1 The Sierra Morena was colonized by the Conde de Olivarez between 1767 and 1776.

2 ‘The gypsy women of the Sierra Morena are keen on the flesh of men.’

3 Inns.

4 Philip V reigned from 1700 to 1746.

5 Muleteer.

6 Brother.

7 The church of Nuestra Señora de Atocha was a place of pilgrimage in Madrid.

8 ‘The Brothers’: Potocki gives one origin of the name in the text (Zoto’s brothers), but the Inquisition (‘la santa Hermandad’, as it is referred to at the beginning of this chapter) is also known as ‘los Hermanos’; their role in the story will become clear in due course.

9 Stew.

10 Sweetmeats.

11 A novel by the Persian writer Nizami, written in the late twelfth century.

12 The tribe of Muhammad.

13 The Caliph of Baghdad was the head of the Shi’ite sect (those who, inter alia, recognize only the descendants of Ali, the cousin of Muhammad and husband of his daughter Fatima, as the rightful leaders of Islam).

14 According to Shi’ite belief, the ‘twelfth imam’ will reappear at the end of time and inaugurate the age of peace and justice.

15 According to legend, seven young Ephesians hid in a cave in 251 CE to avoid religious persecution, taking their dog with them. They fell asleep and reawoke several centuries later.

16 Granada fell in 1492 to Gonzalo of Córdoba (1453–1515).

17 In 1516.

18 Philip II reigned from 1556 to 1598.

19 Monastery.