, moving ghost, old Florence, threshold, haunting, supernatural protection, urban legend	1895
The Roman Vase	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Roman Vase: buried treasure, Bellosguardo, ancient relic, witches, mystery, excavation, classical past, enchanted object	1895
Story Of The Podestà Who Was Long On His Journey	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	Story Of The Podestà Who Was Long On His Journey: foolish official, delay, vanity, comic justice, civic satire, bureaucracy, folk humour, authority mocked	1895
The Story Of The Unfinished Palace	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Story Of The Unfinished Palace: incompletion, pride, ruin, frustrated ambition, curse, architecture, noble family, moral reproof	1895
Seeing That All Was Right	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	Seeing That All Was Right: domestic oversight, moral order, comic justice, supernatural checking, household life, prudence, civic custom, reassurance	1895
Orpheus And Eurydice (3)	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	Orpheus And Eurydice: classical myth, descent to the dead, love, loss, music, memory, longing, tragic return	1895
The Enchanted Cow Of La Via Vacchereccia	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Enchanted Cow Of La Via Vacchereccia: enchanted animal, street legend, transformation, witchcraft, pastoral memory, urban folklore, marvel, old Florence	1895
How La Via Della Mosca Got Its Name	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	How La Via Della Mosca Got Its Name: street-name origin, transformation, witchcraft, jealousy, beauty, family honour, local legend, enchantment	1895
Legends Of The Boboli Gardens: The Old Gardener, And The	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	Legends Of The Boboli Gardens: The Old Gardener, And The: haunted garden, old gardener, statues, fairy, palace grounds, enchantment, memory, nocturnal wonder	1895
Biancone, The Giant Statue In The Signoria	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	Biancone, The Giant Statue In The Signoria: river god, enchanted statue, Arno spirit, witchcraft, transformation, civic monument, magic combat, petrifaction	1895
The Red Goblin Of The Bargello	Legends of Florence	Charles Godfrey Leland	Italy	The Red Goblin Of The Bargello: red spirit, prison palace, haunting, fear, punishment, civic justice, goblin tale, sinister folklore	1895
The Haunted Farm	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Haunted Farm: rural haunting, dread, and uncanny persistence.	1906
The Magic Book (1)	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Magic Book: forbidden knowledge, sorcery, and dangerous curiosity.	1906
The Writing On The Window Pane	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Writing On The Window Pane: guilt, omen, and supernatural warning.	1906
The Legend Of Gallow's Clough	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Legend Of Gallow’s Clough: crime, judgement, and grim retribution.	1906
Sir Ro, Of Staley Hall	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	Sir Ro, Of Staley Hall: chivalry, loyalty, music, and courtly honour.	1906
The King's Evil: Or The Wonderful Cure Of The Mottram Parson	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The King’s Evil: Or The Wonderful Cure Of The Mottram Parson: healing, faith, and miraculous royal touch.	1906
The Legend Of Coombs Rocks	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Legend Of Coombs Rocks: resistance, sacrifice, and ancient Britain against Rome.	1906
The Legend Of Alman's Death: A Tale Of Melandra Castle	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Legend Of Alman’s Death: tyranny, vengeance, and a fallen stronghold.	1906
Lord Lovel's Fate	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	Lord Lovel’s Fate: love, loss, and tragic disappearance.	1906
Robin Hood's Visit To Longdendale	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	Robin Hood’s Visit To Longdendale: outlaw justice, woodland adventure, and bold camaraderie.	1906
The Legend Of Charlesworth Chapel	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Legend Of Charlesworth Chapel: piety, place, and sacred memory.	1906
Sir Edmund Shaa	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	Sir Edmund Shaa: ambition, power, and uneasy conscience.	1906
The Abbot Of Basingwerke, Or The Wehr Wolf Of Longdendale	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Abbot Of Basingwerke, Or The Wehr Wolf Of Longdendale: brute strength, monastic legend, and werewolf terror.	1906
The Spectre Hound	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Spectre Hound: ghostly pursuit, terror, and deathly omen.	1906
King Arthur's Adventure	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	King Arthur’s Adventure: romance, kingship, and heroic rescue.	1906
The Devil's Elbow	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Devil’s Elbow: temptation, peril, and diabolic encounter.	1906
The Boggart Of Godley Green	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Boggart Of Godley Green: domestic haunting, fear, and malicious supernatural mischief.	1906
The Devil And The Doctor	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Devil And The Doctor: wit, learning, and outfacing the Devil.	1906
The Parson's Wife	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Parson’s Wife: jealousy, clerical life, and domestic tragedy.	1906
A Legend Of The Civil War	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	A Legend Of The Civil War: divided loyalties, conflict, and local suffering.	1906
The Legend Of War Hill	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Legend Of War Hill: war, devastation, endurance, and local heroism.	1906
A Tale Of The '45	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	A Tale Of The ‘45: rebellion, loyalty, and the aftershocks of war.	1906
The Raiders From The Border-Side	Legends of Longdendale	Thomas Middleton	England	The Raiders From The Border-Side: border violence, courage, and community defence.	1906
The Friars Of Urlaur	Legends of Saints & Sinners	Douglas Hyde	Ireland	The Friars Of Urlaur: monastic community, corruption or folly, religious life, humour, satire, local memory, clerical reputation, communal tale, discipline, faith	1896
Story Of Solomon	Legends of Saints & Sinners	Douglas Hyde	Ireland	Story Of Solomon: wisdom, judgement, kingship, biblical lore, justice, cleverness, moral example, authority, discernment, scriptural folklore	1896
The Help Of God In The Road	Legends of Saints & Sinners	Douglas Hyde	Ireland	The Help Of God In The Road: providence, travel, danger, trust, divine assistance, piety, hardship, prayer, protection, journey	1896
The Student Who Left College	Legends of Saints & Sinners	Douglas Hyde	Ireland	The Student Who Left College: learning, disillusionment, vocation, wandering, youthful folly, spiritual crisis, social expectation, freedom, moral education, change	1896
Christmas Alms	Legends of Saints & Sinners	Douglas Hyde	Ireland	Christmas Alms: charity, Christmas piety, generosity, poverty, almsgiving, compassion, divine reward, community, humility, seasonal devotion	1896
The Stone Of Truth	Legends of Saints & Sinners	Douglas Hyde	Ireland	The Stone Of Truth: truth-testing, justice, sacred object, judgement, honesty, ordeal, local legend, moral law, communal belief, revelation	1896
St Paul's Vision	Legends of Saints & Sinners	Douglas Hyde	Ireland	St Paul’s Vision: afterlife, heaven and hell, revelation, judgement, warning, salvation, visionary journey, moral teaching, fear, repentance	1896
Columcille And His Brother Dobhran	Legends of Saints & Sinners	Douglas Hyde	Ireland	Columcille And His Brother Dobhran: sainthood, kinship, rivalry, repentance, monastic life, spiritual authority, family ties, loyalty, miracle tradition, holy reputation	1896

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