A. Sutherland - AncientPages.com - In his book "Enchantment of the Faerie Realm" Ted Andrews writes:
"The forces of nature are often classified according to one of four kinds of expression - earth, water, air, and fire. Operating at the most primal level with these expressions of force in the natural world are beings called elementals. Those working with the force of the earth in the natural world are called gnomes..."
Gnome with newspaper and tobacco pipe under a toadstool, with a snail above him and a tree frog in the glass. Image credit: Heinrich Schlitt (1849–1923) Munich -Public Domain
Gnomes are very ancient tiny spirits of the earth and mountains. They have accompanied people throughout history. You can read about them in countless fairy tales of almost all European countries, especially in Germanic and Scandinavian folklore, the legends of Ireland, Scotland, and England.
In Europe's Renaissance magic and alchemy, a gnome was introduced in the 16th century by Paracelsus, a Swiss German botanist, philosopher, astrologer, alchemist, and one of the most influential medical scientists in early modern Europe.
With time, gnomes have been adopted by more recent authors, including those of modern fantasy literature.
The word comes from Renaissance Latin gnomus (meaning: "earth-dweller"), and according to Paracelsus' description, the spirits are much shorter than dwarves (only two spans, which is the distance from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the little finger, measured by a human hand).
They avoid human interaction but maintain good relationships with birds, rabbits, foxes, hedgehogs, and squirrels. Folklore indicates large gnome communities with male and female gnomes of all ages.
It is said that the gnomes are very sensitive to the sun's rays, which momentarily change them into stone.
They are very concerned with the products and treasures of the earth and usually live underground, but they also like caves and other dwellings close to the surface. Gnome tunnels lead to mysterious and strange dark places in the mountains.
Gnome watching railway train, Carl Spitzweg, 1848.
In ancient and medieval mythologies, gnomes are often associated with dwarves guarding mines and subterranean places full of treasures.
However, unlike dwarves, the gnomes usually live beneath human gardens. They have a reputation for emerging during the night to do some helpful gardening and enrich garden soil, making flowers and vegetables flourish. Additionally, for example, in Norway, gnomes bring gifts.
Gnomes And Their Supernatural Abilities
In the mythology of the peoples of Europe, the gnomes live much longer than humans and possess supernatural powers such as the ability to move through solid earth with the same ease as people move through the air.
The king of the gnome race, Gob, possessed a magic sword that is said to have influenced the melancholic temperament of man.
Gnomes are children of the mother of the earth, who protects their children from outside influences and leaves the gnomes' community unchanged for thousands of years. Gnomes know the secrets of all underground streams and rivers where water has properties unknown to humans. In a way, gnomes are also experts on rocks and can determine their age and read the past from them.
Gnomes As Modern Garden Statues
The earliest gnome sculpture was produced in Thuringia, Germany, in the early nineteenth century and was based on German folklore.
Gnome on the outskirts of a restaurant in Toluca, Mexico. Image credit: Adrián Cerón via Wikipedia
In 1849, an Englishman, Sir Charles Isham, brought about twenty beautiful and funny gnome figures to England and placed them in a rockery in the garden at Lamport Hall, Northamptonshire.
The earliest statues were carefully shaped, hand-painted terra-cotta and were very popular. In ancient beliefs, gnome statues welcomed and attracted real gnomes and other benevolent spirits.
By the 1960s, cheaper plastic and resin versions of gnomes were mass-produced. The old terra-cotta ones are now precious treasures. Some people adore and collect garden gnome statues. Others can have opposite feelings toward them, do not want to see them, and feel justified to remove them from other people's properties or even destroy them.
Gnomes are often mentioned in old folktales and play an essential role in modern entertainment.
Written by – A. Sutherland - AncientPages.com Senior Staff Writer
Updated on January 28, 2023
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