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

Overview

Pedro first encounters laughing washerwomen at a pond after the prince vanishes. They are explicitly called witches; one helps him locate the enchanted royals. Later he hears witches speaking above the shed where the prince and rescued princess sleep. Four voices predict successive dangers: a failing mule, poisonous pears, a collapsing bridge and a wedding-night attack. Each announcement threatens to turn anyone who repeats it into marble. Pedro prevents the first three dangers without explaining his actions.

The fourth witch enters the wedding chamber like a phantom, carrying a sword. While resisting her, Pedro accidentally wounds the princess and is accused of trying to kill the couple. He reveals the overheard announcements at a banquet, progressively petrifying as he speaks. A witch subsequently tells the prince that the statue can be restored through the death of his infant son. The violent bargain is fulfilled within the story, Pedro returns to life, and the child unexpectedly revives the following day. The text does not say that the witches cause that final revival or that the phantom is a dead person.

Washerwomen at a pondFour dangerous predictionsDisclosure-linked petrificationSword-bearing phantom guise
01

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 VI, Pedro and the Prince, pp. 25–29. No individual narrator or collecting locality is identified.

02

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.

  1. 01

    Portuguese Folk-Tales VI: Pedro and the Prince, pp. 25–29

    Collected by Consiglieri Pedroso; translated by Henriqueta Monteiro · 1882

    Complete narrative read through the concluding marriage or revival; no unlocated comparative interpretation is assigned to this figure.

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.

  1. 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.

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