The Greatest Treasure

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Within the Hermannsburg,(*) the old dwarves guard incredible treasures and valuables. Pearls lie there, golden apples, diamonds and rubies piled up in heaps; ancient, spicy wine is stored in barrels of wine diamonds (the wooden barrels have rotted away centuries ago); golden roses and silver lilies grow in subterranean gardens.

And if only someone knows at what times the mountain opens up, then they can climb down there for an hour and take some of the treasures with them and drink as much as they want. However, the greatest treasure resting in the dark depths is the old Hermann, whom the dwarves bound and enchanted until his time comes. But when his time arrives, the old Hermann will wake up and rise, and his kin will gather around him and regain the old German freedoms so that it will become a country, a people with an united spirit like it was in earlier, splendid days.

(*) A mountain located one mile away from Pyrmont.

Source: Seiler - Volkssagen und Legenden des Landes Paderborn, p. 20f