Curious Myths of the Middle Ages by Sabine Baring-Gould

Description

Curious Myths of the Middle Ages is a book by Sabine Baring-Gould, first published in 1866 (in two parts, completed by 1868). In a twenty-four chapter compendium, Baring‑Gould unpacks a wide range of medieval legends — from the Wandering Jew, Prester John, and Pope Joan to William Tell, the Man in the Moon, and tail‑men — examining each myth’s origin, variation, and cultural legacy. A prolific Anglican priest, novelist, hymn‑writer (“Onward, Christian Soldiers”), and folk‑life scholar, he draws on obscure European sources, medieval texts, and folklore to contextualize how these stories reflected and shaped popular belief. Curious Myths of the Middle Ages became a Victorian-era standard in mythography and folklore studies, praised by critics and beloved by readers for its engaging scholarship and its illumination of the medieval imagination and superstition.

This book is available for free download in PDF, EPUB, and Kindle formats. Or you can read it online. No registration is required. Just click the links below the donation buttons.