The Padlock (Italian fairy tale)

The Padlock (Italian: Lo catenaccio) is a literary fairy tale written by Giambattista Basile in the Pentamerone, as the ninth story of the second day. It is considered to be one of two rewritings of the Graeco-Roman myth of "Cupid and Psyche" by Basile, the other being "Lo turzo d'oro".

In spite of its origins as a literary tale, it is related to the international cycle of Animal as Bridegroom or The Search for the Lost Husband, in that a human girl marries a supernatural or enchanted husband, loses him and must search for him. Similar stories have been collected from oral tradition across the Mediterranean, in Italy, Greece and Spain, and nearby countries.