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Overview
Catherine’s Fate enters as a tall, beautiful woman holding a wheel. She asks whether Catherine prefers happiness in youth or old age and turns the wheel when the girl chooses the latter. The merchant father loses his ships and remaining wealth, then dies. Wherever Catherine subsequently enters service, her Fate tears apart the employer’s linen and clothing. Catherine flees in fear, after which the Fate restores everything. This persecution lasts seven years, so the damage is a device to displace Catherine rather than a permanent destruction of each employer’s property.
A later mistress gives Catherine the daily task of carrying fresh bread up a mountain and calling for the mistress’s own Fate three times. That separate tall, beautiful woman receives the offerings. When Catherine asks for help, she visits Catherine’s Fate, addresses her as dear sister and persuades her to relent. Catherine’s Fate is then lying beneath seven coverlets and gives the girl a small skein of silk. The skein later outweighs the king’s treasures until his crown joins the scale. A court adviser interprets this as a sign of queenship, and the king marries Catherine. The women personify distinct individuals’ fortunes; neither is automatically identified with a Greek Fate, Roman goddess or universal three-member spinning group. Their shared form and affectionate address do not supply an otherwise unstated family genealogy.
Origins & earliest records
Crane, Italian Popular Tales (1885), XXVIII: The Story of Catherine and her Fate, pp. 105–109; selected from Laura Gonzenbach, no. 21, Die Geschichte von Caterina und ihrem Schicksal.
Records & interpretation
The complete selected tale explicitly identifies Catherine’s initial visitor as her Fate and distinguishes the mistress’s separately invoked Fate. Wheel, repeated household damage, intercession, covered resting figure and silk gift belong to this narrative.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Italian Popular Tales, XXVIII: Catherine and her Fate, pp. 105–109
Complete selected English version through the crown-and-silk balance and royal marriage; no original German or Sicilian collation asserted.
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 collected taleCrane 1885: Catherine and her FateResearch access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.