Nasus paemorsus
The Bitten Nose
A doting father raises his son without ever disciplining him or punishing him. Eventually, the young man begins to steal, and his father pays for what he has stolen and covers all his debts, until he can no longer afford to do so. The son does not stop stealing, however, and he is eventually caught and sentenced to be hanged. As he is being brought to the gallows, he asks his father to come and give him a farewell kiss. Grieving, the father does so - and as he leans in, the son bites off his father's nose and lips.
Note
Nishimura (2001): See Thompson Motif Index K2021.2, Q586; ATU 838; TU3488. Nishimura notes the analogies to Aesope's Fables 200: 'The Thief and His Mother', and Jaques de Vitry's Exempla 287, 'A man on his way to the gallows', and corresponding texts in Boethius.
Critical Literature
The inset story appears in the following manuscripts
This inset story appears in no manuscripts of the database
