The golden apple is an element that appears in various national and ethnic folk legends or

fairy tales A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic (paranormal), magic, incantation, enchantments, and mythical ...

. Recurring themes depict a hero (for example

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...

or Făt-Frumos) retrieving the golden

apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancest ...

s hidden or stolen by a monstrous

antagonist An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the chief foe of the protagonist. Etymology The English word antagonist comes from the Greek ἀνταγωνιστής – ''antagonistēs'', "opponent, competitor, villain, enemy, ri ...

. Gold apples also appear on the Silver Branch of the

Otherworld The concept of an otherworld in historical Indo-European religion is reconstructed in comparative mythology. Its name is a calque of ''orbis alius'' (Latin for "other Earth/world"), a term used by Lucan in his description of the Celtic Otherwor ...

Irish mythology Irish mythology is the body of myths native to the island of Ireland. It was originally oral tradition, passed down orally in the Prehistoric Ireland, prehistoric era, being part of ancient Celtic religion. Many myths were later Early Irish ...

Greek mythology

Golden apples appear in three Greek myths:

Atalanta and Melanion

A huntress named Atalanta who raced against a suitor named

Melanion :''The name Hippomenes may also refer to the father of Leimone.'' In Greek mythology, Hippomenes (; grc, Ἱππομένης), also known as Melanion (; Μελανίων or Μειλανίων), was a son of the Arcadian AmphidamasApollodorus, 3 ...

, also known as

Hippomenes :''The name Hippomenes may also refer to the father of Leimone.'' In Greek mythology, Hippomenes (; grc, Ἱππομένης), also known as Melanion (; Μελανίων or Μειλανίων), was a son of the Arcadian AmphidamasApollodorus, 3 ...

. Melanion used golden apples to distract Atalanta so that he could win the race.

Though abandoned by her father as an infant, Atalanta became a skilled hunter and received acclaim for her role in the hunt for the Calydonian boar. Her father claimed her as his daughter and wished to marry her off. However, Atalanta was reluctant to marry due to a prophecy that marriage would be her downfall. Because of her beauty, she gained a number of suitors and finally agreed to marry, but under the condition that her suitor was obligated to beat her in a footrace. Competitors who failed to beat her would be put to death. As Atalanta could run extremely fast, all her suitors died.

Realizing that Atalanta could not be defeated in a fair race, Melanion prayed to
Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols incl ...
for help. The goddess gave him three golden apples and told him to drop them one at a time to distract Atalanta. Sure enough, she quit running long enough to retrieve each golden apple. It took all three apples and all of his speed, but Melanion finally succeeded, winning the race and Atalanta's hand.

Eventually they had a son Parthenopaios, who was one of the

Seven against Thebes The Seven against Thebes were seven champions in Greek mythology who made war on Thebes. They were chosen by Adrastus, the king of Argos, to be the captains of an Argive army whose purpose was to restore Oedipus' son Polynices to the Theban ...

. Their marriage ended in misfortune when they were transformed into lions (which the Greeks believed were unable to mate with their own species, only with leopards) for offending

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label= genitive Boeotian Aeolic and Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label= genitive el, Δίας, ''Días'' () is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek relig ...

by having an affair in one of his shrines.

Paris and the Trojan War

Enrique Simonet - El Juicio de Paris 1904

held a

banquet A banquet (; ) is a formal large meal where a number of people consume food together. Banquets are traditionally held to enhance the prestige of a host, or reinforce social bonds among joint contributors. Modern examples of these purposes i ...

in celebration of the marriage of

Peleus In Greek mythology, Peleus (; Ancient Greek: Πηλεύς ''Pēleus'') was a hero, king of Phthia, husband of Thetis and the father of their son Achilles. This myth was already known to the hearers of Homer in the late 8th century BC. Bi ...

and

Thetis Thetis (; grc-gre, Θέτις ), is a figure from Greek mythology with varying mythological roles. She mainly appears as a sea nymph, a goddess of water, or one of the 50 Nereids, daughters of the ancient sea god Nereus. When described as ...

. Eris, the goddess of discord, was not invited for her troublesome nature, and upon turning up uninvited, she threw a golden apple into the ceremony, with an inscription that read: "ΤΗΙ ΚΑΛΛΙΣΤΗΙ" ( grc, τῇ καλλίστῃ, translit=tē(i) kallistē(i),

Modern Greek Modern Greek (, , or , ''Kiní Neoellinikí Glóssa''), generally referred to by speakers simply as Greek (, ), refers collectively to the dialects of the Greek language spoken in the modern era, including the official standardized form of the ...

