Ramblings and webcomics from LeEMS
The first in the Witchy Art Challenge.
Walpurgisnacht is known in the Germanic countries of central Europe as a night when the dead walk the earth, when witches and fairies roam about, and the division between the worlds of living and those of the dead are thin. Falling six months from Halloween, Walpurgisnacht shares many of its attributes.
Walpurga was born, and became a nun, in England before traveling to assist her brother, Saint Boniface, in evangelizing the Germans. When Boniface died, Walpurga became abbess of the Heidenheim am Hahnenkamm monastery he established there. Saint Walburga is often depicted in stone carving and pictures as being accompanied by a dog. There is little in her autobiography to account for this faithful companion, but there is plenty of historic associations of dogs with other Germanic goddesses like the Norns and Friga, a Goddess of May Day and the Wild Hunt. This is just one way that the Saint and Goddess have been woven together through time. Saint Walburga’s tomb was also said to start weeping a miraculous healing oil on the first of May. Though the church would try and downplay the association of the oil and saint with Mayday, the connection would remain in people’s minds.
Walpurga, or Walburga, is all white and gold. She is a fertility goddess, a forest goddess, and a goddess of springs. She is associated with grain and the harvest, and like Berchta she has a spindle. With her she carries a unique three cornered mirror that shows the future. She has been compared to Holda, also keeper of a spindle, goddess of fertility, and sharing a tendency to reward her followers with gifts of gold. She has also been compared to Brigid, who shares her May holiday and her double life as saint and goddess.
When the sun sets on the 31st of April a storm of spirits rips through the sky, making mischief through every town in it’s path. Is Odin the leader of the Wild Hunt, atop his six legged steed, or was it Perchta, or Holda? In Scotland the Wild Hunt is made up of the Sluagh or Unseelie Court, joined by any restless spirit that did not feel much like leaving the physical world.
Walpurga has been linked to the Wild Hunt as well. Yet, different from the many spirits who might do you a trick if found in their path, Walpurga is pursued. She runs from the tumult, flying from village to village in a desperate attempt to find a hiding place. It is said that if you leave your window open, so she can hide behind the cross of the windowpane grill, she will leave you gold as thanks.
Readings:
Though there is plenty of creepiness about a man who sneaks into our houses after spying on us all year to reward behavior that he deems good, Santa is far from the only holiday spirit to take on the job of keeping us all in line. Most of the witches and demons of Christmas time share this reward and punish vocation, but they haven’t all been painted as benevolent, harmless, and rosy cheeked as our dear old Claus.
Let’s begin with the Krampus. Krampus has been described as a half goat – half demon, and is one of the companions of St. Nicholas. St. Nicholas’ companions vary by region, share some similar characteristics, and seem to play the part of a shadow self or the evil side of the Saint. Where St. Nicholas rewards good girls and boys with gifts during Christmas time, the Krampus punishes naughty children by whipping them with bundled reeds, locking them in chains, and/or carrying them away in a woven basket he wears on his back. Krampus may be a vestige of pagan celebrations that pre-date Christianity; they have at times been forbidden by the Catholic Church. Lately, there has been a renewed interest in the Krampus that, because of modern humor and consumerism, some worry has been diluting the dark and violent truth of this Christmas creature.
Krampus is far from the only dark creature you might find during the winter holidays. Several cultures have tales of yuletide witches that both punish and reward as deserved. In Germany and Austria Perchta keeps an eye out for young women who do not abstain from their spinning on holidays, and those who have not yet finished their work on time. Individuals not observing the traditional fasting are also likely to be visited by Perchta’s wrath. This punishment, dear reader, is nothing to sneeze at. Far from simply whipping or chaining you, Perchta will disembowel you. After she has ripped your organs from your abdomen she will replace them with sticks, rocks, and garbage before sewing you back up again. Oddly, this punishment may have a silver lining. If you mend your ways, as much as you can with garbage inside you, then she may return with your safe and clean innards and undo her previous work. The lesson, in this case, is if you don’t take care of it you can’t have it anymore.
