| Twelve Thousand Head of Cattle | |
| Title Orig: | Douăsprezece mii de capete de vite |
| Translator: | Eric Tappe |
| Author: | Mircea Eliade |
| Country: | Spain |
| Language: | Romanian |
| Published In: | Nuvele, Madrid |
| Publication Type: | Short story collection |
| Media Type: | |
| Pub Date: | 1963 |
| English Pub Date: | 1969 |
Twelve Thousand Head of Cattle (Romanian: Douăsprezece mii de capete de vite) is a 1952 novella by the Romanian writer Mircea Eliade. It was written in Paris in December 1952 and published in 1963 in Nuvele, printed by Cercul de Studii "Destin" of Madrid.[1] It was translated by Eric Tappe in Fantastic Tales, London, Dillon’s, 1969.
The subject of this novella is a strange time travel of a cattle dealer on a street in Bucharest during the Second World War. After a civil defense siren announces the imminence of an air raid, Iancu Gore is hiding in an anti-aircraft shelter. Also in the shelter are three other people. Later Iancu Gore learns that they died more than a month ago. His disturbing experience is not believed by anyone.