Keywords: Werewolf, Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-1553), vagrants, criminals, wilderness The single-leaf woodcut by Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-1553), commonly entitled Werewolf (c.1510-1512), encapsulated the fears surrounding people who resided in the land of the wolf. The print portrays a disheveled man with torn clothes, shoeless, and unkempt hair on all limbs. He appears to… Continue reading Was Lucas Cranach’s ‘Werewolf’ really a Depiction of a Werewolf?
Keywords: Monstrous Births, Portent, Omen, German Reformation, Martin Luther, Monster of Cracow Interest grew in monstrous births out of the printing press, where accounts of monstrous births were promptly reported and spread widely (Bates, 2005, p. 15). The prints also had a ready market that had already seen images of wonders such as monstrous races.… Continue reading Monstrous Births and their Uses in Sixteenth Century Germany
Keywords: Criminals, Beggars and Vagrants, Plague, Journeymen, Jews, Gypsies The fortress-like walls that surrounded European cities built in the Middle Ages such as Nuremberg, which was protected by a double wall and trench, symbolised the dangers that lurked beyond (Strauss, 1976, p. 12). The wilderness in sixteenth-century Germany was associated with all things uncivilised and… Continue reading Socially Marginalised People and their Control of Movement during Sixteenth-Century Germany
Keywords: Arcadia mythology, Jean Bodin demonology, Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Petter Stump (Peter Stumpp, Peter Stump), Gilles Garnier Ancient GreeceOne of the earliest werewolf fables originated from the ancient festival of Zeus in Arcadia, Greece. Participants would choose a piece of meat from a mixture of both animal and human sacrifices. Those who unwittingly chose and ate… Continue reading How did people transform into werewolves: from antiquity to popular culture today
Keywords: Jesuits, Dominicans, Martin Luther, Reformation, Order of Jesus, Counter-Reformation The Jesuits became an especial target in the Protestant polemical campaign as they became a significant and influential order of the Catholic Church, particularly during the Counter-Reformation period. While artists used various animals to mock the Catholic clergy, the dog and the wolf were popular,… Continue reading Jesuits Portrayed with Dog-Heads in Protestant Polemical Prints
Dana K Rehn 