Helje Danced to Death (Elverum)

Hedmark · Norway · Site of legend

A stranger spun dance-loving Helje like a whirlwind, and the fiddle played by itself — until she fell dead in his arms.

At Elverum they tell of Helje, a girl who could never dance her fill. One evening a strange man asked her to dance and spun her round like a whirlwind until she begged to catch her breath. Then he cried a rhyme that she would dance her fill, and danced ever wilder. The fiddler grew afraid and set down his fiddle, but it played on by itself. Only when he laid it in a chest and shut the lid did the music stop — but by then Helje was dead, and the stranger gone.

FAQ

Where is Helje Danced to Death (Elverum) located?

Helje Danced to Death (Elverum) is in Hedmark, Norway.

More haunted places in Hedmark

• The Devil Beneath the Card Table (Rudsvika, Eidskog) Hedmark · Site of legend
• Tore Rönningen and the Devil on the Road to Gaustad Hedmark · Site of legend
• The Man Who Sold His Soul (Eidskog) Hedmark · Site of legend
• Thams and Old Erik in Rakkestad, Eidskog Hedmark · Site of legend
• Mentz Rynning and the Stolen Wheel, Eidskog Hedmark · Site of legend
• Petter Dass's Three Knocks, Rendalen Hedmark · Church
• The Priest's Black Book under the Pillow, Rendalen Hedmark · Site of legend
• The Horse's Hoof Beneath the Table at Hirhalsen, Stor-Elvdal Hedmark · Site of legend

Accounts are drawn from local folklore and visitor reports.