Tradition: Swiss Mythology
Alternative Names: Erdmännchen, Erdmanndli
Category: Dwarf
The Myth
The Earth Dwarfs were small, nut-brown beings who lived in rocky caves and crevices throughout the Zug region. They were especially associated with the Baarburg and the rocky areas of the Walchwilerallmend near the Gniepenfluh, where they made their homes among the bushes and holes in the stone. They were incredibly agile, able to climb trees with the speed of an arrow and slip into their caves as quickly as a weasel. The dwarfs were also known for carving mysterious letters and signs into the surrounding rock.
The Earth Dwarfs were skilled in strange and unusual arts. They could cook their food on hay and straw without setting it alight, and in Menzingen they were even said to burn the Wied on a bundle of straw without causing the straw itself to catch fire. Beneath the rocks they maintained extensive networks of caves, where they carefully guarded enormous treasures of gold and silver together with countless glittering precious stones.
The dwarfs did not all treat their treasure in the same way. Some were generous and gave from their immense wealth to poor and needy people, while others guarded their riches jealously and watched over them with great suspicion. Anyone who ventured too close to their hidden hoards could be frightened away by these secretive dwarfs, who were determined to keep their underground treasures out of human hands.
Sources
“Das Erdmännchen.” SAGEN.at – Traditionelle Sagen aus der Schweiz (Kanton Zug). Reproduced by SAGEN.at. https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/schweiz/zug/erdmaennchen.html