Fons

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GenitaliaSex changeMagicDeceitful advisorDeceptionBodily transformationCross dressingCross dressing: man in women’s clothesMagical beings (spirits, demons, djinn, witches)MarriagePregnancy

The Fountain

A prince travels to a nearby kingdom to be wed, accompanied by a wicked advisor. On the journey, the two become separated from the rest of the retinue. They come to a magical spring. The advisor knows that this fountain transforms any men who drink from it into women, so he stays back while the prince drinks, then returns to the king's court and reports that the prince has been killed by wild beasts (or, in some versions, a lion). The prince is gravely distressed by his transformation into a woman. He is approached by a djinn, or a devil, who takes pity on him ('because he is so handsome'), and offers to help him. The djinn offers to transform himself into a woman in the prince's stead, but after a time (four months) the transformation will be reversed. The prince agrees; the djinn eventually returns, still in a woman's form and now visibly pregnant. The prince insists that they cannot swap their bodies back to how they were before, therefore, because the condition of a virgin maid's body (which was what he had before the swap) and that of a pregnant woman are not equivalent, so it is not a fair exchange. He stays (or becomes once again) a man, and returns to his wife; the wicked advisor is executed.

(From: Libro de los Engaños)

Note
See the combined story Striga and Fons which mixes elements of this narrative with elements of the Striga story.

Critical Literature
Nishimura (2001), Clouston (1884)

Fons appears in the following versions and secondary versions
Version Original Language Branch of Tradition Adapted from Arabic Version A (The Seven Viziers) Arabic Book of Sindbad Arabic Version A1001 (Thousand and One Nights) Arabic Book of Sindbad Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights) Arabic Book of Sindbad Libro de los Engaños Old Spanish Book of Sindbad Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights)

Fons is narrated in the following occurrences

Narrator Pages Empress Arabic Version A1001 (Thousand and One Nights), Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights), Berlin Staatsbibliothek Sprenger 1368, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3660, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3662, Leiden Universiteit Or. 14.303, Libro de los Engaños, Madrid Real Academia Española 'El Conde Lucanor', Ms. 15, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France Arabe 3639, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3660, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3661, Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3662, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3670, Toronto Aga Khan Museum 00513, Tunis Bibliothèque nationale de Tunisie, MWT 04576

Fons appears in the following manuscripts

Manuscript Language Siglum (Version) Language Group within Version Berlin Staatsbibliothek Sprenger 1368 Arabic Arabic Version A (The Seven Viziers) Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3670 Arabic Arabic Version A (The Seven Viziers) Leiden Universiteit Or. 14.303 Arabic Aramaic Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights) Madrid Real Academia Española 'El Conde Lucanor', Ms. 15 Spanish Libro de los Engaños Old Spanish Libro de los Engaños Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France Arabe 3639 Arabic Arabic Version A (The Seven Viziers) Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3660 Arabic Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights) Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3661 Arabic Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights) Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France, Arabe 3662 Arabic Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights) Toronto Aga Khan Museum 00513 Arabic Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights) Tunis Bibliothèque nationale de Tunisie, MWT 04576 Arabic Arabic Version A101 (Hundred and One Nights)