of this blackly comic little tale, it nonetheless manages to cast further light on Tlepsh's shamanic credentials, namely his mastery of fire and metal (in forging the sword), his ability to confront the demons of disease and his innate proto-theatricality (a shaman being, for his or her pre-scientific society, technician, doctor and entertainer, rolled into one). The curious self-propelled (and seemingly sentient) sword forged by Tlepsh to exact his terrible revenge is furthermore reminiscent of similar weapons featuring in Celtic mythology and the Arthurian romances which draw upon it - e.g. the self-moving sword present in the Arthurian motif of the Bed Perilous, as used, for example, in the early romance Le Chevalier à l'épée (See also Magic sword). References Sources Caucasus Circassian mythology Smithing gods