Gnomes have rather an interesting origin story. Gnome-like figures were originally seen in Germany in the 1800s and these terracotta gnome figures were taken from there to the United Kingdom in the mid-1800s by Sir Charles Isham who used them in his garden.
Word of these gnomes spread across the UK and around Europe and the fact that they are attractive looking figures along with being credited as being lucky and had the ability to protect valuable items in a yard, such as buried treasure and minerals, from evil that they popularity soared.
They were taken to the United States and, again, there charming nature meant that they were welcomed with open arms and the fact that people in the USA adore their yards and lawns meant that they very much enjoyed having such lucky and protective items around.
When Were They Attributed With Being Lucky?
It is not know when or why exactly gnomes were seen as being lucky over the course of their history. It may be just something that people have based on how they look or the fact that they are placed in people’s yards. Items of this type are often seen as being lucky things to have around as they bring comfort to their owners.
What is the myth behind gnomes?
The gnomes are believed to live in the ground, protecting its plant life and buried treasure. They’re often said to be invisible creatures that you can only see if they want you too!
Do gnomes represent evil?
As with people, gnomes have a wide range of personalities and emotions which can lead to some of them considered good and others bad. However, in general, they are considered to be good (as well lucky!) creatures and which humans should be happy to have around them. This is why so may people keep them in their homes and gardens.
The good side of gnomes is what most people know them for (we have an article dedicated to their entire history here) and they will do things such as tend to the gardens of humans to ensure that the grass, plants and everything else there is taken care of even to the point of protecting things such as minerals and gold. They are social creatures and the good side of them means that they care for the other gnomes in their community by helping them when they are sick, finding food via activities such as fishing and going out to get wood for their fires to keep each other warm.
As mentioned earlier in this article, gnomes can also be bad. This is usually do to them being scared and so they feel that the need to protect themselves and their community. This can involve them biting whatever is causing them to feel such stress and to get away from it.
In general though, throughout the years in mythology gnomes have been considered to be quite neutral. Their have often appeared in the background of stories with not too much said about them and in modern stories, such as the Harry Potter books and movies, they have been considered to be something of a pest but nothing too extreme.
Why do people put gnomes in their house?
Gnomes are thought to bring good luck to their owners and the gardens and yards within which they are placed. This is one of the main reasons that people have purchased gnome ornaments over the years.
It is not quite known why they are thought in this way but the most likely reasons being due to the way they look, their origin story and that it is thought that they have magic abilities.
