Chthönchen: the little guardians of the threshold
A Chthönchen (n., invariable) is a small humanoid earthen figure that one finds without meaning to.
It appeared in European folklore at some uncertain point, its office is a discreet one. It is said that to whoever passes by with a light heart, the Chthönchen remains invisible. But to whoever has crossed its threshold (bowed down by a sadness, an anger, or a dark mood grown too heavy to bear), it appears and absorbs this overflow of negative emotion.
One does not take a Chthönchen; indeed, many are glued or fixed to their place. To take one is to inherit everything it has gathered. It is only with time, as it decays and returns to the earth, that it carries away with it all the absorbed emotions of the lost travellers who once met its gaze.
Appearance
A Chthönchen sits with its hands joined in a cup upon its knees, a row of small holes down its back, its face plain and without a mouth, two horns upon its head, and stands no taller than 10 cm. It is not uncommon to mistake one for a little devil on account of the horns, though some bear only a single horn, or more than two. Their horns are said to be what allows them to absorb emotions.
Some possess small peculiarities beyond the varying number of their horns. One may thus find them with a simple mouth, or else with a small object held in their hands; more often than not, this is merely a plain ball of clay.
The little holes in their back (always seven in number, for reasons unknown) form a kind of spine, and no Chthönchen has ever been observed without this feature.
Origin of the word
Although no one knows the exact origin of the term, it can be broken down into two roots:
- khthṓn (from Ancient Greek: the earth, the ground, the world below), which gives the word chthonic. This comes from what they are: beings of loam or clay.
- The German diminutive -chen, meaning little. It is found, for example, in Hütchen (literally little hat), a Kobold of German folklore.
As for the diaeresis, it is justified by no rule of Greek; it appears to be purely ornamental.