The Tallow Candle facts for kids

The Tallow Candle (Danish: Tællelyset) is a short fairy tale written by the famous Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. He lived from 1805 to 1875. This story is about 700 words long.

Andersen wrote "The Tallow Candle" in the 1820s. This makes it one of his very first stories. It was also his first known fairy tale. However, people didn't know about this story for almost 200 years! A copy of the original story was found in 2012.

What the Story is About

The story follows a tallow candle. This candle feels sad because it doesn't know its purpose in life. Its "parents" are a sheep and a melting pot.

The candle then meets a tinderbox. A tinderbox is a small box used to start fires. The tinderbox helps the candle light its wick. Finally, the candle finds its true purpose. It learns to spread light, joy, and happiness to everyone around it.

How the Story Was Found

The story's manuscript was found in late 2012. It was in a suitcase full of old documents. These documents belonged to the Plum family. They were stored in the Danish National Archives in Funen, Denmark.

A couple doing family history research first saw the document. They didn't think it was important at the time. Later, an archivist named Esben Brage noticed the document's special signature. He realized it might be an original story by H. C. Andersen. Experts in Denmark checked the story in December 2012. They confirmed that Hans Christian Andersen truly wrote it.