The International Prester John Project: How A Global Legend Was Created Across Six CenturiesMain MenuOrientation to ProjectPath One: 1122-1235Path Two: 1236-1310 ADPath Three : 1311-1460 ADPath Four : 1461-1520 ADPath Five: 1521-1699 ADPath Six: 1700-1800 ADChristopher Taylor // christopher.eric.taylor@gmail.com946e2cf6115688379f338b70e5b6f6c039f8ba6f Global Middle Ages
King Gundafor's Palace
12016-03-31T09:54:06-07:00Christopher Taylor // christopher.eric.taylor@gmail.com946e2cf6115688379f338b70e5b6f6c039f8ba6f52811plain2016-03-31T09:54:06-07:00Christopher Taylor // christopher.eric.taylor@gmail.com946e2cf6115688379f338b70e5b6f6c039f8ba6f
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12016-03-27T11:53:26-07:00King Gundafor7plain2022-07-31T11:37:41-07:00King Gundafor is the Indian King Thomas builds a palace in heaven for in The Acts of Thomas and is a figure mentioned in some interpolations of the Letter, in which John’s residence replicates exactly the spiritual palace Thomas builds for King Gundafor in the Acts of Thomas.
While the name "Gundafor" is not found in any other western text outside of The Acts of Thomas, Silverberg (p. 19) notes that archaeologists in the 19th century did find evidence supporting the historicity of this figure in the Indus valley: 1st century coins bearing the name "Gudaphora." Based on the numismatic evidence, historians have placed this king's reign as from 19-45 AD, coinciding with accounts of Thomas's missionary endeavors in India.
Prester John’s implicit Nestorianism, the legend’s dependence on the St. Thomas tradition, and the elements of the Letter reacting to the Islamic conception of paradise help establish a kind of hybrid or nomadic identity for John.
