Heads Up

           The Blemmyes were a race of monstrous creatures that were believed to have their faces located on their torsos. Having no head, these monsters were especially scary to encounter at night because it was easy to mistake them as a headless figure or ghost.            Headless races are nothing new to the modern reader. Who can forget the headless Hessian Trooper from the Legend of Sleepy Hollow?  Washington Irving tells the story of a frightening monster that cannot rest in his grave. Yet, as Mandeville showed us, headless races were around long before the quiet, little town of Sleepy Hollow. 

One of ancient Egypt’s earliest gods, Seth, was the god of chaos, confusion, storms, wind, the desert and foreign lands. He is often identified with the headless demon Akephalos. Akephalos was an ancient Greek figure whose eyes were placed in his shoulders and who people considered a very negative omen. He was apart of the spirits of the dead, or the ‘ultimately deceased.’ These spirits are especially evil and disfigured because of circumstances surrounding their death were especially violent. 

An old Japanese legend tells the story of Tenome, an old man that was beaten up and murdered by a mugger. Tenome returned as a ghost, however, his need for revenge was so great that his eyes now grew out of his hands. Never having seen his attacker, and being blinded by his rage, Tenome now kills whoever he can get his eyes/hands on.Eventually Tenome becomes the Pale Man, the terrifying character from Pan’s Labyrinth            

Although nobody is still in fear of the Akaphalos or believes the Blemmye continue to walk the Earth, their concept has continued through modern culture, evolving just slightly along the way. Adding hair to the monstrous body and giving it winged appendages creates the entity that was widely publicized in the media when it was seen in West Virginia. The Mothman, a legend still claimed by some people as truth.  

Faces in Strange Places

Physical deformity has been a signifier of 'the other' as long as civilization has existed. People are harassed--outcasted--for looking different. This comes from two places: from our desire to gaze upon the unusual (such as the 19th and early 20th century circus freaks) and our fear of non-conformity.

In the Travels of Sir John Mandeville, the Blemmyes (along with many other "monstrous races") are described in detail as the foreign and exotic. Little value, if any, is placed on their actions or personalities but great emphasis is given to the face the sits large and prominent in the middle of the chests.

This physical construction brings up questions of anatomy, even indirectly, as there's no plausible way for the body of the Blemmyes to function. But for the sake of amusement--that is all Mandeville's tale really is, a source of freakish amusement--we're willing to suspend our knowledge of what's logical.

The strange appearance of faces where they shouldn't be (or the absence of a face altogether) has cropped up frequently in modern media. It shows up in movies, as in Harry Potter where the monstrous face of Voldemort appears on the back of Professor Quirrell's head, and in Pan's Labyrinth where the Pale Man's face is incomplete without his hands.

What is other is both terrifying and stimulating. It is what draws people to Mandeville's travelogue and what draws them into the thrills of horror movies, hard science fiction, and fantasy. And while we can more easily comprehend the multiple arms of a god-like creature or the wings of angels and demons, it is in the face that we anchor our understanding of human form.

Monstrous races

In Medieval texts, it is interesting to see the types of people that are seen in the exotic locations of the East. Every story that we have read has crazy mythological creatures that seem pretty unrealistic. So what is it about these places that made travelers write about these strange beings in such a way? Whatever the reason, they sure are dramatic creations that catch your attention,

Two striking creatures that caught my attention in the Travels of Sir John Mandeville are the Blemmyes and the Sciapods.

Blemmyes: or headless men are described as peaceful people and at other times are described as cannibals living in the East Desert near Meroe. The Blemmyes occupy modern day Sudan. They are depicted as men and women with a mouth in their chest and eyes in their shoulders. Some authors claim that their heads were hidden between their shoulders. Perhaps the women are the Blemmyes with the faces on their backs since their are no boobs that would interfere with sight.

They are seen as grotesque creatures with no head, which also implies that they have no brain? Did they just walk around aimlessly, or could they communicate?

One explanation for these medieval creatures was that they began as normal humans who had somehow managed to raise their shoulders to surprising heights. Other authors such as Bruce Sterling who wrote a short story on Blemmyes, states that they are aliens living on earth during the time of the crusades. The Blemmyes are also known as anthropophagus which is derived from the Greek word anthropophagos “people-eater” They are often depicted as naked creatures that bear a sword and a shield.  These creatures have been used throughout fiction as mythical creatures that roam the land. Perhaps it was something about the way they dressed that made European travelers think that their heads were in their chests….? Whatever the case is, these creatures have appeared in more than one medieval text.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qGe07n4yTo&list=PLclkczp6hR3NPB9MxjKWXB--hp7Hb0PgQ&index=1 

In an episode of Spongebob, Patrick becomes a Blemmye. This video is then followed by another video that shows a ton of Blemmyes that "Can't even" 

The second mythological creature that is important to take note of are the Sciapods. These creatures are also of a humanoid monstrous creation. These creatures however, have a face in the proper place, but instead of having two legs; they only have one large leg and foot. The Sciapods have been seen in India. The large foot is important because if it was not large, they would be unable to support the weight of themselves. This name derived from the Greek word okiattooec“shadow feet” or monopod “one legged’.  Sciapods, Centars, and Blemmyes are further used in movies such as Chronicles of Narnia, The Lion the witch, and the wardrobe.

Despite only having one leg, these babies could hop around at an impressive rate, which may also explain why the foot is so large.They lived off the perfume of the fruits that they carried with them, and if the fruits were to die, so would they. When it rains, they lie on the ground with their foots above their heads for protection. 

In The Chronicles of Narnia, Sciapods are called "Dufflepuds"