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The Power Of Silver

Seems you're right about the silver. :)
I've been doing some more research on vampires and the use of silver against them, and I found out that in some Slavonic countries it is thought that you can kill a vampire by shooting him with a silver bullet that has been blessed by a priest.
(Even though the favoured methods of getting rid of these pesky blood-suckers seem to be the traditional wooden stake through the heart, decapitation, soaking the body with holy water or garlic, or burning the heart or the whole body.)

I even found a theory about why silver would be able to harm vampires.
That theory has its origin in the biblical story of Judas Iscariot. Who was, or turned into, a vampire, according to that theory. (The reasons given for that transformation are many, for example, that it's because Judas committed suicide - people who kill themselves will become vampires, because committing suicide is a sin and will damn your soul.)
So, Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 silver pieces, and when he later felt bad about what he had done and tried to return the silver to the chief priests they refused to take it back, and Judas cast away the silver pieces.
And that's why vampires are repelled by silver - because it represents the "price of blood" so hateful to Judas.
 
Fledermaus said:
Seems you're right about the silver. :)
I've been doing some more research on vampires and the use of silver against them, and I found out that in some Slavonic countries it is thought that you can kill a vampire by shooting him with a silver bullet that has been blessed by a priest.
(Even though the favoured methods of getting rid of these pesky blood-suckers seem to be the traditional wooden stake through the heart, decapitation, soaking the body with holy water or garlic, or burning the heart or the whole body.)
I'd imagine they were more favorable cause in the 17th-19th centuries a gun was definitely a rare item to own. Couldn't anything wooden and pointy kill a vampire if it nailed him/her in the heart? Like an arrow, bolt, or saboted 2x4 shot out of a potato gun :D

I even found a theory about why silver would be able to harm vampires.
That theory has its origin in the biblical story of Judas Iscariot. Who was, or turned into, a vampire, according to that theory. (The reasons given for that transformation are many, for example, that it's because Judas committed suicide - people who kill themselves will become vampires, because committing suicide is a sin and will damn your soul.)
So, Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 silver pieces, and when he later felt bad about what he had done and tried to return the silver to the chief priests they refused to take it back, and Judas cast away the silver pieces.
And that's why vampires are repelled by silver - because it represents the "price of blood" so hateful to Judas.
that is interesting, I am curious to know how many Biblical or Ancient referrences there are to the "classic" vampire, i.e. the undead, yet normal looking beastie without a reflection, affinity for blood and vanity, and can die by all the means stated above.
 
River_Styx said:
Silver and I think gold both have long held medicinal properties. Silver especially is good for purifying the blood.
It has some anti-microbial properties (IIRC), however the colloidal silver business seems to be a bit scamish. Also it can have some rather icky side-effects.

Have a look at this page for someone who has acquired a rather unique complexion through use fo colloidal silver.
http://homepages.together.net/~rjstan/rose1.html
 
Search said:
that is interesting, I am curious to know how many Biblical or Ancient referrences there are to the "classic" vampire, i.e. the undead, yet normal looking beastie without a reflection, affinity for blood and vanity, and can die by all the means stated above.

Biblical, none, as far as I know.
But Christianity had a strong influence on the vampire myth as it is known nowadays. In fact, some scientists think that it actually developed as a result of conflicts between (Eastern Orthodox) christianity and the pre-Christian dualistic paganism and folkloristic beliefs in Eastern Europe.
In the Bible, blood is sacrosanct, as mentioned several times (e.g., "For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off" ). Therefore, drinking blood would be a sin. More so, because it would also mean a perversion of the Eucharist ("Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins." ).
And then there's also that other vampire characteristic, that they don't stay dead and buried, but actually have something like a life after death.
The Eucharist (drinking wine as a symbol for drinking blood), and the belief in a life after death are rather central in Christian belief, so it's quite clear to see why religious people would think that vampires, in their own satanic and blasphemous way, were real. And the more obviously "satanic" something is, the more interesting it gets. Just think of the witch hunts. Only that the vampire hunts were more like, visiting graveyards to mutilate dead bodies with wooden stakes and suchlike.
Even in the 17th century, a lot of people still believed in the existance of actual vampires.
In the 18th century, the first gothic novels about vampires were written. These fictitious vampires were still demonic, but in a somewhat romanticized way.

By the way, apart from the Judas legend, there's another myth claiming a biblical person as the first vampire.
It goes something like, vaguely, that Cain was cursed by God because he'd slain his own brother, and so he became a vampire and had lots of demonic vampire children with Lilith.

Mythical and folkloristic beasties with vampire characteristics are known all over the world, but not many of them are that close to the "classic" vampire as we know it, even though at least some of the Eurasian ones seem to have been influential in a way, like the strigoi, the mulo, the lamiae, the incubi, and so on.
The word "vampir" itself isn't even that ancient, it dates back to about the 15th century, I think. (There are earlier versions of the name, though, like "upir".)
 
The Saami have a great interest in silver.

(incidentaly a race in which shapechanging is natural and normal.)
 
