Two Pieces of Nuts

In a Moravian variant collected by Beneš Method Kulda and Jan Soukop with the title Princ se zlatým křížem na čele ("The Prince with a golden cross on the forehead"), a poor mother has three young daughters, the youngest sister always promising to give birth to children with a golden cross on the forehead. She marries a king and bears three sons in three consecutive pregnancies, but, while the king is away, each time a son is replaced by a puppy and thrown in the water. Fortunately, the children are washed ashore safely at St. Anna's Chapel. After the third birth, the king's chambermaid falsifies a king's letter with a command to kill the queen, but she is spared and is exiled from the castle. The queen finds her three sons in St. Anna's Chapel. Some time later, the king learns of his wife's "death" and is persuaded to marry again, but he sets a test: he will marry the one that is able to count the nuts in a bowl. St. Anna appears to the sons and convinces the eldest to go to his father's castle and count the nuts in front of the king.[7]

Russian ethnographer Grigory Potanin cited a Belarussian tale published in 1887 in the compilation "Белорусском сборнике", by E. Romanov. In this story, there lived three sisters. One day, heavy rain starts to pour and they take refuge under a tree. A local river floods and the king sends a servant to find the problem to its source. The servant finds the three sisters and overhears their conversation: the youngest promises to give birth to the king's son with the moon on the forehead and a star on the back. The sisters falsify a letter to trick the king and cast the queen and child in the sea. Later, the prince returns to the palace to reveal the truth while counting nuts before the king.[8]

In a Polish tale collected around Zamość and Krasnystaw and published in scholar publication ''Wisła'' with the title Synek ze złotą główką ("A Son with a Golden Head"), three sisters comment among themselves what they would do if each one married the king, and the youngest says she will give birth to a son with a golden head. She marries the king and her envious sisters kill the boy and bury him in the garden. An apple tree with golden leaves appears, the sisters notice it is they boy and order it to be burnt down. An ewe passes by the pyre, licks the ashes and becomes pregnant with a golden-fleeced sheep. The sisters order the sheep to be killed for the feast at the ball and its innards to be eaten by the forsaken queen, in her house. The innards tell the mother they are her son and she should wait until they regain his former human shape. It happens so and the boy, now six-year-old, goes to court to tell his story while counting nuts.[9] Polish scholar Julian Krzyżanowski, establisher of the Polish Folktale Catalogue, listed this tale as a variant of type 707, which is known in Poland as Trzej synowie z gwiazdą na skroni ("Three Sons With Stars on the Temple").[10]

In a tale from Łowicz, collected from a Malzorgata Falowska, Bajka o chłopcu z gwiazdą ("About the boy with the star"), three sister see the king passing by and state their wishes, the youngest to marry the king and bear him a son with a star on the forehead. She marries the king and gives birth to the boy, who is cast into the sea. He is saved by an old woman who raises the boy. Years later, the king prepares his wedding and a test: he will give half his kingdom to anyone who can count the nuts. The boy wears a cap to hide his birthmark and goes to the wedding.[11]

In a Croatian tale, by Fran Mikuličić, Žena kraljeva rodila tri sini zlatnemi vlasi ("The Queen who gave birth to three golden-haired sons"), a woman marries the king, after promising him three golden-haired sons. When each of the babies are born, the queen mother throws her grandchildren in the water. They are saved by a peasant couple, who raises the boys. Years later, the king sets a challenge: anyone should count how many nuts there are in a recipient. One of his golden-haired sons begins counting and interweaving the story of their family.[12] This tale was sourced as South Slavic and translated as Die Frau eines Königs gebar drei goldhaarige Söhne ("A King's wife gave birth to three golden-haired sons"), given in abridged form in the Archiv für slavische Philologie.[13]

According to professor Bronislava Kerbelyte, the tale type is reported to register 244 (two hundred and forty-four) Lithuanian variants, under the banner Three Extraordinary Babies, with and without contamination from other tale types.[14] However, 140 variants in Lithuania contain the character (the mother or one of her sons) counting nuts in front of the king while singing a song about their family story.[15]

According to the Latvian Folktale Catalogue, tale type 707, "The Three Golden Children", is known in Latvia as Brīnuma bērni ("Wonderful Children"), comprising 4 different redactions. Its fourth redaction is the one that contains the child counting nuts and telling his story in front of the king.[16]