New-found tale of a lonely candle could be early work of Hans Christian Andersen, experts say

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — For years, the somber fairy tale about a lonely candle that wanted to be lit dwelt in oblivion at the bottom of a box in Denmark’s National Archives. Its recent discovery has sent ripples through the literary world because it is believed to be one of the first tales ever written by Hans Christian Andersen.

The famed Dane wrote nearly 160 fairy tales in his life, including classics such as “The Ugly Duckling” and “The Little Mermaid.” The tale of the candle may have been written when he was still a teen, experts say.

Retired historian Esben Brage said Thursday that he found the six-page text on Oct. 4 while searching through archive boxes that had belonged to wealthy families from Andersen’s hometown of Odense in central Denmark....