A Cologne Folklore about the Heinzelmännchen Gnomes:
Heinzelmännchenbrunnen © Travel Signposts
On our afternoon stop in Cologne we walked to the old market square to check out our favourite fountain, the large “Heinzelmännchenbrunnen” (Heinzelmännchen fountain) in front of the Früh brewery.
Built in 1899 by Edmund Renard and his son Heinrich, the Heinzelmännchenbrunnen commemorates the Heinzelmännchen and the tailor’s wife. It tells the story of the Heinzelmännchen, the little people who did all the work at night so that the people of Cologne could laze around during the day. The story was recorded from folklore by Ernst Weyden, a teacher in Cologne.
As the Legend Goes
There once was a time when the Heinzelmännchen did all the work for the people of Cologne during the night, so that they could be lazy during the day. They did all sorts of work like baking bread, washing and all kinds of housework. No one ever saw them – in return for the work, one of their demands was that they were never to be seen or disturbed.
During this time, there was a tailor to whom the gnomes took a liking to. When the tailor got married, the gnomes brought all kinds of beautiful vessels and utensils to the tailor’s house. These they had stolen from other homes.
When the tailor’s family increased in size, the little ones gave the tailor’s wife much help in her household affairs. They washed, scoured and did everything in the house for her.
This went on for some time until one night the tailor’s wife became too curious and she was dying to see one of these Heinzelmännchen. She spilled some dried peas on the stairs to make them trip and fall so that she could see them during the day.
Needless to say, the Heinzelmännchen were not pleased and they left town and never came back again. From then on the citizens of Cologne had to do all the work themselves.
So ends the story of how Curiosity killed the cat for Cologne.
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I’m researching: 62 years ago my mom purchased a wind up Heinzelmaennchen doll. She also bought a Micky wind up doll wearing a sailors suit. Im looking for the shop that sold them. And find out about my Micky. Im also wanting to purchase another another Heinzelmaennchen. And a replica of the fountain Heinzelmaennchenbrunnen. Could you help me in my search?
Hi Chris,
Yours would appear to be an impossible task, especially if you don’t know the name of the shop. Our only suggestion is that you contact Cologne Tourism at info@koelntourismus.de and see if they can put you in touch with local souvenir shops in the area.
Sorry that we can’t be more helpful in this instance.
Good luck,
Helen
You might add that the sculpture was done by Edmund and Heinrick Fenart, and that the stry was recorded from folklore by Ernst Weyden, a teacher in Cologne.
Thank you for your information, which I have added to the post.
Kind regards,
Helen
You might also want to know, I am the granddaughter of Heinrich Renard. The original Schneidersfrau on top of the stairs , done by my great grandfather Edmund Renard , was modelled on my grandmother. Sadly her head has been replaced , not in the same quality of stone masonry.
( I have no idea who anybody thinks this Heinrick Fenart is? Definitely not someone that has worked at my grandfather’s fountain)
Hi Marie-Louise,
Thanks for sharing your interesting family history. On our 2019 Christmas trip to Cologne we stayed at the Eden Hotel Früh am Dom and got to enjoy views of the Heinzelmännchenbrunnen everyday.
Regarding your comment to T.Botting, “Heinrick Fenart” is just a typing error.
Kind regards,
Helen Page