Elwedritsch Mother in Wernigerode, Harz!
An Elwedritsch mother from Neustadt/Weinstraße found her way to the Neuer Markt (New Market) in Wernigerode in the Harz mountains, Sachsen-Anhalt (Saxony-Anhalt), Germany!
Elwedritsche, or Elwetritsche, or Ilwetritsche are mythological creatures of the Palatinate region in south-west Germany (see wikipedia-quotation below).
But how did they come to Wernigerode in Sachsen-Anhalt which is about 400 km (~250 mi) away? There's a plate beside the sculptures that explains it:
"In der guten, alten Zeit, ungefähr 8 Meilen vor Weihnachten, lebten im Pfälzer Wald kleine Kobolde, die den armen Weinbauern aus manch kniffliger Lage halfen, aber auch manchen Bürger mit ihren Streichen zur Verzweiflung brachten.
Dieses kleine Volk, genannt Elwedritsche, lebt lustig und vergnügt bis in unsere Tage. Als 1989 eine Partnerschaft zwischen den Städten Neustadt an der Weinstraße und Wernigerode geschlossen wurde, machten sich eine Elwedritsche-Mutter und ihr Ei auf den Weg in den Harz. Hier sind sie nun zu bestaunen.
Wie viele dieser lustigen Gesellen insgesamt in den Harz und nach Wernigerode gezogen sind, kann nur erahnt werden. Jedesmal, wenn man in und um Wernigerode von mysteriösen oder lustigen Streichen hört, könnten die Elwedritsche im Spiel sein."
Translation:
"In the good olden days, about 8 miles before Christmas, small kobolds (sprites of German folklore) lived in the Palatinate Forest that helped the poor winegrowers out of many a tricky situation but also reduced many a citizen to despair with the tricks they played on them.
This little people called Elwedritsche live merrily and jolly down to the present days. When in 1989 a twinning was arranged between the towns Neustadt an der Weinstraße and Wernigerode, an Elwedritsche mother and her egg set out for the Harz mountains. Here they are now to be marvelled at.
We can only guess how many of these funny fellows moved to the Harz and to Wernigerode. Everytime you hear of mysterious or funny tricks played in or around Wernigerode, Elwedritsche might be involved."
---quotation from en.wikipedia.org about Elwedritsche:---
The Elwedritsch is a cryptid or mythical creature that supposedly inhabits the Palatinate of Germany. It is described as being a chicken-like creature with antlers. It also has scales instead of feathers. However, it is said that their wings are of little use. That is why they live mainly in underbrush and under vines. Sometimes Elwetritschen are depicted with antlers of a stag and their beaks often appear to be very long. In the second half of the 20th century, artists increasingly portrayed Elwetritschen as female by adding breasts. Elwetritschen supposedly originate from crossbreeding chickens, ducks, and geese with mythical wood creatures such as goblins and elves. Being a fowl, they naturally lay eggs, which as a result of descending from forest spirits, grow during breeding season. Eggs in various sizes are artistically depicted at the “Elwetritschenbrunnen” in Neustadt an der Weinstraße.
(...)
The area in which tales of the Elwetritsch are spread expands from the Palatinate Forest in the west of Germany towards the east across the Upper Rhine Plain to the southern parts of the Odenwald. The mythical creature also appears in the north of Baden-Württemberg. In the Main-Tauber-Kreis, where they are known as “Ilwedridsche”, the children are told that at night the creatures sleep in the crowns of the willow trees standing next to the river Tauber. In Neustadt an der Weinstraße, which is said to be the “capital” of the Elwetritsches, there is an Elwetritsche-fountain, created by Gernot Rumpf. Other sources consider Dahn in the southwestern Palatinate, which also has a Elwetritsche-fountain, Erfweiler or other villages as secret capitals of these creatures. The Pennsylvania Dutch are convinced that Palatinate people--their biggest group of ancestors--all of whom emigrated to America, had taken some “Elbedritschlicher” with them “so ass sie kenn Heemweh grigge deede” (so that they wouldn’t become homesick). Tales of the Elwetritschen are also documented in Amish communities.
---end of quotation---
Wernigerode is a picturesque town in the northeast of the Harz mountains, situated at the foot of the Brocken (1141 m = 3743 ft) which is the highest mountain of the Harz.
Wernigerode has many half-timbered houses, particularly the beautiful Gothic town hall, and the impressive Schloss Wernigerode (Wernigerode Castle) towers above the town. The Harzer Schmalspurbahn (Harz Narrow Gauge Railways) operates at Wernigerode station, connecting Wernigerode with the Brocken and the town of Nordhausen in the south of the Harz mountains.
