• We have updated the guidelines regarding posting political content: please see the stickied thread on Website Issues.

Photographs Of Gnomes

Just had a quick look in my copy of Fairies: Real Encounters with Little People by Janet Bord and found these...
Thanks for posting, David Plankton! The house gnome seen by children remind me of the "Shadowmen with hats" encountered all over the place. Maybe gnomes are the original shadow men with hats.
 
I am sure there is something on the site about Liminal spaces like staircases and hallways being especially common locations for encounters with the odd.

Ah, I wasn't familiar with this liminal term but I like the description I've found:
"A time between the 'what was' and the 'next'."

https://inaliminalspace.org/about-us/what-is-a-liminal-space/


My mother came out with this old rhyme last week in one of her more lucid moments " As I was going up the stairs, I met a man who wasn't there. He wasn't there again today, I wish that man would go away"

I first heard that rhyme on Sapphire and Steel. It goes through my mind a lot, there's just something wonderful about it. :)


And the stairs with mirror at the bottom were always creepy. Both brother and I often sleep walked as kids and you'd wake up to find yourself at the bottom of the stairs with no idea how you got there. Very steep, wonky old stairs so brother fell down more than once. We'd sit on them and wait for mum to come home from work. It was one of the creepiest parts of a very creepy house.

I absolutely hated the mirror at the bottom of the stairs in the house I grew up in. Every single time I walked down the stairs I would avert my eyes / cover my face as I got near the bottom so I couldn't see into the mirror as I passed. I just hated it, even though there was no obvious reason for me to do so; no one else in the house had a problem with it / parents had never jokingly (or otherwise) said that mirrors are strange or owt; I just had a very strong dislike of it for no apparent reason.
 
Zebs I know what you mean- creepy and disconcerting.
My mother has an oddly position mirror at the end of her staircase, you sort of half see yourself partway down the stairs- Not when you are up the top or down at the bottom, just when you are in the middle. The stairs are uneven and poorly lit and mirror needs a good clean (but I cannot reach) which does not help the hazy, shadowy effect of someone else on the stairs.
 
Excellent account. I love this... something about it being about film photography (as opposed to digital photography) makes it so much more interesting in my mind. (I don't think I could bring myself to photograph mirrors though... they creep me out at the best of times).

One thought that occurred to me... (if I put on my sceptical beret and squint a bit)... when the photographs re-appeared after going missing, could the two that you originally saw the gnome(s) in, have still been there, but whatever it was that you thought you saw, no longer manifested itself that way?

To rephrase:
You originally saw the gnome(s) in two photos. Said photos go missing, then reappear, so there is a period of time (several days?) in which the photographs were not there to be looked at, so the details of what was depicted would, therefore, 'fade' somewhat in your memory.

Then, when the photographs reappeared, you could no longer see the gnomes in any of them. But, would it be possible that all the photos were in fact there, but your mind no longer saw gnome anomalies in them?

It's a stretch, I know, and hopefully what I'm saying makes sense. Was a count done of the number of photos, such that you knew later that there were two less? Etc.



Also @Eyespy, again an interesting encounter.



My gnome story is much less interesting (in terms of details) but I'll throw it in here anyway: my mum once told me that, as a little girl, she'd seen a gnome on the stairs of her house.

I've yet to find (hopefully someone on here can prove me wrong? :) ) any other accounts of gnomes inside houses rather than outside..
It is indeed quite possible that the absence away from the photographs caused out imaginations to 'grow' them in my minds, and when we saw the original photographs, were a lot more disappointing than we had thought, and caused us to think they were different photographs. a bit like revisiting old childhood television programmes as an adult (watching The Tomorrow People when I was 7 was a lot more exciting than when I am 47...) The more I think of these gnome photographs the more and more convinced I get that the original photographs were just simulacra - if we had kept those photographs I imagine in time they would have been just that - but without them, and no longer in contact with any of the people involved at the time - their power just grows in my mind. I'm also quite sure that the 'story shaped' bits (ie the photographs turning up again later on that contained none of the gnome photographs / negatives) is my imagination 'filling in the gaps' so to speak. In my memory though, it's still an odd experience, remembered as something both exciting and unsettling.
 
All this talk of liminal spaces is quite fascinating too. I've never liked mirrors in the night really - I lived in one flat where I had to make sure the bathroom door was shut before I went to sleep, as if I needed to get up in the middle of the night (my room was opposite the bathroom) I didn't want to inadvertently catch a glimpse of the mirror if I had to go to the toilet in the small hours. A house I lived in as a teenager had a mirror in the downstairs toilet - the door of which was kept open (unless someone was using it of course) so you could see yourself walk down the stairs. Still, this was the house during my teenage years when me and my friends worked ourselves up into a state of supernatural hysteria, and the next day, when everything had calmed down, found that none of us could stand the thought of looking into mirrors. There's a great story by the Australian writer Terry Dowling (sorry, can't remember the name of the story) about psychomanteums. A psychomanteum, according to wikipedia (I've just looked, I had thought it was something Dowling had made up for the story) 'In parapsychology and spiritualism, apsychomanteum is a small, enclosed area set up with a comfortable chair, dim lighting, and a mirror angled so as not to reflect anything but darkness intended to communicate with spirits of the dead'. In the story the main characters sit in a room whose walls are entirely composed of mirrors, looking at all their reflections, waiting for a reflection, say, 16 or 17 reflections out, to start behaving oddly. The main gist of the story - and the reason why mirrors are so frightening - is because they are unnatural, there's nothing like them in nature - still, perfect, - but false representations of the real world. Worth tracking down.
 
