A matagot or mandagot is, in the oral traditions of French folklore, a spirit in the form of an animal, frequently a black cat, though rat, fox, dog, or cow types are also said to exist.
Matagots are generally evil, but some may prove helpful, like the "magician cat" said to bring wealth into a home if it is well fed. Traditionally, a wealth-bringing matagot must be lured with a fresh, plump chicken, then carried home by its new owner without the human once looking back. If the cat is given the first mouthful of food and drink at every meal, it will repay its owner with a solid gold coin each morning. In Gascony traditions, you must not keep the matagot all your life: if the owner is dying, he/she will suffer a long agony, as long as he/she doesn't free the matagot.
References
- Bladé, Jean-François (1886). Contes populaires de la Gascogne [Folktales from Gascony] (in French). Paris: Maisonneuve.
- Masse, Etienne Michel (1842). Memoire historique et statistique sur le canton de La Ciotat [Historical and statistical report on the canton of La Ciotat] (in French).
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