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Overview
Two children abandoned in a wood follow their trail of nutshells until it becomes invisible. A little old woman meets them at nightfall; the narrator explicitly identifies her as a fay. She places the boy in service and takes the girl into her own home. Her gifts of flowers and a basin support the daily arrival of a bird carrying money.
She repeatedly invites the girl to call upon her in trouble and arrives immediately when summoned after the bird is wounded. Her help has a limit: she explains that the delay has made its death irreversible. Later she consents to the girl’s marriage to a passing prince. The text neither supplies her personal name nor says she is the girl’s deceased mother.
Origins & earliest records
Consiglieri Pedroso, Portuguese Folk-Tales, translated from the original manuscript by Henriqueta Monteiro, London: Elliot Stock for the Folk-Lore Society, 1882; tale XII, The Step-mother, pp. 49–53. No individual narrator or collecting locality is identified.
Records & interpretation
The located 1882 English translation presents this figure within a complete collected narrative. Pedroso’s introductory pp. 1–2 describe the thirty published selections from his larger collection.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Portuguese Folk-Tales XII: The Step-mother, pp. 49–53
Complete tale read through its final recognition, marriage or helper’s refusal. The translator’s narrative is kept distinct from introductory comparative commentary.
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Primary textPortuguese Folk-Tales, original 1882 edition scan and transcriptionResearch access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.