Dogs of Metal (Metalhunde)

object · Denmark · Nordic

The three metal dogs — eyes like teacups, water wheels, and the Round Tower — are literary creations from Andersen's 1835 tale "The Tinderbox," summoned by a magic tinderbox. No independent Danish folk tradition attests these constructs; they belong to Andersen's invention, drawing on ATU 562 (Spirit in the Blue Light).

Open in the interactive archive →