Articles form a complex of the research by philologist and historian, Academician Aleksander Nickolaevich Veselovsky (1838-1906); they were publ. in 1879-1891. The main task of the research, on the words of the author, was ‘building the physiology of people’s creativity’, i.e. finding the traces of its influence at the medieval literature, and establishing regularities of those influences.

The author published XXIV articles based on the method of the historical-comparative analysis of certain subjects. I. Greek apocrypha on St Theodore, II. St George in legend, song, and rite (the article was built as a dialogue with the work ‘St George and Egory the Brave’ by A. I. Kirpichnikov), III. Alatyr in local legends of Palestine and the Grail legend, IV. Dream about a tree in the Tale on the City of Jerusalem, and the verses of the ‘Golubinaya’ Book, V. new data on the history of the tales of Solomon, VI. Spiritual plots in literature and folk poetry of Romanians, VII. Romanian. Slavic, and Greek Kolyada, VIII. Ilya – Ilyi (Helios)? IX. Righteous Michael of Potuka, X. Western legends on the tree of the Cross, and Gregory’s Word on three trees of the Cross, XI. Dualistic beliefs about the world, XII. Indifferent and mutual elements in the Life of St Basil the New and in the new eschatology, XIII. Destiny-Dolya in folk conceptions of Slavs, XIV. January Rusalii and Gothic Games in Byzantium, XV. Valkyrie – Velis, Villa – Viola, XVI. Legends on Herod and Herodias and their folk reflections, XVII. Amphilochus – Evalach in the Grail legend, XVIII. Prophecy of Völva and the newest exegesis, XIX. Episodes on paradise and hell in the Message by Novgorod Archbishop Vasily, XX. Once again on the dualistic cosmogonies, XXI. On the vision of Amphilochus, XXII. Big verses on Egory, and the tale on Ilya and Dragon, XXIV. ON the evolution of folk conceptions of Dolya, XXIV. Vision Gregory on the last days.

In all those articles V. Kept his own principle of the ‘theory of counter currents’ (research XI). He did not consider efficient to explain the similarity of myths, fairy-tales, and plots of various peoples either with the general foundations or as borrowings. He argued that both approaches should be used together, because one people borrowed only elements which corresponded to the existing ones as similar type of thought and imagery. Those basics and the ‘counter currents’ allowed to form new layers of plots and easily accept them. Such processes could happen numerously, and it made myth more flexible to changing terms – but according the basics of the accepting milieu.

Many texts of old literature were published in those articles as supplements.