Top Ten Urban Legends from Medieval Times
Replica of a Medieval Castle
There are thousands of urban legends out there, one crazier than the other. In what follows I am going to present you some information about the urban legends which were born in the medieval times. Many of them are present nowadays, as the people still believe in them.
It is said that an incubus is a demon which has a male form and which has sexual intercourse with women while they are sleeping. The succubus is the opposite of the incubus, only that it has sexual intercourse with men. It is said that an incubus has sex with a woman in order to become a father, and many stated that it could be identified by its cold as ice penis. The religious traditions state that having sexual intercourse numerous times with an incubus or succubus might lead to the deterioration of one’s health, or even to his death.
There are certain explanations for the origins of these tales, and it seems that they are related with sin, more precisely with the sexual sins of the women. It is said that the victims of those persons might have been experiencing waking dreams or sleep paralysis.
The Ten Lost Tribes of Israel refers to the ancient Tribes of Israel that disappeared from the Bible after the Kingdom of Israel was destroyed, and enslaved by ancient Assyria. Many groups of Jews believe that these Ancient Tribes still exist and that they will make a comeback someday. It seems that there is lots of interest in these stories, as numerous documents have been written about them, whether based on historical facts or based on speculation.
The scientists have analyzed the stories and they have reached the conclusion that the Lost Tribes might have never existed. However, the religious groups believe that they existed and that they still exist, only that they are still hidden somewhere. The Book of Mormons suggests that the Native Americans are part of The Lost Tribes.
It is still believed that there is a fountain of youth somewhere out there, which has the capacity of restoring the youth to anyone who drinks of its waters. There have been numerous stories about it, and according to those stories, the fountain of youth could be located anywhere in the world.
Most of the people believe that it is located in Florida, but that is unknown why. It seems that the story about the fountain of youth is connected to the elixir of life, universal panaceas, and many other similar stories which promise eternal life. There are many who are convinced that everything is just made up though.
The Christian folklore created the figure of the Wandering Jew in the 13th century and since then its legend began to spread in Europe, until it became a fixture of Christian mythology and then of Romanticism. The legend says that a Jew taunted Jesus while He was carrying His cross, and that because of that he was cursed to wander around the world until the Second Coming. There are lots of confusing things about these stories, as there are many versions of it, and they all tell different things.
Some present the wandering Jew in a different manner; others present the circumstances in a different manner, and so on. It is unknown how this story got its origins, but it is believed that it might be connected to Cain’s story, which was forced to wander around the earth, being forced to scavenge.
It is believed that there was a time when a woman was Pope, and that the name of that Pope was Joan. It is said that she had this distinction for less than three years during the 850s between the papacies of Leo IV and Benedict III. What makes this story unlikely is the fact that only two months passed between the reign of Leo IV and Benedict III. It is believed that she was created as a satire against the popes from that period, because it is unlikely that a woman would have been allowed to hold such a position.
Martin of Opava created her story, about 500 years after the period during which she apparently held the position. Most of the scholars consider it to be a medieval legend. What is interesting is the fact that The Oxford Dictionary of Popes is aware of the story, and has declared that it was believed to be true for thousands of years. They have declared that there is no evidence that such a thing had happened, and they say that a woman could not have been elected pope during those periods of time. First of all, a woman could not be a priest, and second the Pope had to be a priest.