Since there's no dedicated nisse thread, I'll drop this here. Found a strange little fella on these two photographs from the national Norwegian archives.
JsvOUPI.jpg
zsJi2VM.jpg

1581796528364.png


Little strange fella or nisse? You decideeeee
 
He/it looks like it should just be part of the piles of stones... unfortunately the photo isn't clear enough to tell either way but interesting nevertheless.

I didn't know what the term nisse was so I did a quick internet search and found this:
https://mythology.wikia.org/wiki/Nisse

... and immediately recognised the term Tomte, as in Jultomte, the Swedish for Santa Claus :)
 
Since there's no dedicated nisse thread, I'll drop this here. Found a strange little fella on these two photographs from the national Norwegian archives.
JsvOUPI.jpg
zsJi2VM.jpg

View attachment 23266

Little strange fella or nisse? You decideeeee
That's cool, whatever that is. The belief in gnomes or as we would call them "nisser" in Norway has almost gone. They're still popular to use on christmas cards.

On a TV show in Norway where they visit people who has problems with ghosts, they bring along psychic mediums to cleanse people's houses, they once visited a farm. The medium visited the barn and noticed there was a couple of gnomes who caused mischiefs. The owners of the farm mentioned they had once seen two very small human like creatures with special pointy caps running out of the barn.
 
Last edited:
That's cool, whatever that is. The belief in gnomes or as we would call them "nisser" in Norway has almost gone. They're still popular to use on christmas cards.

On a TV show in Norway where they visit people who has problems with ghosts, they bring along psychic mediums to cleanse people's houses, they once visited a farm. The medium visited the barn and noticed there was a couple of gnomes who caused mischiefs. The owners of the farm mentioned they had once seen two very small human like creatures running out of the barn with special pointy caps.

If they're anything like their Swedish cousins, they should be befriendable. Porridge with butter helps.
 
That's cool, whatever that is. The belief in gnomes or as we would call them "nisser" in Norway has almost gone. They're still popular to use on christmas cards.

On a TV show in Norway where they visit people who has problems with ghosts, they bring along psychic mediums to cleanse people's houses, they once visited a farm. The medium visited the barn and noticed there was a couple of gnomes who caused mischiefs. The owners of the farm mentioned they had once seen two very small human like creatures with special pointy caps running out of the barn.
Gnomes everywhere seem to wear these pointy caps. Wonder what the significance is? Are they trying to disguise themselves as toadstools?
 
I'm certainly not ruling out that it might just be a short person, haha. For scale, the doors you see in the picture in the background are probably around 1.80 - 1.90. It looks like he'd be very short compared. He looks to be maybe 4-5 logs tall when compared to the barn behind him? Buildings in the area are usually built from fairly narrow logs, for info. He moves between pictures, so it's definitely a person or personesque creature. Looks hunched over like an old person and it's hard to tell, but his head looks large. (I mean, it's very 99% likely a short old person, but a man can dream)
1581802643034.png

Here's another typical building from the area with confirmed actual humans for scale
 
Last edited:
Gnomes everywhere seem to wear these pointy caps. Wonder what the significance is? Are they trying to disguise themselves as toadstools?

Stops their heads getting cold!

There's a few theories on the origin on the hat's shape. How many are modern inventions, I have no idea.

Mediterranean fishermen? https://fairyroom.com/2012/08/for-the-love-of-gnome/

Bavarian miners? Priapus? https://www.mygnomes.co.uk/the-origin-of-gnomes/

...or maybe it's just a nice traditional design of knitted hat beloved of outdoors workers. Space for warm air, like a bobble hat.

Colour - Mrs. Tribble says tomte hats were originally grey. Seems they really standardised to red in the late 1800s, possibly thanks to the artist Jenny Nyström. Some say it was thanks to Coca-Cola's red Santa but that didn't come about until the 1930s.
 
I'm certainly not ruling out that it might just be a short person, haha. For scale, the doors you see in the picture in the background are probably around 1.80 - 1.90. It looks like he'd be very short compared. He looks to be maybe 4-5 logs tall when compared to the barn behind him? Buildings in the area are usually built from fairly narrow logs, for info. He moves between pictures, so it's definitely a person or personesque creature. Looks hunched over like an old person and it's hard to tell, but his head looks large. (I mean, it's very 99% likely a short old person, but a man can dream)
View attachment 23270
Here's another typical building from the area with confirmed actual humans for scale
I noticed the door scale problem .. in your first two pics, he'd be even smaller if standing in the door frame to the right. You should submit this to Fortean Times magazine ..
 