: τη καλλίστη ''ti kallisti''; "for/to the most beautiful" – cf. Callisto). Three goddesses claimed the apple:

Hera In ancient Greek religion, Hera (; grc-gre, Ἥρα, Hḗrā; grc, Ἥρη, Hḗrē, label=none in Ionic and Homeric Greek) is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she ...

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of v ...

, and

Aphrodite Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols incl ...

. They brought the matter before Zeus. Not wanting to get involved, Zeus assigned the task to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

of Troy. Paris had demonstrated his exemplary fairness previously when he awarded a prize unhesitatingly to

Ares Ares (; grc, Ἄρης, ''Árēs'' ) is the Greek god of war and courage. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. The Greeks were ambivalent towards him. He embodies the physical valor necessary for success in war ...

after the god, in bull form, had bested his own prize bull. Zeus gave the apple to

Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orat ...

and told him to deliver it to Paris and tell him that the goddesses would accept his decision without argument. As each goddess wanted to receive the apple, they each stripped off their own clothing and appeared naked before

. Each of the goddesses also offered Paris a gift as a bribe in return for the apple; Hera offered to make him the king of Europe and Asia Minor, Athena offered him wisdom and skill in battle, and Aphrodite offered to give to him the love of the world's most beautiful woman,

Helen Helen may refer to: People * Helen of Troy, in Greek mythology, the most beautiful woman in the world * Helen (actress) (born 1938), Indian actress * Helen (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Places * Helen, ...

of Sparta, who was already married to King Menelaus. Paris chose Helen, a decision that caused the

Trojan war In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans ( Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and ...

, and ultimately the destruction of both Paris and his city, Troy.

Hera and the Hesperides

Hera's sacred tree, given to her as gift from Zeus, grows apples made entirely of gold. The dragon Ladon was sent to guard it from anyone who might try to steal the apples.

Irish mythology

The role of the Golden Apple is far more minor and less specific in Irish lore, mostly because it is an element of the Silver Branch, or ''Silver Bough'', symbol that is connected to the

Celtic Otherworld In Celtic mythology, the Otherworld is the realm of the deities and possibly also the dead. In Gaelic and Brittonic myth it is usually a supernatural realm of everlasting youth, beauty, health, abundance and joy.Koch, John T. ''Celtic Culture ...

Apple branch

The silver branch with golden apples is owned by the Irish sea deity and Otherworld guardian

Manannán mac Lir Manannán or Manann, also known as Manannán mac Lir ("son of the sea"), is a warrior and king of the Otherworld in Irish mythology who is associated with the sea and often interpreted as a sea god, usually as a member of the Tuatha Dé Dana ...

in the tale ''

Echtra Cormaic ''Echtra Cormaic'' or ''Echtra Cormaic i Tir Tairngiri'' (''Cormac's Adventure in the Land of Promise'') is a tale in Irish mythology which recounts the journey of the high-king Cormac mac Airt to the Land of Promise resided by the sea-god Man ...

''. But these "apples" are actually "balls of

red gold Pure gold is slightly reddish yellow in color, but colored gold in various other colors can be produced by alloying gold with other elements. Colored golds can be classified in three groups: * Alloys with silver and copper in various proportion ...

" hanging on a musical branch according to variant texts, and hardly fruits at all. The

Dictionary of the Irish Language ''Dictionary of the Irish Language: Based Mainly on Old and Middle Irish Materials'' (also called "the DIL"), published by the Royal Irish Academy, is the definitive dictionary of the origins of the Irish language, specifically the Old Irish, ...

concurs, by defining the "apples" in this instance as "musical balls", not "fruits". There has been offered for comparison "silver branch of the sacred apple-tree bearing blossoms" encountered by Bran mac Febail in the narrative ''

The Voyage of Bran The Voyage of Bran ( sga, Immram Brain [], meaning "The Voyage of Bran [son of Febail]") is a medieval seventh- or eighth-century Irish language narrative. Source The date of composition has been assigned to the late 7th or early 8th century, ...

