Leech Lover Facts: Part 4
It’s been a couple months since I’ve done a “Leech Lover Facts” post, so I’m bringin’ it back! Here’s your bloody dose of random vampire facts.
Animal Hides: Various kinds of animal skins were used in some countries, particularly by the Gypsies, to cover the body of a vampire before staking it. You see, they believed that if any vampire blood fell on the vampire hunter that he would go insane.
Forty Days: A time period of biblical origin that also has a part in the vampire world. In Bulgarian myths, the ubour vampire takes shape over a forty day period, during which time the corpse remains bloated, its bones reduced to a jellylike substance. Only after the forty days have elapsed does a skeleton form again and the new vamp emerges looking like a normal human being.
Lemons: Believe it or not this fruit was used in Germany to ward off evil. It was a popular way to take down the Saxon vampire species known as the neuntoter. All you had to do was stick it in the vamp’s mouth and you were set.
Vampidzhija: Also called djadadjii. These guys are Bulgarian vampire hunters that are a bit on the traditional side. They mainly located particular graves that held a resting vampire’s body. They would often use a holy icon in the Eastern Orthodox tradition. After locating the vamp, they would impale it or burn it.
Moonlight: In John Polidori’s short story “The Vampyre” (1819), moonlight has the power to reanimate the dead corpse of a vampire. This idea eventually disappeared from vamp literature, but Varney the Vampire (1847) brought back the idea of moonlight bringing a vampire to life… for a little bit.
Penny Dreadfuls: These were horror stories that sold for a penny each in nineteenth century England. Thanks to the Penny Dreadfuls we got Sweeney Todd, The Mysteries of London and our vampire story, Varney the Vampire.
- Moonlight
Fun facts!