A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

Baš Čelik’s final secret locates his strength outside his visible body. A fox lives on a distant high mountain; within it is a heart, and within the heart a bird. The bird holds the force that has allowed him to withstand the prince and the three kings’ armies. Earlier claims that the secret lies in his weapons are deliberate misdirection.

When eagles pursue the fox, it enters a lake and becomes a duck with six wings. Falcons follow it into the clouds; dragons then join the pursuit, and it changes back to a fox before capture. Opening the animal exposes the heart and hidden bird. Burning that bird kills Baš Čelik. The six wings belong specifically to the duck disguise, not to the fox’s ordinary outward form.

Contains a heart holding a birdChanges into a six-winged duckIts hidden bird sustains another being
01

Origins & earliest records

Woislav M. Petrovitch, Hero Tales and Legends of the Serbians, Chapter XIV.VIII, printed pp. 266–267. First publication August 1914; the inspected imprint lists reprints in November 1916 and December 1921. These publication dates do not date the oral tradition.

02

Records & interpretation

Entire selected tale read in bounded consecutive sections, including the external-strength hunt and outcome. Historical English terms remain attributed to this telling; illustrations have not yet been visually checked for the named subject.

In the literature

“a six-winged duck”
Woislav M. Petrovitch · Hero Tales and Legends of the Serbians
Chapter XIV VIII, p.267; fox’s evasive form · Woislav M. Petrovitch

Pursued by eagles, the fox becomes a six-winged duck in a lake; pursued by falcons into the clouds and then dragons, it changes back. Eagles surround it. Its heart is cut out and the bird burned, killing Bash Tchelik. The exact chase gives specific forms rather than demonstrating that every imaginable transformation occurs.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Hero Tales and Legends of the Serbians, XIV.VIII: Bash Tchelik or Real Steel, pp. 266–267

    Woislav M. Petrovitch; preface by Chedo Miyatovich; illustrations William Sewell and Gilbert James · First publication 1914; inspected witness lists December 1921 reprint

    Direct selected text and imprint read; no individual oral narrator invented. Related Mijatovich and Dulac versions remain a comparison queue.

  2. 02

    Hero Tales and Legends of the Serbians

    Woislav M. Petrovitch, English prose presenter/translator; Vuk Stefanović Karadžić credited by catalogue for underlying collected material · 1921

    Woislav M. Petrovitch, Hero Tales and Legends of the Serbians, London: George G. Harrap, selected December1921 reprint; first published August1914, intervening November1916 reprint explicitly printed. Chapter XIV VIII Bash Tchelik or Real Steel, pp.247–267, complete selected English prose independently read. Original Serbian tale/ballad text not independently inspected.

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.

Located primary passages

Specific passages supporting details in this entry, grouped by their published witness.

Hero Tales and Legends of the Serbians

Woislav M. Petrovitch, Hero Tales and Legends of the Serbians, London: George G. Harrap, selected December1921 reprint; first published August1914, intervening November1916 reprint explicitly printed. Chapter XIV VIII Bash Tchelik or Real Steel, pp.247–267, complete selected English prose independently read. Original Serbian tale/ballad text not independently inspected.

  1. Bash Tchelik says a fox in a distant mountain contains a heart, and inside the heart lives the bird holding his strength. The disclosed relation places the bird inside the fox; it does not say the fox is his mother, child or ordinary pet.

    Chapter XIV VIII, The Secret of Strength, p.267

  2. Pursued by eagles, the fox becomes a six-winged duck in a lake; pursued by falcons into the clouds and then dragons, it changes back. Eagles surround it. Its heart is cut out and the bird burned, killing Bash Tchelik. The exact chase gives specific forms rather than demonstrating that every imaginable transformation occurs.

    Chapter XIV VIII, The Secret of Strength, p.267; pursuit and defeat

Original Serbian source not independently checked. Edition date1921 retained apart from first work1914; no individual oral narrator invented. No sacred formulas excerpted.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Primary textPetrovitch: Bash Tchelik or Real Steel, complete primary taleResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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