Ancient Vampires

We know all about the vampires from Anne Rice, Stephanie Meyer and Bram Stoker, who based his literary villain Dracula on the historical figure Vlad Dracul. But, did you know vampire stories have been told for thousands of years? The legend of vampires have captured the imagination and horror of countless since the dawn of civilization. Let me share a few…

Ancient Mesopotamia

The first vampire-like demons could be found in Ancient Mesopotamia, also known as the ‘cradle of civilization’. Mesopotamia during the Bronze Age (3300-1200 BCE) included the Akkadian, Assyrian, Babylonian and Sumerian empires. This area is part of the Tigris-Euphrates river system and encompasses present-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey, and southwestern Iran.

Lilitu

The goddess Lamashtu (daughter of the sky god Anu) was a wicked, blood-sucking being, who menaced women during childbirth and kidnapped babies. She drank their young, fresh blood and gnawed on their bones. She caused nightmares, infested rivers and lakes, and spread illness and death. Lamashtu is described as having the head of a lion and the feet of a bird. Parents often used amulets and statues to protect against Lamashtu’s malevolence. 

If you died a violent death or were not buried properly, Sumerians believed you would come back as an edimmu which was a type of spirit or demon. They terrorized the living by walking through walls to suck the life from their sleeping victims. They also caused disease and criminal behavior.

Assyrian demons called Lilitu were described as beautiful women who used their beauty to beguile and trap their victims. They sexually victimized men. They roamed during the night, hunting and killing pregnant women and drinking the blood of babies. They are associated with lions, storms, desert and disease. They are depicted having wings and bird talons for feet. Some believe the Jewish demoness Lilith was a part of this group of Assyrian demons.

Welcome to the Winchester Mystery House

A mysterious Queen Anne Victorian style house sits in San Jose, California as a monument to the thousands of people killed and injured by Winchester rifles. It is also a painful reminder of the effects a psychic can have in influencing people who are in grief and seeking answers. 

Welcome to the Winchester Mystery House.

The Winchester Mystery House was the residence of Sarah Winchester, the widow of gun mogul William Wirt Winchester who died Mary 7, 1881 in their New Haven, Connecticut home. Sarah was the only heir to the Winchester fortune since their only child, Annie, died at 6 weeks old from marasmus in 1866. Upon her husband’s death, Sarah inherited more than $20.5 million dollars and assumed 50% ownership of the Winchester Repeating Arms company which entitled her to approximately $1,000 a day.

Alone and distraught over the death of her daughter and husband, Sarah began to believe that she may be cursed and sought spiritualist mediums and psychics to help her solve her problem. One psychic confirmed for Sarah that her family was cursed. The psychic told Sarah that all of the people who lost their lives from the guns her husband sold are now seeking revenge. It is believed, but disputed, that the psychic told Sarah to leave Connecticut, head west, and build a home for her and the spirits. Sarah was told she must never stop building. If building stops, she will die, but if it continues she will live forever. Sarah believed the psychic and headed West hoping to curtail the curse.

Sarah purchased an eight room farmhouse on 161 acres from Dr. Robert Caldwell in 1884 and immediately began renovating. The fear of these spirits who she believed were out to cause her revenge plagued Sarah so she designed the house with many doors, windows, and staircases that led nowhere to confuse and trap the spirits.

Every evening Sarah would hold a séance where she spoke with the spirits to consult them on the design of the house. Construction never ceased and continued around the clock 365 days a year for the next 38 years until her death. She was fascinated with the number 13 and included it, as well as, a spider web motif whenever she could in the design. Some facts about the house:

• 160 Rooms
• 40 Bedrooms
• 2 Ballrooms
• 47 Fireplaces
• 10,000 Window Panes
• 17 Chimneys
• 2 Basements
• 3 Elevators
• 13 Bathrooms
• Windows have 13 panes
• Thirteen chandeliers
• Doors that open into walls
• Staircases that lead nowhere
• Windows that look into other walls or rooms

Construction stopped on September 5, 1922 when Sarah died in her sleep at the age of 83. Her will consisted of 13 sections and she signed the will thirteen times. Her niece, Mrs. Frances Marriot, was willed all contents of the house; however, the house itself was not mentioned in the will. A local investor eventually bought the house and opened it to the public in February 1923.

The Winchester Mystery House was added to the United States National Register of Historic Places as number 868 on August 7, 1974. In honor of Sarah, the Santa Clara-Los Gatos Boulevard was later named Winchester Boulevard and every Friday the 13^th a bell on the property is rung 13 times at 1pm in tribute to her.

Sarah left future generations a wonderful piece of history, but I cannot help but feel sad that her fears were unnecessarily compounded. This woman was driven by a fear of curses and revengeful spirits to fund non-stop building so she would not be subjected to harmful ghosts. Unfortunately, the very means at which she thought kept her safe, actually, haunted her for the rest of her life and became an obsession.

Visit The Winchester Mystery House for more information.

by Kerri L. Schultz

On this Day - Birth of Wicca and Occult Author Scott Cunningham

The Birth of Wicca and Occult author Scott Cunningham.  Cunningham is considered one of the authorities on Wicca and Magic. His works include Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner, which is his most successful work, as well, as Magical Herbalism, Earth Power, The Magical Household, and Cunnighham’s Encyclopedia of Crystal, Gem, and Metal Magic to name a few.

Cunningham was born June 27, 1956 in Royal Oak, Michigan. Three years later his family moved to San Diego California. While attending high school, a classmate introduced him to Wicca and trained him in Wiccan spirituality. Cunningham went onto study creative writing at San Diego State University where he enrolled in 1978, but dropped out in 1980. He left college to write full time since he had more published works than several of his professors.  

Cunningham was diagnosed with lymphoma in 1983 and successfully battled the disease. In 1990, he fell ill while on a speaking  tour in Massachusetts and was diagnosed with cryptococcal meningitis. Cunningham suffered several infections and succumbed to the disease in March 1993 at the age of 36.

For more information on Scott Cunningham visit: LLewelyn Publishing.