'', though golden apple fruits are not evident in this telling. This branch came from "Emain", construed to mean Emain Ablach associated with Manannán mac Lir by later commentators, though not recognized as anything other than Emain Macha of the Ulstermen in

Eleanor Hull Eleanor Henrietta Hull also known as Eibhlín Ní Choill (15 January 1860 – 13 January 1935) was a writer, journalist and scholar of Old Irish. Life and family Hull was born on 15 January 1860 in Manchester, England. Her father, Edward Hull, ...

's monograph on the silver branch.

Oidheadh Chloinne Tuireann

In the '' Oidheadh Chloinne Tuireann'' version of the quest of Tuirenn's sons ( Brian, Iuchar and Iucharba), the éric items demanded by

Lugh Lamhfada Lugh or Lug (; ga, label= Modern Irish, Lú ) is a figure in Irish mythology. A member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, a group of supernatural beings, Lugh is portrayed as a warrior, a king, a master craftsman and a savior.Olmsted, Garrett. ''The ...

included the Golden Apples of Hesperides. It is said to taste of honey, have curative powers, and not diminish though they are eaten. They could also be cast and perform tasks at will, and return to their owners.

Music

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

's ''

Der Ring des Nibelungen (''The Ring of the Nibelung''), WWV 86, is a cycle of four German-language epic music dramas composed by Richard Wagner. The works are based loosely on characters from Germanic heroic legend, namely Norse legendary sagas and the '' Nibe ...

'', the golden apples have their own

leitmotif A leitmotif or leitmotiv () is a "short, recurring musical phrase" associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical concepts of ''idée fixe'' or ''motto-theme''. The spelling ''leitmotif'' is an anglic ...

. It is first sung by Fafner, when he explains to his brother Fasolt why they must take Freia away from the gods. In

Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century clas ...

's ballet

The Firebird ''The Firebird'' (french: L'Oiseau de feu, link=no; russian: Жар-птица, Zhar-ptitsa, link=no) is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1910 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev' ...

(1910) which is based upon an amalgam of Russian folk-legends, the hero Prince Ivan enters a garden where he witnesses 13 young Princesses' playing with Golden Apples which grow there. (Tableaux VII Scherzo. Jeux des princesses avec les pommes d'or / The Princesses' Game with the Golden Apples).

Fairy tales

Many European fairy tales begin when golden apples are stolen from a king, usually by a bird: *" Tsarevitch Ivan, the Fire Bird and the Gray Wolf" (Russian) *" The Golden Bird" (German) *" The Golden Mermaid" (Romanian) *" The Nine Peahens and the Golden Apples" (Serbian) *"

Prâslea the Brave and the Golden Apples Prâslea the Brave and the Golden Apples (Romanian: ''Prâslea cel voinic și merele de aur'') is a Romanian fairy tale collected by Petre Ispirescu in '' Legende sau basmele românilor''. Synopsis A king had a magnificent garden with a tree th ...

" (Romanian, where the thief is not a bird but a

zmeu The ''Zmeu'' (plural: ''zmei'', feminine: ''zmeoaică'' / ''zmeoaice'') is a fantastic creature of Romanian folklore and Romanian mythology. Though referred by some sources as a dragon, the zmeu is nevertheless distinct, because it usually has c ...

) *" The Three Brothers and the Golden Apple" (Bulgarian, where the thief is not a bird but a

zmey A Slavic dragon is any dragon in Slavic mythology, including the Russian '' zmei'' (or ''zmey''; ), Ukrainian ''zmiy'' (), and its counterparts in other Slavic cultures: the Bulgarian ''zmey'' (), the Slovak ''drak'' and ''šarkan'', Czech '' ...

) *"

The White Snake "The White Snake" (German: ''Die weiße Schlange'') is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in ''Grimm's Fairy Tales'' (KHM 17). It is of Aarne–Thompson type 673, and includes an episode of type 554 ("The Grateful ...

" (German)

Modern literature

The

William Butler Yeats William Butler Yeats (13 June 186528 January 1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival and became a pillar of the Irish liter ...

poem "The Song of the Wandering Aengus", has the lines: :''I will find out where she has gone'' :''And kiss her lips and take her hands;'' :''And walk among long dappled grass,'' :''And pluck till time and times are done'' :''The silver apples of the moon,'' :''The golden apples of the sun.'' The

Augusta, Lady Gregory Isabella Augusta, Lady Gregory (''née'' Persse; 15 March 1852 – 22 May 1932) was an Irish dramatist, folklorist and theatre manager. With William Butler Yeats and Edward Martyn, she co-founded the Irish Literary Theatre and the Abbey Theatre ...

