Interesting. Also makes me think of The King of the Copper Mountains by Paul Biegel, a magical book I read as a child which I may now need to dig out and re-read.
@medievalists.bsky.socialKings in the Mountain: Myths from Germany and Byzantium www.medievalists.net/2022/09/king... #medieval
medievalists.net
Kings in the Mountain: Myths from Germany and Byzantium - Medievalists.net
A series of myths arose in various European countries about the return of a former great king, who is just sleeping, waiting for his time to return and save his homeland.
