Tradition: Liechtenstein Mythology
Alternative Names: The White Woman of Mäls
Category: Ghost
The Myth
The Sad White Woman is a ghostly figure said to appear in Mäls, Liechtenstein. She is described as a woman with long blonde hair reaching down to her shoulders, dressed in a long white gown. Sometimes she appears wearing the clothing of noblewomen from an earlier age. Her presence is often accompanied by a beautiful, mysterious song, which can be heard near the village well.
According to one tale, the apparition appeared while the relatives of a recently deceased peasant woman were keeping vigil beside her body. Hearing a beautiful voice outside, they went to an open window and saw the white-clad woman near a field known as Under the Stone. The mysterious figure sat beside the village well before continuing on her way. A man secretly followed her and watched as she stopped at a place called Anaresch, where a pond once stood, and wept bitterly. Local tradition holds that the sorrowful woman had drowned her own child in that pond and could find no peace afterward.
Another version of the legend describes the ghost sitting beside the well, singing a wondrous song before slowly walking toward the old castle. As she travels, she weeps pitifully, her sorrow echoing through the night. Her appearances are believed to be the restless wanderings of a woman burdened by a terrible deed, unable to escape the grief that binds her spirit to the places where she once lived.
Sources
“Die weiße Frau.” SAGEN.at – Liechtensteiner Sagen, collected by Otto Seger. Reproduced by SAGEN.at. https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/liechtenstein/seger/weissefrau.html