As a child I was always fascinated by stories of The Sibyl those mysteriously wise women who wielded such influence in the ancient world To begin with I only knew of the existence of one who appeared in a tale my mother had told me An old woman of Cumae offered Tarquin King of Rome nine books for 300 gold pieces He refused and she burnt three of them offering him six for the same price When he refused she again burnt three books He bought the remaining three for the full 300 gold pieces 