Treze Belle is also known as ‘Belle Fakke’, a reference to her inability to work.
Treze lives in ‘t Hoenstraetje and earns her living peddling mandragora puppets and other suspicious wares. Gullible merchants buy these human shaped roots and use them as mascots during their travels.
Gallowskins, as they are also known grow only in places where a gallow once stood. The plant is harvested by tying a black dog to it and chasing it away. Because of the plant’s scream, the dog eventually drops dead.
By law, Belle Fakke is required to announce her visit with a hand bell. This enables mothers to get their children to safety in time to avoid contact with the woman.