La Befana is a much more benevolent Christmastime witch. She travels around Italy during epiphany bringing gifts to good children. The story goes that the three wisemen stopped by her home looking for direction to the baby Jesus. La Befana did not know the way and neglected to join the 3 kings on their journey to Bethlehem. Not long after she regretted her decision and attempted to catch up to the 3 travelers. La Befana now travels in search of the Christ Child and leaving gifts as she goes. It has been hypothesized that La Befana is connected to the same ancient goddess as Perchta, Mother Holle, the Russian Baboushka, and Gryla.
Gryla, however, isn’t known for her kindnesses. She is an ogress, troll, or giantess, and the mother of the yule lads, seven (or thirteen) mischievous spirits who wreak havoc during Christmas time. Gryla may have multiple heads, and multiple tails, or she may simply have been an embroidered demonization of a ‘parasitic’ beggar woman. Whatever her appearance, her raison d’être is eating children who don’t obey their mother.
So, if you didn’t already think Christmas time was a time of darkness and a time to fear that which lurks in the shadows outside your door, you now have a whole host of new imagery. To me the ancient fears of demons and witches explain some of the more beautiful aspects of the holiday season, that of banding together with family and helping your neighbors. Krampus, Perchta, and Gryla may get you if you do not.
References
Are you in the market for some ancient writings on magic in multiple languages with arresting illustrations and helpful diagrams? I am a sucker for ancient mystery texts, though my interest is far from well researched. So, when the Public Domain Review did a write up on the grimoire of Saint Cyprian, also known as Clavis Inferni (“The Key of Hell”), by Cyprianus, I saved it as a note to myself and possible blog post with the intention of diving deeper into it and its history. That note has been sitting around so long, the time to share it with y’all is now.
Cyprian, was either an intensely evil man or an astoundingly beautiful one. Accounts of the man behind the story vary. However, the name Cyprian became a pseudonym for people who lived on the fringes of society and practiced dark magic (Cvltnation). Cyprian was also linked to the Black School at Wittenberg, which was one of multiple schools in legend that were supposedly run by the Devil himself. Though the promise of secret knowledge was great, students entered the school with the knowledge that a percentage of them would be dragged to hell by the Devil before they could leave (Jason Colavito).
More images from the Clavis Inferni can be browsed at the Wellcome Collection‘s record of the book. And if you, like me, are drawn to old mystery texts, I would also suggest the Grimoire Encyclopedia. It collects links to online copies of ancient grimoires and captures metadata on the history, origins, and authors of the texts.
Voudoo Queen
The mention of “Voudoo Queen” will immediately bring to mind the formidable character of Marie Laveau, if it brings to mind anyone. Yet, Marie Laveau was not the only Voudoo Queen to preside over Voudoo practitioners in New Orleans. In 1869, news stories syndicated all over the country told about the naming of a new Voudoo Queen, a successor to Laveau. This woman was Malvina Latour.
Before going on much further, I feel compelled to say that the newspaper pieces that reported often on Voudoo culture between the 1860s and the 1910s were sensational and exaggerated. The aim of these news items appeared, to me, to be twofold: arouse excitement and curiosity in the public while at the same time demean black Americans by casting them as savages and animals. Some journalists were more respectful than others, but all the stories seem to share the perspective that Voudoo, and those that practice it, are some kind of mysterious other; something to be gawped at instead of understood. Knowing this, it is hard enough picking through the historical documentation to find truth. Historians of New Orleans have commented on how difficult it is to separate the truth from legend when studying the lives of people like Marie Laveau. With sensationalist news articles standing in as primary sources, we may simply have to accept that no story will be wholly substantiated.
Note: the spelling Voudoo was chosen for this post based on the spelling of the historical articles referenced for information.
