Rath - AI-generated imagined folklore illustration.
AI-generated imagined Rath cutting furnace wood with its teeth while its legion carries timber. Lion form and assigned work follow the text; translucence, followers’ shapes and temple design are invented.
Overview
Rath comes before Solomon in the form of a roaring lion, yet calls itself an imperceptible spirit in that form. It claims to leap secretly upon sick people and weaken them. It also says that it can cast out demons and command legions. The combination makes the figure a spirit with an animal manifestation, rather than an ordinary lion.
Conybeare renders its answer about identity as Lion-bearer, Rath in kind. The wording is difficult, and the note proposes a different Greek reading without resolving it. This profile retains the edition’s name with that qualification; it does not infer an ancient worship tradition or a securely translated etymology.
Asked what overcomes its host, Rath names Emmanuel through the numeric value644 and foretells submersion from a steep place. Conybeare reads this as an allusion to the Gospel story of the swine. Solomon assigns the legion to bring wood from a thicket and orders the lion-shaped spirit to cut it with its teeth for the temple furnace. This concrete labor separates its individual role from that of its followers.
Origins & earliest records
The selected documented witness is F. C. Conybeare’s1898 English translation of the Greek Testament of Solomon, following Fleck’s edition of a Paris manuscript. Its narrated temple-era setting is not a verified date of composition or folklore invention. Jewish and Christian elements and difficult readings are retained with source attribution.
Records & interpretation
§§51–53 and notes78–81; translator’s uncertain name-reading retained.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
The Testament of Solomon, selected episode and editorial notes
§§51–53 and notes78–81; translator’s uncertain name-reading retained.
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Primary text in a historical scholarly editionThe Testament of Solomon: Conybeare translation and notesResearch access: 2026-10-10
Image credits
AI-generated imagined folklore illustrationRath - AI-generated imagined folklore illustration.
AI-generated imagined Rath cutting furnace wood with its teeth while its legion carries timber. Lion form and assigned work follow the text; translucence, followers’ shapes and temple design are invented.