Or maybe he was a dwarf, a Little Person, an individual with "an adult height of 4 feet 10 inches or under." To me he looked like he was weeding, but he also looked like he could be a very elderly person with a curved spine. (I've seen 'em like that. Ouch.)
There is also a doorway in the background for comparison. It looks to me like he was short compared to the door, but not not 10-inches-without-his-hat short.
 
The terrain around the figure is rolling (humps and dips). His feet aren't visible in either photo, so it's difficult to estimate his height (along with the fact he's bent / hunched over in both pics).

If you look off to the right there's what appears to be a wagon (buggy, whatever ...) stored beneath one of the buildings. Depending on how large its wheels may have been, he doesn't seem all that short compared to them.
 
I've tried to zoom in again on the second picture, the figure (which I previously mistook for the pile of stones behind him :sorry:) does look like 'someone' standing, hunched over... I get the impression of doing something like gardening, sowing seeds, scattering something... that sort of movement.

1581843210406.png


His 'hands' seem to be at his left side (but forward and down), holding something? (Maybe a stretch, but... scooping something out of a bag or sack?)

His 'face' does appear to be somewhat elongated but might be just the angle/picture quality. But I can't help but see a black 'eye' (on his right side) and a long snout.

As EnolaGaia said though, his feet appear to be hidden, and that coupled with the stooping motion could well account for quite a difference in apparent height.

That isn't to say it isn't an odd and interesting photograph though.
 
That's cool, whatever that is. The belief in gnomes or as we would call them "nisser" in Norway has almost gone. They're still popular to use on christmas cards.

On a TV show in Norway where they visit people who has problems with ghosts, they bring along psychic mediums to cleanse people's houses, they once visited a farm. The medium visited the barn and noticed there was a couple of gnomes who caused mischiefs. The owners of the farm mentioned they had once seen two very small human like creatures with special pointy caps running out of the barn.
Here it is for those who can understand Norwegian.
 
To me that now looks like a quadruped. It has a lighter "moose-like" muzzle and the right eye (the only one we can see) has a lighter patch close to to it - ?white of eye?
 
I'm the only one apparently- all I see is an adult bending over, perhaps a female with her hair falling forward. I would liken the image to the famous astronaut in the field one as far as unintended deception is concerned. Zebra's image makes it clear (to me anyway:))
 
I'm the only one apparently- all I see is an adult bending over, perhaps a female with her hair falling forward. I would liken the image to the famous astronaut in the field one as far as unintended deception is concerned. Zebra's image makes it clear (to me anyway:))

Ah, hair falling forward! I didn't think of that, yes that could well be.

I think the perspective is what makes it look like something abnormally short. And the blurring/shadows which make things like eyes appear when there aren't really any, or elongated snouts!

But then again.... who knows for certain? ;)
 
I'm with @EnolaGaia , and @PeteS I just think its a regular person, who's feet are cut off buy the uneven landscape (the origin point of the pic is below their level), and who is varying degrees of hunched/stooped in both frames.

snippet.JPG


I drew the first green marker alongside the figure, the 'middle' and bottom marks are for the figure as seen, the top mark is for a guestimation of standing upright (and it is a guess!), then I cloned it next to a bunch of features that look like they might be useful to measure scale/height against - doors, openings, windows and the cart/buggy under the building on the right.

For the two doors mid-right, on the building and lean-to, which is both higher up and further back than the foreground buildings I left the marker at original foreground scale. If we assume our mystery figure is only up to the 'middle' marker at that distance when standing straight, its still a fairly big door, but not outlandish.

I think the size of the stones used in the architecture might be throwing scale perceptions off.
 
Last edited:
I'm with @EnolaGaia , and @PeteS I just think its a regular person, who's feet are cut off buy the uneven landscape (the origin point of the pic is below their level), and who is varying degrees of hunched/stooped in both frames.

View attachment 23306

I drew the first green marker alongside the figure, the 'middle' and bottom marks are for the figure as seen, the top mark is for a questimation of standing upright (and it is a guess!), then I cloned it next to a bunch of features that look like they might be useful to measure scale/height against - doors, openings, windows and the cart/buggy under the building on the right.

For the two doors mid-right, on the building and lean-to, which is both higher up and further back than the foreground buildings I left the marker at original foreground scale. If we assume our mystery figure is only up to the 'middle' marker at that distance when standing straight, its still a fairly big door, but not outlandish.

I think the size of the stones used in the architecture might be throwing scale perceptions off.

Well done Sir!

And curiously, as I'm looking at the green mark you've placed beside the figure, I'm suddenly able to make out the lightness of a face, surrounded by hair... which makes the figure look completely normal. I couldn't see that before, for some reason.
 
Back
Top