Arany mesekönyv : A világ legszebb meséi by Elek Benedek
"Arany mesekönyv" by Elek Benedek is a collection of fairy tales written in the early 20th century. Drawing on renowned stories from around the world—here especially the Arabian Nights—it offers vivid, accessible retellings filled with wonder, peril, and moral turns. The opening centers on a witty porter, three veiled sisters, three one‑eyed adventurers, and a disguised caliph whose paths cross in a lavish, rule‑bound household. The opening of the book retells the
Baghdadi tale in which a porter follows a beautiful stranger to the opulent home of three secluded sisters—Szobeida, Szafia, and Amina—where all guests must promise not to ask questions. After feasting, the sisters admit three one‑eyed adventurers and three “merchants” (the caliph and his companions in disguise). A strange rite ensues: Szobeida whips two black dogs, then weeps and kisses them; Amina sings of sorrow and, overcome, reveals a body marked by old scars. Curiosity breaks the house rule, armed slaves are summoned, and the men must save themselves by telling their life stories. The first adventurer, a dispossessed prince, recounts how secret burials, family tragedy, and usurpation led to the loss of his eye and his flight to Baghdad. The second tells of a learned prince who, after angering a jinn in an underground palace, is turned into a monkey, wins favor through exquisite calligraphy, is restored to human form by a sorceress‑princess who dies defeating the jinn, and loses an eye in the fiery struggle. The third begins a seafaring ordeal toward a deadly magnetic mountain; the excerpt breaks off as a bronze rider plunges into the sea. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
Read or download for free
For an overview of the different reading options, see our Reading Guide
| Reading Options | Url | Size | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Read now! | https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77874.html.images | 512 kB | |||
| EPUB3 (E-readers incl. Send-to-Kindle) | https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77874.epub3.images | 10.6 MB | |||
| EPUB (older E-readers) | https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77874.epub.images | 10.5 MB | |||
| EPUB (no images, older E-readers) | https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77874.epub.noimages | 277 kB | |||
| Kindle | https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77874.kf8.images | 10.7 MB | |||
| older Kindles | https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77874.kindle.images | 10.7 MB | |||
| Plain Text UTF-8 | https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77874.txt.utf-8 | 458 kB | |||
| Download HTML (zip) | https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/77874/pg77874-h.zip | 9.7 MB | |||
| There may be more files related to this item. | |||||
Similar Books
About this eBook
| Author | Benedek, Elek, 1859-1929 |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Ford, H. J. (Henry Justice), 1860-1941 |
| Illustrator | Kotász, Károly, 1872-1941 |
| Illustrator | Pogány, Willy, 1882-1955 |
| Title | Arany mesekönyv : A világ legszebb meséi |
| Original Publication | Budapest: Athenaeum, 1913. |
| Series Title | Csudalámpa, a világ legszebb meséi |
| Contents | A három kalandos és az öt bagdádi nő története -- Sahabeddin sejk -- A föld teremtése -- A vízitündér és a királyfi -- A néma szultánkisasszony -- A feltámadott asszony -- Bar Kappara -- A kőtörő -- A féleszű Lull -- A teve és a patkány -- Napvilág és Holdvilág -- A kígyókirály -- Az első esztendő -- Világszép Nádszál kisasszony -- Az átok -- A hűség jutalma -- A hal-leány -- Hófehérke és Rózsapiroska -- A párjanincs szép királykisasszony -- Bella-Flór hercegnő -- Porkó király -- Bukolla -- A vízitündér fia. |
| Credits | Albert László from page images generously made available by the Hungarian Electronic Library |
| Language | Hungarian |
| LoC Class | PZ: Language and Literatures: Juvenile belles lettres |
| Subject | Fairy tales |
| Subject | Folk literature |
| Category | Text |
| EBook-No. | 77874 |
| Release Date | Feb 6, 2026 |
| Copyright Status | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 185 downloads in the last 30 days. |
| Project Gutenberg eBooks are always free! | |