The Myth

A Light Elf fell deeply in love with a young girl from Junglinster, and the two exchanged tokens of affection and lived together in the happiness of an innocent love. Their relationship eventually came to the attention of the local pastor, who regarded the elf as a heathen being. He strictly forbade the girl from having any further contact with him, threatening her with punishment both in this life and the next. The poor girl reluctantly promised to obey, but separating the lovers proved far more difficult than the pastor expected. The elf was not considered a devil or a spirit of Hell, so the usual means used against Satan and his servants seemed useless. Even locking the girl inside a convent would accomplish little, since elves were believed capable of slipping through the smallest keyholes.

The pastor therefore summoned an old and experienced shepherd and asked him for advice. The shepherd smiled and explained that the elf’s refined nature and delicacy had to be taken into account. He proposed that the girl prepare a small bread made from salt, lard, garlic, and sulfur. She was to eat the bread and, when the elf approached her again, discreetly press her flat hand against her body. The girl followed the shepherd’s instructions. That evening, the Light Elf appeared before his beloved with joy shining in his eyes, but as he approached her, she made the faintest sound.

The elf was immediately offended and fled in indignation. He never returned to the girl again, and their strange romance came to an end.

Tradition: Luxembourgish Mythology
Alternative Names: Wichtelchen of Sterpenich, Elf of Sterpenich
Category: Elf, Dwarf

The Myth

The Elf of Sterpenich was a small supernatural being who appeared to a poor serf near the castle of Sterpenich. In ancient times, the village did not yet exist and only a castle stood there, inhabited by a cruel nobleman who spent his days thinking of ways to torment his impoverished subjects. One day, the nobleman ordered one of his serfs to carry a letter to Metz and return with the answer within thirteen hours, before sunset. The task seemed completely impossible, but terrified of immediate punishment, the poor man set out at once. Beyond the first hill, however, he encountered an elf waiting with a small carriage and a team of horses.

The elf took the serf into his carriage and drove him to Metz and back with incredible speed, allowing him to complete the impossible journey. When they reached the castle again, the elf gave the serf a final message for his cruel master: he was to deliver the requested answer, but also tell the nobleman that the elf himself would come that very day to collect him and carry him into eternity. The serf repeated the message exactly as instructed. When the lord heard the elf’s warning, he cried out in terror, asking whether he was going to die, and immediately collapsed and died.

Afterward, the name Sterpenich remained attached to the castle and later to the village that grew around it. The little elf therefore became part of the legend explaining the place’s name, appearing as a mysterious supernatural messenger who punishes the cruel lord while rescuing the helpless servant from an impossible task.

Sources

“Das Wichtlein von Sterpenich.” SAGEN.at – Traditionelle Sagen aus Luxemburg. Reproduced by SAGEN.at.
https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/luxemburg/Wichtlein_Sterpenich.html