description Melusine Overview
Melusine is a legendary female figure found in medieval European folklore, particularly traditions associated with France, Luxembourg, and the Low Countries. She is commonly portrayed as a woman who assumes a serpent-like or fish-tailed form, often under the terms of a marriage taboo that her husband eventually breaks. Jean d'Arras gave the story an influential literary form in his late-14th-century French prose romance about the noble house of Lusignan.
help Melusine FAQ
What is the legend of Melusine?
Melusine is a fairy of medieval European folklore who takes a serpent-like or fish-tailed form — usually on Saturdays — under a marriage pact forbidding her husband from seeing her at that time. When he eventually spies on her and breaks the taboo, she flees, often transforming fully into a serpent or dragon.
Which noble families are connected to the Melusine legend?
The legend is most famously tied to the House of Lusignan, which claimed Melusine as the supernatural founder of its line, but traditions in Luxembourg and the Low Countries attach similar tales to local counts. This made Melusine a kind of ancestral protective spirit for several ruling houses.
Who wrote the best-known literary version of Melusine?
The French prose romance 'Melusine' by Jean d'Arras, written around 1393 and reportedly commissioned for Jean, Duke of Berry, is the most influential version. A verse treatment by Couldrette appeared soon after, and together they fixed the story in European literature.
Is the Starbucks logo Melusine?
Officially, no — Starbucks' emblem is a twin-tailed siren, and the company has never identified it as Melusine. Still, people frequently compare it to Melusine because medieval art depicted her with a similarly doubled fish or serpent tail.
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