The Mountain at Pettenau
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| Geographic Coordinates: 48° 17' 57.21" N, 13° 6' 42.93" E |
Near Pettenau, there is a tall mountain. It is possible to get into the mountain from its sides via a cave which has been carved out of the firm clay. The cave ends in a small chamber. From the corner of this chamber, there is a hole leading almost vertically through the marlstone, and, from this hole, a tunnel leads downwards towards the village of Pettenau, where it exits in the shed of the Bastelbauer farmer. An earth man and an earth woman used to live there. Both were short, and the man was wearing a gray skirt reaching down to his knees. The woman, on the other hand, wore a long brown jacket and a hat.
The earth woman loved the Bastelbauer farmer, but he ignored her. She gave him a green girdle and told him to tie it around his wife. But the farmer didn’t trust her and tied the girdle around an apple tree, which was immediately torn apart by the girdle.
Once, the people of the village captured the little man. As they carried him away, the woman called after him: “Even if you tell anything else, don’t tell them why cowberries have a white cross on them!” The earth man was imprisoned for three days, and then they let him go. The two used to do domestic chores for the locals, but, because they were constantly harassed, they eventually left the caves.
Source: Panzer - Bayerische Sagen und Bräuche Erster Band, p. 71
 Sunken Castles, Evil Poodles: Commentaries on German folklore. Get the book for further context and explanatory commentary! |