The Singing Bone

Last updated
The Singing Bone
Folk tale
NameThe Singing Bone
Aarne–Thompson groupingATU 780
CountryGermany
Published in Grimms' Fairy Tales

"The Singing Bone" (German : Der singende Knochen) is a German fairy tale, collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 28. [1] It is Aarne-Thompson type 780. [2]

Contents

Synopsis

A boar lays waste to a country, and two brothers set out to kill it, with the prize being given the princess's hand in marriage. The younger meets a dwarf who gives him a spear, and with it, he kills the boar. Carrying the body off, the man meets his older brother, who had joined with others to drink until he felt brave. The older brother lures him in, gives him drink, and learns of the younger brother's adventure. They then set out to deliver the body to the king, but on passing a bridge, the older kills the younger and buries his body beneath it. He takes the boar himself to the king and marries the king's daughter as prize.

One day a shepherd sees a bone under the bridge and uses it to make a mouthpiece for a horn, which sings of the brother's fate:

"Ah! Dear shepherd, you are blowing your horn

With one of my bones, which night and morn

Lie still unburied, beneath the wave

Where I was thrown in a sandy grave.

I killed the wild boar, and my brother slew me,

And gained the princess by pretending 'twas he."

The shepherd takes this marvel to the king, who has the bridge examined, and the bones of the deceased brother are found. The older brother is not able to deny his actions, and is drowned as punishment. The younger brother's bones are reburied in a beautiful grave. [3]

Origin

Graham Anderson has identified the ancient Greek story of Meleager and the Calydonian boar as a possible early variant of this story, noting that both stories involve a man who hunts a boar, murders a relative, and is killed when this information is found out. Also, in both stories, the murderer's doom is brought about by "a hidden, stick-like object of whose effect the criminal himself can have no knowledge". [4]

Variations and adaptations

In music
In literature
In film

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snow-White and Rose-Red</span> German fairy tale

"Snow-White and Rose-Red" is a German fairy tale. The best-known version is the one collected by the Brothers Grimm in 1837 in the third edition of their collection Grimm's Fairy Tales. It was first published by Wilhelm Grimm in 1827 in Wilhelm Hauff's Märchen-Almanach. An older, somewhat shorter version, "The Ungrateful Dwarf", was written by Caroline Stahl (1776–1837). Indeed, that appears to be the oldest variant; no previous oral version is known, although several have been collected since its publication in 1818. Oral versions are very limited regionally. The tale is of Aarne-Thompson type 426.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Seven Ravens</span> German fairy tale

"The Seven Ravens" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm. It is of Aarne–Thompson type 451, commonly found throughout Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Singing, Springing Lark</span> German fairy tale

"The Singing, Springing Lark", "The Singing, Soaring Lark", "The Lady and the Lion" or "Lily and the Lion" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, appearing as tale no. 88.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Master Thief</span> Norwegian fairy tale

"The Master Thief" is a Norwegian fairy tale collected by Peter Chr. Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe. The Brothers Grimm included a shorter variant as tale 192 in their fairy tales. Andrew Lang included it in The Red Fairy Book. George Webbe Dasent included a translation of the tale in Popular Tales From the Norse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maid Maleen</span> German fairy tale

"Maid Maleen" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, number 198.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Robber Bridegroom (fairy tale)</span> German fairy tale

"The Robber Bridegroom" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 40. Joseph Jacobs included a variant, Mr Fox, in English Fairy Tales, but the original provenance is much older; Shakespeare alludes to the Mr. Fox variant in Much Ado About Nothing, Act 1, Scene 1:

"The Water Nixie" or "The Water-Nix" is a fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 79. It came from Hanau.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trusty John</span> German fairy tale

"Trusty John", "Faithful John", "Faithful Johannes", or "John the True" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in Grimm's Fairy Tales in 1819. Andrew Lang included it in The Blue Fairy Book.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Twa Sisters</span> Traditional song

"The Twa Sisters" is a traditional murder ballad, dating at least as far back as the mid 17th century. The song recounts the tale of a girl drowned by her jealous sister. At least 21 English variants exist under several names, including "Minnorie" or "Binnorie", "The Cruel Sister", "The Wind and Rain", "Dreadful Wind and Rain", "Two Sisters", "The Bonny Swans" and the "Bonnie Bows of London". The ballad was collected by renowned folklorist Francis J. Child as Child Ballad 10 and is also listed in the Roud Folk Song Index. Whilst the song is thought to originate somewhere around England or Scotland, extremely similar songs have been found throughout Europe, particularly in Scandinavia.

"Mother Trudy" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 43. It is Aarne-Thompson type 334, at the witch's house.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Brave Little Tailor</span> German fairy tale

"The Brave Little Tailor" or "The Valiant Little Tailor" or "The Gallant Tailor" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm. "The Brave Little Tailor" is a story of Aarne–Thompson Type 1640, with individual episodes classified in other story types.

"The Glass Coffin" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, tale number 163. Andrew Lang included it in The Green Fairy Book as The Crystal Coffin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Girl Without Hands</span> German fairy tale

"The Girl Without Hands" or "The helpless Maiden" or "The Armless Maiden" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm. It is tale number 31 and was first published in the 1812 edition of Children's and Household Tales. The story was revised by the Grimm brothers over the years, and the final version was published in the 7th edition of Children's and Household Tales in 1857. It is Aarne-Thompson type 706.

<i>The Facetious Nights of Straparola</i>

The Facetious Nights of Straparola, also known as The Nights of Straparola, is a two-volume collection of 75 stories by Italian author and fairy-tale collector Giovanni Francesco Straparola. Modeled after Boccaccio's Decameron, it is significant as often being called the first European storybook to contain fairy-tales; it would influence later fairy-tale authors like Charles Perrault and Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm.

"The Louse and the Flea" or "Little Louse and Little Flea" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, number 30.

"The Fox and the Geese" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in Grimm's Fairy Tales as tale number 86.

"The Maid of Brakel" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in Grimms' Fairy Tales, tale number 115.

"The Little Peasant" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in Grimm's Fairy Tales, number 61.

"Looking for a Bride" or "Choosing a Bride" or "Brides on Their Trial" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in Grimm's Fairy Tales, number 155. It was first added in the second edition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Grave Mound</span> German fairy tale

"The Grave Mound" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm, KHM 195. It is Aarne-Thompson type 779, Divine Rewards and Punishments.

References

  1. Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilheim. "The Fairy Tales of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm: The Singing Bone". SurLaLune Fairy Tales.
  2. Ashliman, D.L. "The Singing Bone and other tales of Aarne-Thompson type 780". SurLaLune Fairy Tales.
  3. Grimm, Jacob; Grimm, Wilheim. "28: The Singing Bone". SurLaLune Fairy Tales. Retrieved September 2, 2002.
  4. Anderson, Graham (2000). Fairytale in the Ancient World. Routledge. pp. 143–144. ISBN   978-0-415-23702-4 . Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  5. "Pentangle - Cruel Sister Lyrics".
  6. Thompson, Stith (1977). The Folktale. Berkeley, Los Angeles, London: University of California Press. p. 136.
  7. Bergtatt (2 January 2009). "Bergtatt - Harpa - YouTube". YouTube .
  8. Hansen, Wilhelm. Danmarks Melodie Bog. 900 danske Sange for Piano med underlagt Text. 3 Del (in Danish). Kjøbenhavn & Leipzig. Wilhelm Hansen, Musik Forlag. pp. 38–39.
  9. Hahn, Beth (March 1, 2016). The Singing Bone (1st; Hardcover ed.). Regan Arts. ISBN   978-1-942872-56-6.