Treasure guardians in folklore

The treasure guardian is a recurring motif in folklore of a being that guards a treasure. Typically, the hero must overcome the guardian in order to obtain the treasure. In some cases the treasure guardians are non-human beings, although one subtype, known as "treasure ghosts", were deceased humans who had been murdered and buried with the treasure to protect it.[1][2][3] Animals are often shown as treasure guardians—an index of folklore chronicles stories of snakes, crows, ravens, cocks, swans, and night-birds as treasure guardians.[4] In some stories, the treasure is guarded by "the Devil himself".[1][2]: 44–45

## Contents

* 1 In folklore
* 2 In popular culture
* 3 See also
* 4 Notes
* 5 External links

## In folklore

* Jinn, an Arabian legendary creature sometimes depicted as a treasure guardian
* Gnome, a European legendary creature sometimes depicted as a treasure guardian
* Leprechaun, a treasure guardian from Irish folklore
* Dragon, a creature often portrayed as hoarding a treasure
* Salamander, a legendary creature often described as a lizard in shape (even looking like a common salamander), but usually with an affinity for fire
* Spriggan, Cornish guardian of fairy treasure, said to be the ghosts of giants that can swell to enormous sizes.

## In popular culture

* Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade features a crusader knight who guards the Holy Grail.
* Works by Tolkien feature Smaug, a treasure-guarding dragon.[2]: 45–46

## See also

* Salamander letter

## Notes

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Huggins, Ronald V. (Winter 2003), "From Captain Kidd's Treasure Ghost to the Angel Moroni: Changing Dramatis Personae in Early Mormonism", Dialogue 36 (4): 17–42, https://www.dialoguejournal.com/wp-content/uploads/sbi/articles/Dialogue_V36N04_37.pdf
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Ashurst-McGee, Mark (2006), "Moroni as Angel and as Treasure Guardian", FARMS Review 18 (1), http://publications.maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/fullscreen/?pub=1446&index=5
3. ↑ Ashurst-McGee, Mark (Fall 2001), "Moroni: Angel or Treasure Guardian?", Mormon Historical Studies 2 (2): 39–75, http://mormonhistoricsites.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Mhs2.2-Ashurst-McGeeFall2001.pdf
4. ↑ Baughman, Ernest Warren (1967), Type and Motif-Index of the Folktales of England and North America, Indiana University folklore series, no. 20, The Hague: Mouton, p. 85, OCLC 491929

## External links

* MacGuffin Guardian entry at TV Tropes

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