In 17th-century Europe, the dead were a constant threat to rise again and bedevil the living. Now archaeologists have found the remains of a suspected child revenant. Credit… Magdalena Zagrodzka Polish legends feature two types of revenants. The upiór, which was later superseded by “wampir,” is similar to the cinematic Dracula, embodied by Bela Lugosi.
The strzyga was more like a witch — “that is, in the old fairy-tale sense, a malevolent female spirit or demon that preys upon humans, may eat them or drink their blood,” Al Ridenour, a Los Angeles-based folklorist, said. In Pień, locals sometimes refer to the sickle woman as a strzyga, a wraith typically born with two souls. “The malevolent soul can’t find rest in the grave, so it rises and wreaks havoc,” Mr. Ridenour said.
He pointed to the turbulent nature of the Counter-Reformation in Poland for allowing pagan beliefs toward the undead to persist. “In reaction to the Protestants, the Catholic Church turned up the drama and emotion, as you can see in Baroque art, in memento mori paintings and the like,” he said. Sermons became more fiery, and whipped up fear of the devil and demons, which translated into a fear of revenants and reanimation of the dead.
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Undying Dread: A 400-Year-Old Corpse, Locked to Its GraveIn 17th-century Europe, the dead were a constant threat to rise again and bedevil the living. Now archaeologists have found the remains of a suspected child revenant.
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