Artefacts and Slow Looking
This section introduces three artefacts related to the monster, werewolf, and will analyze how they connect to each other and highlight the argument.
1.0 Primary Artefact
1.1 Background
This miniature was drawn on Topographia Hibernica, a manuscript written around c.1187 by Gerald of Wales (Cambrensis "Gallery: British Library, Royal MS 13 B VIII"; Hey). This topography is about “the natural history and the people of Ireland and the conquest of that country by Henry II” (Hey).
The story was about a man-werewolf who encountered a traveling priest and begged the priest to give the last rites and communion for his dying wife (Maschio). This miniature, with faded watercolour paints, depicts the scene when the priest accepted their request and did rites and communion for the wife (Maschio).
1.2 Depiction of Miniature and Connection to the Argument
The composition of the miniature consists of two werewolves and a priest. The priest was the focal point, with his pose of offering rites with the white ball in hand, leading the readers’ attention to the woman-werewolf who was lying in the ritual bed and placing her hands on the priest’s hands with a smile. The iconography of the women-werewolf’s clawless hand gesture conveys her deep gratitude and respect towards the offering priest. Moreover, the man-werewolf's gesture of lowering his hands towards the priest, with the tender eye contact with his wife, illustrates his sincerity towards the priest and his steadfast love for his wife.
These attributes from both werewolves reveal their virtuousness. Therefore, even though the two werewolves were drawn in wolf shape, they had humanity.
2.0 First Secondary Artefact: Werewolf or the Cannibal
This is a print created by Lucas Cranach around the 15th to 16th century in central Europe(Cranach). Despite the chronological and regional gap, this artefact is selected because it focuses on the werewolf, which tightly connects to the miniature in Werewolf of Ossory and my monster and the first artefact.
2.1 Depiction of the Print and Connection to the Primary Artefact
This print depicts a cannibal werewolf appearing in human shape, killing and eating the babies and women in a family in the forest. The whole picture is in black and white, depicting a bloody scene of massacre of the werewolf, which creates a hopeless and devastating atmosphere. The foreground of this print, the cannibal werewolf, referring back to the historical significance of this print, symbolizes the cultural enemies, Crusades (Guibert of Norgent; Heng). According to Geraldine, Guibert of Norgent mentioned that cannibalism was an expression of fear of the cultural enemies (Guibert of Norgent; Heng). The background, the forest in black and white, also reflects a “hostile, savage environment”(Husband). Hence, the cannibalism scene not only reflects the physical harm caused by the religious wars but also the cultural and mental destruction.
Despite the werewolf, or the cultural enemy, being in human form, the evil deeds committed are monstrous and inhumane. In contrast, the werewolves in wolf-shape in the main artefact were praying for their loved ones and expressing gratitude towards the priest. Through the juxtaposition between the two werewolves’ motivations, it further emphasizes that appearance is misaligned with one’s humanity.
3.0 Second Secondary Artefact: Lycaon Transformed into a Wolf
This print about the werewolf in Greek mythology (The British Museum) was drawn by Hendrik Goltzius, published in 1589 in Holland (Goltzius). It can connect tightly with my monster and the first artefact on how it further contributes to the central idea of this paper.
3.1 Depiction of the Print and Connection to the Primary Artefact
The mythological story behind this is significant. Lycaon, king of Arcadia, wanted to see if the god could identify human flesh, so he killed his son, Nyctimus, and served his son to the god (The British Museum). This disgusted the god and therefore Zeus turned him into a werewolf, a creature with a human body but a wolf head (The British Museum). In this print, it was drawn in black and white to provide strong contrast on light and shadow to emphasize the main characters, Zeus and Lycaon, and a servant close by, and their motions. The background of fire on buildings and escaping people represent the anger of Zeus after being disgusted by Lycaon, highlighting how furious and shocked Zeus was by Lycaon’s inhumanness.
The contrast between the characters’ attitudes towards their family is significant. In Werewolves of Ossory, the couple’s humanity is demonstrated through their sincere love towards the family member, with the priest’s acknowledgment, despite their unusual appearance. However, Lycaon showed no human love but only his monstrosity by killing his son to satisfy his abnormal curiosity. Even though Lycaon was a king with fame and wealth, his evilness made him cursed as a wolf, representing the loss of his human identity. Hence, this comparison also reflects the disconnection between appearance and humanity.