The first newspaper stories I could find that mention Malvina Latour show up around 1869 when she was said to succeed Marie Laveau as Queen of the Voudoos in New Orleans. An 1884 article by a reporter for the New Orleans Times-Democrat describes Malvina Latour as a handsome woman of mixed race around 48 years of age. This would mean Malvina Latour was born about 1836 and succeeded Marie Laveau when she was in her early 30s. Though the newspaper articles do not usually mention Marie Laveau’s daughter, Marie Laveau II, historians have pointed out that Laveau II was around and held quite a bit of power herself at this time, though she did not succeed her mother as Queen.
In 1886 Malvina Latour was again named as Laveau’s successor by another reporter, George Washington Cable, who had visited with Laveau before her death in 1881. Cable gave the conflicting information that the title of Voudoo Queen was held until death, and that only in 1881 did Malvina Latour take on the responsibilities. Other historians and legend makers have postulated that Malvina Latour herself was one of Marie Laveau’s daughters. Latour was sometimes referred to as Laveau or Laveau II. Confusing the three women fed Marie Laveau’s legend by lengthening her time in power to an unbelievable spans.
Yet, Malvina Latour peeks through history. Often described, young and old, as sporting a blue calico dress with white polka-dots, Latour would be Queen of the Voudoos, leading St. John’s Eve celebrations on the banks of Lake Ponchartrain, for around two decades. She was regarded as powerful as Laveau, and had performed feats that equaled those of her predecessor, though reportedly she did not add anything new to the practice while Voudoo Queen. According to many, Latour’s primary goal was to remove Catholicism and Catholic practices from Voudoo. She was unsuccessful at this and also at holding the Voudoo community together in the face of many different bids for power. Under Latour, Voudoo in New Orleans split into several factions, never to be reunited. Latour’s eventual abdication and later life are a mystery.
Carolyn Morrow Long, author of A New Orleans Voudou Priestess: The Legend and Reality of Marie Laveau, postulates that the New Orleans Times-Democrat reporter in 1884 may have invented Malvina Latour. Long bases her hypothesis on not being able to find Latour in any church, city or census records, and indicates that the invention of Latour was “indicative of how such sensational accounts came to be regarded as historical and factual.” Yet, the 1886 piece by George Washington Cable that also reported Latour as the successor to Laveau, was apparently unconnected with the previous journalist, revolving around an interview and visit with the aging Laveau. This, to me, serves more as corroboration of Latour’s existence since Cable’s article did not rehash the same stories and visuals of previous articles the way that most newspaper articles of the time seemed to do. I also have spent several hours searching for links in my family tree during the middle and late 1800s that were not recorded by census, church, or city records, so it does not seem strange to me that Latour is not mentioned in these documents.
Though I cannot immediately accept that Latour was a fiction, Long was making an excellent point that the legend of the Voudoo Queen has grown beyond the truth. This becomes evident when faced with obviously conflicting information like the interview with Dr. J. B. Bass of New York, in the Chicago Daily Tribune of 1881. Dr. Bass was a known Voudoo practitioner and had met Laveau when he was a teenager. He asserted that there was no such office as Queen within the order; that Laveau was a mother in the order and had respect, but held no official office. Could this be chalked up to the unique and independent way New Orleans Voudoo has evolved over time, where in the city Laveau and Latour were Queens, but in the worldwide Voudoo community, they held no such office? A later article recounting St. John’s Eve celebrations in 1890 includes recounted testimony from Marie Laveau’s daughter, perhaps Laveau II, refuting that Laveau was ever connected with Voudoo at all. Who then did Latour succeed?
As an illustration of how legend can take over our popular history Malvina Latour has since been linked to the ghost story of a violet eyed zombie girl whose prison was broken by hurricane Katrina and now roams about New Orleans. Though the best guesses at Latour’s possible birth and death dates are so far away from overlapping with her supposed role in the story, the story serves as an interesting example of how our own sensationalism can replace our history.
New Comic Here, Folks! New Comic! I have been slow on my comicking for a while now. In order to jump start myself into the swing so I can get back to long running comics like Levi Levi, I took a moment to do this short based on a dream I had. The Witch’s Curse started posting yesterday and will be posting on Tuesdays and Saturdays for a couple weeks. Go check it out!
