31 Monsters!
Oct. 26th, 2010 09:35 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vivienSo from Bali to the Northwest Pacific... we have a similar monster to the one last night.
Wikipedia:
Dzunukwa, also Tsonoqua, Tsonokwa, is a figure in Kwakwaka'wakw mythology. She is venerated as a bringer of wealth, but is also greatly feared by children, because she is also known as an ogress who steals children and carries them home in her basket to eat.
Her appearance is that of a naked, pale-skinned, old monster with long pendulous breasts. In masks and totem pole images she is shown with bright red pursed lips, because she is said to give off the call "Hu!" She is also described having no hair that shines around her head, as if it was being reflected by the sun. It is often told to children that the sound of the wind blowing through the cedar trees is actually the call of Dzunukwa.
A little more from an artists' site:
In the mythology of the Kwakwaka’wakw people, the Dzunukwa, or Cannibal Woman, is a dangerous monster. Twice the normal height, with a black, hairy body and sagging breasts, she lurks in the forest and eats children. The Cannibal Woman is represented by a mask such as the one shown here, worn by a dancer during a Winter Ceremony. The dancer moves clumsily to represent the monster’s confusion outside the forest environment. This frightening character is also associated with riches, and, according to legend, men who could tame her would bring back great treasure. A chief may also wear a Dzunukwa mask when distributing wealth at a potlatch.
Huh. You know, even with a lighthearted delving into monstrous mythology you find ancient themes the world over that make you say "Hmmm... what the hell is up with that?". If I were an anthropologist or folklorist, no doubt I could make some interesting points here.
Like I said early on, I do love the crones, but wow, there seem to be a lot of them.
Wikipedia:
Dzunukwa, also Tsonoqua, Tsonokwa, is a figure in Kwakwaka'wakw mythology. She is venerated as a bringer of wealth, but is also greatly feared by children, because she is also known as an ogress who steals children and carries them home in her basket to eat.
Her appearance is that of a naked, pale-skinned, old monster with long pendulous breasts. In masks and totem pole images she is shown with bright red pursed lips, because she is said to give off the call "Hu!" She is also described having no hair that shines around her head, as if it was being reflected by the sun. It is often told to children that the sound of the wind blowing through the cedar trees is actually the call of Dzunukwa.
A little more from an artists' site:
In the mythology of the Kwakwaka’wakw people, the Dzunukwa, or Cannibal Woman, is a dangerous monster. Twice the normal height, with a black, hairy body and sagging breasts, she lurks in the forest and eats children. The Cannibal Woman is represented by a mask such as the one shown here, worn by a dancer during a Winter Ceremony. The dancer moves clumsily to represent the monster’s confusion outside the forest environment. This frightening character is also associated with riches, and, according to legend, men who could tame her would bring back great treasure. A chief may also wear a Dzunukwa mask when distributing wealth at a potlatch.
Huh. You know, even with a lighthearted delving into monstrous mythology you find ancient themes the world over that make you say "Hmmm... what the hell is up with that?". If I were an anthropologist or folklorist, no doubt I could make some interesting points here.
Like I said early on, I do love the crones, but wow, there seem to be a lot of them.