Ancient Wisdom Atlas

Motif

Feather transformed into sword

feather_transformed_into_sword

A motif of the Shapeshifter and Transformation family. Every row below is a tagged passage; each rests on a quote in its source text.

2 occurrences

1 traditions


native american plains

  • Myths and Traditions of the Crow Indians TALES OF SUPERNATURAL PATRONS . 152 / HISTORICAL TRADITIONS . / INTRODUCTION. / HERO TALES.; lines 6662-6758 confidence: high

    The boy asks about horses and his mother’s brothers, rides the gray bob-tailed horse toward the place of disappearance, finds a feather that turns into a sword, wears an eagle plume, and is said to be white like the swallowed stone.

    The boy rubs a wing or bird feather and it becomes a sword, which he keeps and later uses against the witch’s weapons.

    read in the book
  • Myths and Traditions of the Crow Indians TALES OF SUPERNATURAL PATRONS . 152 / HISTORICAL TRADITIONS . / INTRODUCTION. / HERO TALES.; lines 6727-6823 confidence: high

    The young man finds a wing feather, rubs it into a sword, wears an eagle plume, is described as white like the swallowed stone, and encounters a bull that draws out the witch.

    The young man rubs a feather from the quill upward and it becomes a sword, later described as shining and used against the witch.

    read in the book