From as early as 18th century BC there has been lore about werewolves/lycanthropes. The first know account of a werewolf was in "The Epic of Gilgamesh," when the goddess Ishtar turns one of her lovers, a shepherd into a wolf. "You have loved the shepherd of the flock; he made meal-cake for you day after day, he killed kids for your sake. You struck and turned him into a wolf; now his own herd-boys chase him away, his own hounds worry his flanks."[Gilgamesh, p. 86] Since then werewolves have made their way just about everywhere in modern media. From popular books, to movies, television shows, comic books, video games, and much more.
In most werewolf lore one becomes a wolf through means of magic, such as a curse, witchcraft, or wearing a magical pelt. Another popular method is being infected by another werewolf, usually by being attacked, through bites and scratches. And a large portion of most stories involve the full moon. The moon causes the afflicted person the ability to transform into the horrible carnivorous creature.
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| Werewolf transforming under the full moon. |
But those are not the only ways, each story usually has it's own twist, it's own unique way of telling how one becomes a wolf. And not every lycanthrope is just a wolf. Lycanthropy can be from almost any animal. I myself have read tons of books that talk of werecats, wererats, weretigers, pandas, swans, and many others.
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| Weretiger shifting. |
Some stories tell of ways to cure lycanthropy, such as using wolfsbane as medicine. Surgery and exorcisms were other methods used for "curing" lycanthropy. Some stories say if you kill the wolf the turned you, you'll be cured. In the Arabic culture, they say striking the beast on the head with a knife, or putting nails through their hands could cure them. While the Danish believe simply scolding the monster like an ill behaved dog does the trick.
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| Scolded dog. |
Another popular aspect of werewolves, or lycanthropes is an allergy to silver. Not like sneezing with watery eyes allergic, but full on
anaphylactic shock. In many cases silver bullets are said to be one of the only ways to kill a lycan, aside from removal of the head. But honestly, what doesn't beheading kill?
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this post about werewolves.
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