Museum discovers gravestone of 18th century ‘Snow White inspiration’

Is this the real Snow White? Museum discovers gravestone of 18th century German aristocrat who suffered at hands of evil stepmother and is believed to have inspired the fairytale

  • Maria Sophia von Erthal’s life story closely aligns with Snow White in the story
  • Details of her life were well known when Brothers Grimm published the fairytale
  • Discovery of her burial plaque has renewed interest about the possible link   

A museum has discovered the gravestone of an 18th-century German aristocrat who suffered at the hands of an evil stepmother and is believed to have inspired the fairytale Snow White.

The burial plaque of Maria Sophia von Erthal was lost after the church where she was laid to rest was demolished in 1804, but recently reappeared at a house in Bamberg, Bavaria.

The family donated it to the city’s Diocesan museum, where it has become a focus for locals proud of their area’s alleged connection to the famous fairytale, which was published by the Brothers Grimm in 1812.

The burial plaque of Maria Sophia von Erthal was lost after the church where she was laid to rest was demolished in 1804, but recently reappeared at a house in Bamberg, Bavaria

According to museum director Holger Kempkens, the famous collectors were inspired by hearing stories about Von Erthal, which served as ‘the nucleus’ for their tale.

‘The story of Sophia’s life was well known at the start of the 19th Century,’ he told The BBC.

‘There are indications – though we cannot prove it for sure – that Sophia was the model for Snow White.

Von Erthal grew up in a castle in Lohr am Main, about 60 miles west of Bamberg, in north Bavaria, and died in 1796.

Maria Sophia von Erthal

Snow White

Maria Sophia von Erthal (left) is said to have inspired the fairytale Snow White (right, in the film version) 

The child was described in a family chronicle as a ‘girl of unusual loveliness’, who tried to help the poor and needy.

But when she was in her teens, her mother died and her father married a ‘markedly domineering’ widow from a local dynasty, who did her best to exclude her stepdaughter in favour of her own children.

She appears to have succeeded, as Von Erthal never found a husband and later moved to the house of an English spinster 60 miles away, where she went blind and died aged 71 in 1796.

What are the similarities between Sophia and Snow White? 

Von Erthal grew up in a castle in Lohr am Main, about 60 miles west of Bamberg, in north Bavaria, (pictured) and died in 1796

Von Erthal grew up in a castle in Lohr am Main, about 60 miles west of Bamberg, in north Bavaria, (pictured) and died in 1796

Local historian Dr Karlheinz Bartels has come up with several parallels between Snow White and the historical figure of Maria Sophia von Erthal. 

These include – 

Sophia’s father remarried and her stepmother had a reputation for being domineering and favouring her natural children. 

Lohr was known as a centre for glassware, and Sophia’s family owned a mirror factory. 

A terrifying forest is matured in the fairytale, while the forests around Lohr were notorious for robbers. 

Dwarfs and children did historically work in local mines, as they could squeeze through small gaps.   

 

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