The Iron Stove
Encyclopedia
The Iron Stove is a fairy tale
, collected by the Brothers Grimm
, as tale number 127.
It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A, The Animal Bridegroom
The king attempts to send first a miller's daughter and then a swine-herd's daughter to take the princess's place. Although the women are very beautiful, they betray their origins, and the princess finally goes. When she scrapes the hole, she finds the prince very handsome. He will take her to his own country, but she wishes to first bid her father farewell. He agrees, but tells her to speak no more than three words. She fails this prohibition, and can not find the iron stove.
In the woods, she finds a cottage full of toads and frogs. They give her shelter for the night, tell her how to find the prince—by climbing a high glass mountain, and crossing three piercing swords and a great lake—and give her gifts—three large needles, a plough-wheel, and three nuts. She uses the needles to climb the glass mountain and rolls over the swords on the plough-wheel. She finds a castle where the prince was getting married, and cracks the nuts. Each one holds a dress, and she barters each one for a night in the prince's room. The first two nights, his bride gives him a sleeping drink, but the third night, the servants have told the prince of her pleas, and he does not drink.
They steal the bride's clothing so she could not get up and flee, using the ploughwheel and the needles to get back to the cottage of toads and frogs, but when they arrive, it becomes a castle, and the frogs and toads, which were the children of kings, are all transformed back into their true forms. They live there for many years, until they are reconciled with the prince's father.
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
, collected by the Brothers Grimm
Brothers Grimm
The Brothers Grimm , Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm , were German academics, linguists, cultural researchers, and authors who collected folklore and published several collections of it as Grimm's Fairy Tales, which became very popular...
, as tale number 127.
It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A, The Animal Bridegroom
Synopsis
A prince is cursed by a witch into an iron stove, which the witch leaves in the woods. A lost princess finds the stove, and the prince sends her home on the promise that she will marry him. To do this, she had to return with a knife and scrape a hole in the stove.The king attempts to send first a miller's daughter and then a swine-herd's daughter to take the princess's place. Although the women are very beautiful, they betray their origins, and the princess finally goes. When she scrapes the hole, she finds the prince very handsome. He will take her to his own country, but she wishes to first bid her father farewell. He agrees, but tells her to speak no more than three words. She fails this prohibition, and can not find the iron stove.
In the woods, she finds a cottage full of toads and frogs. They give her shelter for the night, tell her how to find the prince—by climbing a high glass mountain, and crossing three piercing swords and a great lake—and give her gifts—three large needles, a plough-wheel, and three nuts. She uses the needles to climb the glass mountain and rolls over the swords on the plough-wheel. She finds a castle where the prince was getting married, and cracks the nuts. Each one holds a dress, and she barters each one for a night in the prince's room. The first two nights, his bride gives him a sleeping drink, but the third night, the servants have told the prince of her pleas, and he does not drink.
They steal the bride's clothing so she could not get up and flee, using the ploughwheel and the needles to get back to the cottage of toads and frogs, but when they arrive, it becomes a castle, and the frogs and toads, which were the children of kings, are all transformed back into their true forms. They live there for many years, until they are reconciled with the prince's father.
See also
- East of the Sun and West of the MoonEast of the Sun and West of the MoonEast of the Sun and West of the Moon is a Norwegian folk tale.East of the Sun and West of the Moon was collected by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe...
- Black Bull of NorrowayBlack Bull of NorrowayThe Black Bull of Norroway is a fairy tale collected by Joseph Jacobs in More English Fairy Tales.The language, including references to bannocks, would indicate a Scottish story teller, in this instance, Kenny Norman Macleod....
- The Brown Bear of NorwayThe Brown Bear of NorwayThe Brown Bear of Norway is a Scottish fairy tale collected by Fitzroy MacLean in West Highland Tales. Andrew Lang included it in The Lilac Fairy Book.It is Aarne-Thompson type 425A, the search for the lost husband...
- The Singing, Springing LarkThe Singing, Springing LarkThe Singing, Springing Lark or The Singing, Soaring Lark is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, appearing as tale no. 88.It is Aarne-Thompson type 425C. Others of this type include Beauty and the Beast and The Small-tooth Dog....