Melusina (
Melusine) is likened to a mermaid, a water fairy that can be found in clear springs or sacred rivers. The image of Melusina is that of a woman who, from the waist down, is either a serpent or a fish; she is sometimes illustrated as having wings and even two tails instead of just one. The logo of the
Starbucks company is that of a Melusina within a green circle.
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There are numerous legends about Melusina, each adapted to local folklore. The most famous, possibly because it reveals Melusina's origin, is that of King
Elynas, King of Scotland.
One day, during the crusades, Elynas—King of Scotland—went hunting in the forests surrounding the palace. In the heart of the forest, the king met an enchanting woman whom he took to the palace to be his wife. This woman, named Pressyne, is the mother of the one who would be their daughter, Melusina. In addition to Melusina, the king and queen had two other daughters named Melior and Palatyne, respectively.
As often happens in legends of this kind, before the marriage, Pressyne asked the king not to enter her room when she gave birth to children or bathed them. Eventually, Elynas broke his oath and entered the queen's room, and she, along with her three daughters, left the kingdom and settled in the islands of Avalon.
Years passed and the girls, growing up, became curious about their past. The queen told them about their father, the King of Scotland, and how he broke his oath to her. The three girls promised revenge and, without their mother's knowledge, imprisoned Elynas along with his riches inside a mountain. Learning of this, Pressyne punished them for the lack of respect shown to their father. Melusina was cursed to take the form of a serpent from the waist down every Saturday; according to other legends, she was transformed into a mermaid.
A continuation of this legend is the French myth of
Raymond of Poitou and Melusina.
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Raymond met Melusina in the forests of Poitou, France, and asked her to marry him. Like her mother, Melusina set a condition for Raymond: that he should not enter her room on Saturdays. Raymond broke the promise and thus discovered his wife's secret; one day, being angry with her, he called her a serpent in front of the courtiers at court. Melusina transformed into a dragon and, after giving her husband two magic rings, flew away and never returned to Raymond.
In other legends, it is said that Melusina's husband spies on her in the bath and thus discovers that Melusina is a serpent from the waist down.
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