play called ''The Golden Apple: A Play for Kiltartan Children'' is a fable in the invented Kiltartan dialect based on Irish mythology and folklore. ''The Golden Apples'' is the name of Southern writer, Eudora Welty's, fourth short story collection, published in 1949. The stories are interrelated and center around the citizens of the fictional town of Morgana, Mississippi. A golden apple plays a crucial role in the climax of David Mitchell's sixth novel ''

The Bone Clocks ''The Bone Clocks'' is a novel by British writer David Mitchell. It was long-listed for the Man Booker Prize 2014, and called one of the best novels of 2014 by Stephen King. The novel won the 2015 World Fantasy Award. The novel is divided into ...

'', published by Random House in 2014.

Discordianism

The contemporary religion

Discordianism Discordianism is a religion, philosophy, or paradigm centered on Eris, a.k.a. Discordia, the Goddess of chaos. Discordianism uses archetypes or ideals associated with her. It was founded after the 1963 publication of its "holy book," the '' Pr ...

draws upon the Golden Apple of the goddess Eris, also known as the "Apple of Discord", which Eris used to set off the conflict among the goddesses of Olympus that led to the

Trojan War In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans ( Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and ...

because she was not invited to a party (the so-called "Original Snub". Emblazoned upon the apple is the word "''

Kallisti An apple of discord is the core, kernel, or crux of an argument, or a small matter that could lead to a bigger dispute. It is a reference to the Golden Apple of Discord ( grc, ) in the story of the ''Judgement of Paris'' which, according to G ...

''" ("to the fairest"). The golden apple can be seen as a metaphor for a practical joke meant to cause

cognitive dissonance In the field of psychology, cognitive dissonance is the perception of contradictory information, and the mental toll of it. Relevant items of information include a person's actions, feelings, ideas, beliefs, values, and things in the environmen ...

in the target.

Identity and use in other languages

Argan fruit

Michael Hübner has suggested that the fruit of the Argan tree, endemic to the Sous Valley in present-day

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to A ...

, may be the golden apples of the

Hesperides In Greek mythology, the Hesperides (; , ) are the nymphs of evening and golden light of sunsets, who were the "Daughters of the Evening" or "Nymphs of the West". They were also called the Atlantides () from their reputed father, the Titan At ...

. Arguing that the location matches most closely the description given in classical texts of

Atlantis Atlantis ( grc, Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος, , island of Atlas) is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato's works '' Timaeus'' and '' Critias'', wherein it represents the antagonist naval power that b ...

and the garden of the Hesperides, he notes that the ripe fruits look like small golden apples and have an aroma like baked apples. He equates the fruit, the seeds of which produce

Argan oil Argan oil is a plant oil produced from the kernels of the argan tree ('' Argania spinosa'' L.), which is indigenous to Morocco. In Morocco, argan oil is used to dip bread in at breakfast or to drizzle on couscous or pasta. It is also used for cos ...

, with

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...

's account of Atlantean fruits "which afford liquid and solid food and unguents", and proposes that the trees' almost reptilian-scale like bark and thorns may have inspired the mythical guardian dragon of the golden apples, Ladon.

Oranges

In many languages, the orange is referred to as a "golden apple". For example, the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

''χρυσομηλιά,'' and

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

''pomum aurantium'' both literally describe oranges as "golden apples". Other languages, like

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

, Finnish,

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

, and Russian, have more complex

etymologies Etymology () The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words a ...

for the word "orange" that can be traced back to the same idea. In later years it was thought that the "golden apples" of myth might have actually been oranges, a fruit unknown to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...

before the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

. Under this assumption, the

botanical Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

name chosen for all

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...

species was ''Hesperidoeidē'' (Ἑσπεριδοειδῆ, "hesperidoids"). It was also used by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, ...

, who gave the name Hesperides to an

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of ...

containing the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

Citrus, in allusion to the golden apples of the Hesperides, and is preserved in the term Hesperidium for the fruits of citrus and some other plants. One reason why oranges might be considered to be "magical" in so many stories is because they bear flowers and fruit at the same time, unlike other fruit.

Quinces

Frequently , the term "golden apple" is used to refer to the

quince The quince (; ''Cydonia oblonga'') is the sole member of the genus ''Cydonia'' in the Malinae subtribe (which also contains apples and pears, among other fruits) of the Rosaceae family. It is a deciduous tree that bears hard, aromatic bright ...

