Ohhhhh! So, why didn't they just say, "Br'er Bear"?
Raindrops on Woses and whiskers in noses
Bright stinging nettles and worm eaten roses
Blown paper wrappers and tangled strings
These are a few of my favorite things
Posted on 09/18/2009 12:15:33 PM PDT by Nikas777
April 18, 2007
The Woodwose Bigfoot’s European cousin
Like the Loch Ness Monster or the Abominable Snowman, I usually think of Bigfoot (or Sasquatch as he’s sometimes known) as a distinctly 20th century phenomenon. However, while it’s true that interest in these legendary creatures was stoked by images captured through the modern means of photography and film, the stories surrounding them actually go back centuries. From the lakes of Scotland, to the heights of the Himalayas, to the Pacific Northwest of America, locals have long attested to the presence of these elusive beings.
Although little-known today, a mythical creature with striking similarities to Bigfoot was believed to exist an even longer time ago in medieval Europe. Called a woodwose, or in Anglo-Saxon wuduwasa, this wild man of the forest was a familiar figure in the literature and visual arts of the Middle Ages.
Walk on the Wild Side
As with Bigfoot, the woodwose’s natural territory was believed to be the forest (hence the name: literally “wood-man”), and it too was said to be a hominoid covered in a heavy coat of hair. However, the woodwose was rarely described as ape-like, as Bigfoot often is. Rather, it was a creature very similar to other humans, but with a wild manner and an unusual amount of hair all over its body.
Different theories have been put forward about the origin of the woodwose myth, including the medieval belief that woodwoses were people who had wandered into the woods, and as a means of survival grew hair to protect themselves from the elements. Another theory was that people born with an excess of body hair retreated from human society and led isolated lives as wild men (and women). In opposition to these ideas, some modern researchers have proposed that woodwose sightings were actually sightings of Neanderthals still living in medieval Europe.
While it is unclear exactly how the image of the woodwose arose, once it entered the public’s imagination it became a common motif in architecture, the visual arts, and literature. For example, woodwoses were often featured in the decoration of medieval churches, most particularly in ceiling bosses, the pieces of sculpture placed at the intersections of overlapping roof vaults. They were also depicted in works of art by such illustrious printmakers as Albrecht Dürer and Martin Schongauer. The medieval writer Geoffrey of Monmouth made mention of a “Man of the Woods” in his epic Life of Merlin, as did the writer of the “King’s Mirror,” a Norwegian educational treatise dating to A.D. 1250.
Great Balls of Fire
Another phenomenon growing out the woodwose myth was the popular medieval custom of attending masquerades dressed as hairy wild men. The most famous story about this practice concerns an event that came to be known as the Bal des Ardents, or the “Ball of the Burning Men,” which refers to a 1393 ball organized by the then-Queen of France. In preparation for this event, the king, Charles VI and with five other men dressed themselves in costumes made out of linen soaked in highly flammable pitch to which they stuck frazzled hemp fibers to simulate hair. In addition, as part of their get-ups, the six men were chained together. Understandably, flaming torches were not allowed at the event, but the king’s brother nevertheless came near the costumed men bearing a lighted torch. Tragically, one of the men caught fire, and in the panic that ensued, four of the men burned to death, although the king escaped injury.
Whither Woodwose
While the woodwose myth is no longer so prevalent in the public imagination, its influence can still be seen. Two relatively recent examples of this influence are a poem and book written by the British poet Ted Hughes, both titled “Wodwo” (another variant of woodwose), which were published in the late 1960s. Another reference to the woodwose is found in the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien, who called one of his fictional races of men “Woses.”
Regardless of the actual circumstances that gave rise to the woodwose myth, it’s clear that the image of the wild man of the woods has had an enduring resonance in works of art dating back at least as far as the Middle Ages. It’s not surprising that this is this case; like Bigfoot, the woodwose can be seen as a symbol of the distance society has traveled from its primitive roots, but also of our continued attraction to the unknown and wild elements of our own nature. —Morgen Jahnke
Whoops, and thanks happygrl. Krantz didn’t seem to think so... if memory serves... but then again A) I’m not too sure where “Big Footprints” is right now, and B) I remember he did say that the footprint evidence from there isn’t from modern human feet either.
I'd like on, please.
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Ohhhhh! So, why didn't they just say, "Br'er Bear"?
Raindrops on Woses and whiskers in noses
Bright stinging nettles and worm eaten roses
Blown paper wrappers and tangled strings
These are a few of my favorite things
Yes. That is a likely probability
Was Goliath a tamed woodwose?
There it is....it hid the first time
Maybe it was a necessity...
Add me to your list, please.
It’s twue, it’s twue.
You’ve been added to the list!
There is a book, I think the title was “Eaters of the Dead” by Michael Crichton, that describes the Beowulf/Grendel struggle in a way that makes Grendel appear Neanderthal-like. Also now with the discovery of the Flores “Hobbits”, we may have an explanation for Lepricans and Goblins and the like. For all we know there might even be some remnant Habilis or Robustus creatures lurking here or there. Certain as unkind as Sapiens can be to strangers, they would have to have become very people shy to survive.
The Neandertal EnigmaFrayer's own reading of the record reveals a number of overlooked traits that clearly and specifically link the Neandertals to the Cro-Magnons. One such trait is the shape of the opening of the nerve canal in the lower jaw, a spot where dentists often give a pain-blocking injection. In many Neandertal, the upper portion of the opening is covered by a broad bony ridge, a curious feature also carried by a significant number of Cro-Magnons. But none of the alleged 'ancestors of us all' fossils from Africa have it, and it is extremely rare in modern people outside Europe." [pp 126-127]
by James Shreeve
in local libraries
Not at all. He was not even giant sized - just bigger than David. He may not have existed either per secular Biblical scholars - they think the arrival of Greeks and their tale of Homer's battle of Achilles vs Hector influenced the story since one on one combat in the heroic style was a Greek practice but not a middle eastern one.
DNA tests indicate no passing on of Neanderthal DNA to modern humans I thought?
They haven’t, but that’s been a common misconception around here and the rest of the web. :’)
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