Abstract: The article introduces into scientific circulation discovered in the collection of short stories of the 19th century from the collection of the temporary catalogue of the Moscow Theological Academy (MTA) library, the late edition of The Tale about a Sinful Mother, a translated medieval legend about the hero’s journey into the underworld. Based on the analysis of the plot and stylistic differences of the newly found late version of The Tale about a Sinful Mother from the early lists of the 16th century and revealed plot matches with lists in manuscript Old Believers collections of the 19th — 20th centuries in the article concludes that this is an independent edition of the story, which has very serious discrepancies with the early lists and at the same time turns out to be very close to the options in some Old Believers collections of the 19th — 20th centuries. The article is completed by the publication of the tale’s text in the collection of the tales stored in the Manuscript Research Department of Russian State Library (MRD of RSL), f. 173. III. (Collection of the temporary catalogue of the MTA library), No. 123.
References:
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