, a fruit originating in the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

Tomatoes

The

tomato The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word ...

, unknown to the ancient world of the Greeks, is known as the ''pomodoro'' in Italian, meaning "golden apple" (from ''pomo d'oro'').

Popular culture

Golden apples are also items that are featured in video games such as ''

Minecraft ''Minecraft'' is a sandbox game developed by Mojang Studios. The game was created by Markus "Notch" Persson in the Java programming language. Following several early private testing versions, it was first made public in May 2009 before b ...

'', ''

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon is a video game series spin-off from the main ''Pokémon'' series developed by Spike Chunsoft (formerly Chunsoft). The games feature the fictional creatures called Pokémon who have the ability to speak human language navigating through a ran ...

'' and '' Hello Neighbor''. In the TV-series '' Animated Tales of the World'', the episode "The Tree with the Golden Apples" revolves around the golden apple-tree on an island. An old man asks three brothers to sail to the island and whoever brings him a golden apple gets his daughter's hand in marriage.

Explanatory notes

References

{{Reflist, colwidth=30em, refs= eDIL s.v.
uball
. II (c) musical balls : (quote from ''Echtra Cormaic'', ''Irische Texte'' iii 193 § 25). {{cite book, last=Gregory , first=Augusta, Lady , author-link=Lady Gregory , others=Illustrated by

John D. Batten John Dickson Batten (8 October 1860 – 5 August 1932), born in Plymouth, Devon, was an English painter of figures in oils, tempera and fresco and a book illustrator and printmaker. He was an active member of the Society of Painters in Tempera, ...

, chapter=Chapter XI. His Three Calls to Cormac , title=Gods and Fighting Men , place=London , publisher=John Murray , year=1905 , chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3uDxKXNg8iUC&pg=PA115 , pages=115–121 {{citation, last=Hull , first=Eleanor , author-link=Eleanor Hull , title=The Silver Bough in Irish Legend , journal=Folk-Lore , volume=12 , number=4 , date=December 1901 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2yTjdVKxQP0C&pg=PA436 , pages=436, 438–439 , doi=10.1080/0015587X.1901.9719649 , jstor=1253964 {{cite book, editor-last=Jacobs , editor-first=Joseph , editor-link=Joseph Jacobs , others=Illustrated by

, title=How Cormac Mac Art went to Faery , work=More Celtic Fairy Tales , place=London , publisher=David Nutt , year=1894 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H-IOAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA204 , pages=204–209; notes p. 233 {{Cite journal, url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803095749390, title = Emain Ablach {{cite book, last=O'Curry , first=Eugene , author-link=Eugene O'Curry , chapter=Lecture XXXIV The Musical Branch , title=On the Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish , volume=3, publisher=Williams and Norgate , year=1873 , chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2B5aAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA316 , pages=316–317 {{citation, editor-last=O'Curry , editor-first=Eugene , editor-link=Eugene O'Curry , title=The Fate of the Children of Tuireann ( idhe Chloinne Tuireann) , journal=Atlantis , volume=IV , year=1863 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z5JEAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA157 , pages=188–189, 194–197 {{citation, editor-last=O'Grady , editor-first=Standish Hayes , editor-link=Standish Hayes O'Grady , title=Faghail Craoibhe Chormaic mhic Airt , trans-title=How Cormac mac Airt Got his Branch , work=Toruigheacht Dhiarmuda Agus Ghrainne, Or The Pursuit After Diarmuid O'Duibhne and Grainne, the Daughter of Cormac Mac Airt, King of Ireland in the Third Century , series=Transactions of the Ossianic Society 3 , year=1857 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OrUsAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA212 , pages=212–229 {{citation, editor-last=Stokes , editor-first=Whitley , editor-link=Whitley Stokes , title=Echtra Cormaic i Tir Tairngiri ocus Ceart Claidib Cormaic , trans-title=The Tale of the Ordeals, Cormac’s Adventure in the Land of Promise, and the Decision as to Cormac’s Sword , work=Irische Texte , volume=3 , publisher=S. Hirzel , year=1891 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FWc7AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA185 , pp. 185–202 (text); 203–221 (translation); 222–229 (notes)

External links

Tale of The Three Golden Apples
Apples in culture Gold objects Mythological archetypes Mythological food and drink Mythological plants Objects in folklore Recurrent elements in fairy tales