La Mulata de Córdoba
Locked in a cell by the Inquisition, a woman accused of witchcraft drew a ship on the wall with a piece of charcoal. Then she stepped into it and sailed away.
What was reported
The legend is set in colonial Córdoba, in Veracruz. A beautiful woman of mixed African and Spanish descent was famous as a healer, admired by many and envied by some. People whispered that she had powers, and she was accused of witchcraft and taken to the Inquisition's prison in Mexico City.
On the eve of her sentence, her jailer asked what was missing from her cell. She drew a ship on the wall in charcoal and asked him what it lacked. 'Only to sail,' he said. She stepped onto the ship, and it sailed out through the wall, and she was never seen again.
Explanations offered
The story can't be tied to a real case, though the Inquisition did try people for witchcraft in New Spain. It's a legend of escape from injustice, retold in Mexican books, songs and an opera.
- When
- Told of the 1600s
- Where
- Córdoba, Veracruz, Mexico
- Witnesses
- Mexican legend
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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