Nachzehrer - Germany
A Nachzehrer eating the bones of a nearby skeleton
Nachzehrer or nachtzehrer means “night waster” in German. (Larae) This type of revenant is often labeled a vampire, but it seems closer to a lich. It is attributed with several characteristics and abilities that make it unique among its revenant brethren.
The nachzehrer is one of the few revenants said to eat its own flesh. Shortly after dying and turning into the revenant, the nachzehrer begins to dine on not only its shroud, but its own flesh as well. As it does so, family members of the nachzehrer begin getting sick and dying as well through some kind of sympathetic magic available to the creature. According to legend, the sound the creature makes as it is dining on its flesh is extremely loud and distinctive. Oddly, the nachzehrer is said to lie in its grave with the left eye open and with the thumb of one hand lying in its other hand. (Larae)
It is unclear if the nachzehrer is able to rise from the grave once it’s eaten all of its flesh or not, but at some point it’s able to escape its coffin. Once out, some legends claim it is able to turn into a pig. From the grave it makes its way to the local church where it climbs up to the belfry or bell tower and begins ringing the bells. (Larae) Anyone who hears these bells is doomed to die very soon after.
There seems to be several myths tied together in some of the nachzehrer’s activities which include; tying cow tails together (presumably the cows are still alive which
begs the question of how this is done without scaring the cows), causing disease and plague and being accompanied by a woman who has died in childbirth and has
risen from the grave.
It is believed that a child born with a caul (a piece of the amniotic sac) will turn into a nachzehrer upon death. (Larae) As well, anyone who has died of drowning is equally likely to turn into this creature. Usually the nachzehrer makes its appearance during times of plague. (Larae) Other myths state that the nachzehrer is someone who has died of plague or has committed suicide.
A remedy against the nachzehrer is to place a stone in the corpse’s mouth, preventing it from chewing on anything. Sometimes spikes were driven through the mouth and, in extreme cases, the head might be cut off. (Larae)
It does seem clear that the nachzehrer is a response to plague conditions. As a means of explaining something frightening and out of control, it is likely that the populace turned to this myth. It is also possible that this myth sought to control and explain plague outbreaks in a time before the idea of germs, bacteria or viruses was conceived.
The nachzehrer is one of the few revenants said to eat its own flesh. Shortly after dying and turning into the revenant, the nachzehrer begins to dine on not only its shroud, but its own flesh as well. As it does so, family members of the nachzehrer begin getting sick and dying as well through some kind of sympathetic magic available to the creature. According to legend, the sound the creature makes as it is dining on its flesh is extremely loud and distinctive. Oddly, the nachzehrer is said to lie in its grave with the left eye open and with the thumb of one hand lying in its other hand. (Larae)
It is unclear if the nachzehrer is able to rise from the grave once it’s eaten all of its flesh or not, but at some point it’s able to escape its coffin. Once out, some legends claim it is able to turn into a pig. From the grave it makes its way to the local church where it climbs up to the belfry or bell tower and begins ringing the bells. (Larae) Anyone who hears these bells is doomed to die very soon after.
There seems to be several myths tied together in some of the nachzehrer’s activities which include; tying cow tails together (presumably the cows are still alive which
begs the question of how this is done without scaring the cows), causing disease and plague and being accompanied by a woman who has died in childbirth and has
risen from the grave.
It is believed that a child born with a caul (a piece of the amniotic sac) will turn into a nachzehrer upon death. (Larae) As well, anyone who has died of drowning is equally likely to turn into this creature. Usually the nachzehrer makes its appearance during times of plague. (Larae) Other myths state that the nachzehrer is someone who has died of plague or has committed suicide.
A remedy against the nachzehrer is to place a stone in the corpse’s mouth, preventing it from chewing on anything. Sometimes spikes were driven through the mouth and, in extreme cases, the head might be cut off. (Larae)
It does seem clear that the nachzehrer is a response to plague conditions. As a means of explaining something frightening and out of control, it is likely that the populace turned to this myth. It is also possible that this myth sought to control and explain plague outbreaks in a time before the idea of germs, bacteria or viruses was conceived.
