The Three Magi Ladies and the Wise King: Diana, Circe, and Medea in Alfonso X’s General estoria

Alfonso X’s General estoria includes a small treatise on magic which claims that historically, the most important practitioners of magic were three mythological female characters: Diana, Circe, and Medea, who excelled in the art more than any other male figures. This article explores why the treatise specifically chose to emphasize these three women from among the many practitioners of magic that appear in the General estoria, how their portrayal significantly differs from Ovid’s Metamorphoses and previous interpreters, and the influence of other classical, Christian, and Arabic sources on magic.