Harz weekend June 2012
Elwedritsch Mother in Wernigerode, Harz!
An Elwedritsch mother from Neustadt/Weinstraße found her way to the Neuer Markt (New Market) in Wernigerode in the Harz mountains, Sachsen-Anhalt (Saxony-Anhalt), Germany!
Elwedritsche, or Elwetritsche, or Ilwetritsche are mythological creatures of the Palatinate region in south-west Germany (see wikipedia-quotation below).
But how did they come to Wernigerode in Sachsen-Anhalt which is about 400 km (~250 mi) away? There's a plate beside the sculptures that explains it:
"In der guten, alten Zeit, ungefähr 8 Meilen vor Weihnachten, lebten im Pfälzer Wald kleine Kobolde, die den armen Weinbauern aus manch kniffliger Lage halfen, aber auch manchen Bürger mit ihren Streichen zur Verzweiflung brachten.
Dieses kleine Volk, genannt Elwedritsche, lebt lustig und vergnügt bis in unsere Tage. Als 1989 eine Partnerschaft zwischen den Städten Neustadt an der Weinstraße und Wernigerode geschlossen wurde, machten sich eine Elwedritsche-Mutter und ihr Ei auf den Weg in den Harz. Hier sind sie nun zu bestaunen.
Wie viele dieser lustigen Gesellen insgesamt in den Harz und nach Wernigerode gezogen sind, kann nur erahnt werden. Jedesmal, wenn man in und um Wernigerode von mysteriösen oder lustigen Streichen hört, könnten die Elwedritsche im Spiel sein."
Translation:
"In the good olden days, about 8 miles before Christmas, small kobolds (sprites of German folklore) lived in the Palatinate Forest that helped the poor winegrowers out of many a tricky situation but also reduced many a citizen to despair with the tricks they played on them.
This little people called Elwedritsche live merrily and jolly down to the present days. When in 1989 a twinning was arranged between the towns Neustadt an der Weinstraße and Wernigerode, an Elwedritsche mother and her egg set out for the Harz mountains. Here they are now to be marvelled at.
We can only guess how many of these funny fellows moved to the Harz and to Wernigerode. Everytime you hear of mysterious or funny tricks played in or around Wernigerode, Elwedritsche might be involved."
---quotation from en.wikipedia.org about Elwedritsche:---
The Elwedritsch is a cryptid or mythical creature that supposedly inhabits the Palatinate of Germany. It is described as being a chicken-like creature with antlers. It also has scales instead of feathers. However, it is said that their wings are of little use. That is why they live mainly in underbrush and under vines. Sometimes Elwetritschen are depicted with antlers of a stag and their beaks often appear to be very long. In the second half of the 20th century, artists increasingly portrayed Elwetritschen as female by adding breasts. Elwetritschen supposedly originate from crossbreeding chickens, ducks, and geese with mythical wood creatures such as goblins and elves. Being a fowl, they naturally lay eggs, which as a result of descending from forest spirits, grow during breeding season. Eggs in various sizes are artistically depicted at the “Elwetritschenbrunnen” in Neustadt an der Weinstraße.
(...)
The area in which tales of the Elwetritsch are spread expands from the Palatinate Forest in the west of Germany towards the east across the Upper Rhine Plain to the southern parts of the Odenwald. The mythical creature also appears in the north of Baden-Württemberg. In the Main-Tauber-Kreis, where they are known as “Ilwedridsche”, the children are told that at night the creatures sleep in the crowns of the willow trees standing next to the river Tauber. In Neustadt an der Weinstraße, which is said to be the “capital” of the Elwetritsches, there is an Elwetritsche-fountain, created by Gernot Rumpf. Other sources consider Dahn in the southwestern Palatinate, which also has a Elwetritsche-fountain, Erfweiler or other villages as secret capitals of these creatures. The Pennsylvania Dutch are convinced that Palatinate people--their biggest group of ancestors--all of whom emigrated to America, had taken some “Elbedritschlicher” with them “so ass sie kenn Heemweh grigge deede” (so that they wouldn’t become homesick). Tales of the Elwetritschen are also documented in Amish communities.
---end of quotation---
Wernigerode is a picturesque town in the northeast of the Harz mountains, situated at the foot of the Brocken (1141 m = 3743 ft) which is the highest mountain of the Harz.
Wernigerode has many half-timbered houses, particularly the beautiful Gothic town hall, and the impressive Schloss Wernigerode (Wernigerode Castle) towers above the town. The Harzer Schmalspurbahn (Harz Narrow Gauge Railways) operates at Wernigerode station, connecting Wernigerode with the Brocken and the town of Nordhausen in the south of the Harz mountains.
Harz weekend June 2012