Vampire myths have been passed down for generations. These legends of the undead, unfairly based largely in rumor and ignorance, are staples at every fireside chat in every culture throughout the world. In fact, if there is one common thread that bonds every person on earth, it is their fear of the vampire.The modern day stories that have brought the vampire myth into the mainstream were largely based on observations of the mentally unstable or strangely deceased, creating a stigma that many real life vampires deal with today.
I am sure that most people are familiar with Bram Stoker's Dracula, a great romance novel that rightfully captured the populace in 1897. However, Stoker's tale stretched the realities of vampirism and created a false façade that overwhelms the true origins and beliefs of the myths. Stoker was neither the first nor the last author to pen accounts of the vampire. Lord Byron introduced (and maybe influenced) the common elements of vampirism in his 1813 poem, The Giaour. An epic poem the acted as a precursor to the first book on the subject, The Vampyre, penned by Lord Byron's personal physician John Polidori.
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These religious differences aren't the only ones that exist in this region of the Adriatic Coast; remnants of pre-Christianity Paganism still stand side-by-side with visions of modern day Catholicism. One journey through the Coastal town of Split, Croatia provides a dynamic snapshot of the culture as identified above and re-enforces the underlying currents of the legends. Split, one of the largest cities along the Adriatic, started as a retirement retreat for Caesar Diocletian, who built a giant fortress along the sulfur hot springs that populate this region in the fourth century. Remains of Diocletian's Palace exist today, housing not only the oldest cathedral known to man, but a combination of early Egyptian statues and other agonistic relics.
Walking along the cobblestone pathways in this city, or in any port along the Western Adriatic Coast, you can almost sense the history and lore that made this region a hotspot of vampiric activity centuries ago. In 1672, one of the first recorded vampire epidemics took place in Croatia. It has been reported that Giure Grando, from Khring on the Istrian Peninsula, returned from the dead to torture his family. Older writings record reports of two different types of vampires in Croatia, the Pijawika and the Kuzlak. Grando would have most certainly been considered a Pijawika, having been decapitated with the remains of his head placed between his legs, the proposed way of killing a Pijawika. The Kuzlak is a bit more interesting. The belief is that one is created when an infant is not breast-fed enough, taking their place with the undead at an early age.
To the North, Yugoslavia is home to an incredible amount of vampiric history, dating back centuries. In fact, in 1725 a similar case to the 1672 Croatian outbreak took place in Kisilovo, part of the Vojvodina Region of Serbia. In this case, Peter Plogojowitz returned from the grave to terrorize his former neighbors. This encounter set the stage for many recorded encounters, introducing the word "Vampire" into the Slavic vocabulary for the first time.
This was followed closely by the introduction of the French word "Vampyre" in 1732 when Arnold Paole was accused of killing herds of cattle and numerous people around the small town of Medvegia, Serbia. Legends state that Paole was actually bitten and turned into a vampire while serving the Turkish front in Kosova. This encounter and the detailed description of the exhumed and then decapitated corpse (Fresh blood stains, full complexion and growing hair), ranks as one of the best selling government reports in Yugoslavian history.
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While it is not known who recorded these accounts of vampirism, it is quite possible that famed Croatian historian and writer Marko Marulic (1450-1524) encounter these same legends while documenting his accounts of mythology. Regardless of who captured these interludes into the supernatural, they have left lasting impressions on society as we know it.
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