... Have a look at this page for someone who has acquired a rather unique complexion through use fo colloidal silver.
http://homepages.together.net/~rjstan/rose1.html

This link is long dead. Here's the text, salvaged from the Wayback Machine ...

rose1.jpg


The Silver Supplement Fraud

Guess who took the colloidal silver (CS)? Rosemary did. That's why she is slate-gray. The condition is called argyria. It is irreversible and cannot be covered by makeup.

Actually, Rosemary's doctor in New York prescribed CSP for her back in the fifties as a treatment for allergies. It was sold as a drug then. Today it is sold as a dietary supplement. You can find it in "health food" stores and on the Internet. You can even buy the equipment to make your own. It was snake oil when it was given to Rosemary. It is snake oil now.

The only thing Rosemary recommends CSP for is a gray skin dye. She knows that it is safe, effective, and permanent when used for that purpose. She also knows that being a gray person in a black and white world can have a serious negative impact on your social and economic life.

Promoters claim that CSP prevents and cures 650 diseases including Aids and cancer. They say that people with even a trace of silver in their bodies don't get sick!

Both Rosemary and the FDA have asked them for their proof. All they get are quotes from old quacks who manufactured the stuff at the turn of the century, misquotes from reputable authors and wonderful anecdotes. "I've taken it everyday for four years and feel great," the saleslady says.

The only problem Rosemary has with the anecdotes is that they are selectively chosen to sell CSP. The promoters refuse to include her negative anecdotes or those of all the other argyric people recorded in the medical literature. Rosemary had breast cancer at the age of 42. The silver in her body made her face so gray that the nurses in pre-op thought that she was in cardiac arrest! The promoters won't tell you this though.

The FDA has told the promoters that if they want to continue making medical claims for CSP they will have to first have it approved as a drug. Of course, that doesn't stop them from selling the stuff as a "dietary supplement." It just prevents them from legally writing their claims on the label or putting them in their ads.

And, oh yes, if you do decide to use CSP, have the product analysed by an independent lab. According to the dietary supplement industry itself, a lot of the stuff tested that is labelled colloidal silver really isn't. You see "dietary supplements," thanks to intense industry lobbying are unregulated by any government agency. So very often what is on the label isn't in the bottle. In fact, what is in the bottle may even be something more toxic than CSP. Buyer beware!

SALVAGED FROM: https://web.archive.org/web/20040911081419/http://homepages.together.net/~rjstan/rose1.html
 
t has some anti-microbial properties (IIRC)

It most certainly does. A quick Google brings up this:
https://aem.asm.org/content/74/7/2171

and this, which is particularly fun!
https://www.nature.com/articles/srep09555

I'm sure we had someone working on antimicrobial properties of silver at some point, or who was at least interested in it. Maybe I'm getting muddled up with the undergraduate who was convinced that extracts of some kind of melon were the answer to antibiotic resistance...
 
I will comment here a book about all kinds of supernatural beings, written by an occultist. Yes, I said occult; this might be too much for several people here, but remember: consider all opinions.

Disclosure: I believe this stuff is correct. I want to say that the explanation of the world given by science is not wrong--it is incomplete. Keep this in mind while you read about it.

The book is Monsters, by John Michael Greer. In it you will find a detailed description on how the monsters work. Say, why the faeries and vampires are afraid of water. There is, of course, an explanation on what silver does. It is the same explanation from the post above mentioning the Fortune book: silver (and also iron) disperses the etheric patterns (the sort of "matter") that werewolves, vampires and faeries are made of. Think it works in a way similar to acid.

The advantage of the book is that it was written in a way intended to the general public, not occultists. I believe it will be easier for forteans to go along with it.

The Open Library carries a digitized copy of the first edition (2001) that can be borrowed [ https://openlibrary.org/works/OL8416987W/Monsters ]. The second 2011 edition includes new chapters on zombies (the Haitian ones), and chimeras. There are also updates on faeries. However, the first edition is still very useful; if you want to buy the new one, this book is not scarce; just be sure to buy the new edition (it has a white strip on the front cover with text referencing the updates).

If anything, the book can be used as a manual by horror story writers, with its detailed explanation on the "physics" of the inner workings of supernatural entities (I used the word supernatural, but well, if these creatures "work" in an environment subject to certain laws, they are part of the universe and reality).
 
Thank you. A new book to me :)
 
We would drop a pre 1920 silver coin into drinking water tanks on caravans and such till
decimalisation buggered it up, or all the high silver content coins were in water tanks to
keep the water safe to drink, seemed to work at least we never poisoned anyone.

:omr:
 
@packshaud ? I can't find the 2011 version - I may just be mistyping of course ;) - could you check the date?
 
@packshaud ? I can't find the 2011 version - I may just be mistyping of course ;) - could you check the date?
Unfortunately, there was a problem. The publisher, Llewellyn, used the ISBN10 in the 2001 edition. And for the new one, they used tha same code, converted to the new ISBN13/EAN format. As a result, often the records for both editions are mixed.

You can buy it at Amazon US or UK; it's difficult you'd get the old one from the fullfilled by Amazon option, and in this case you can ask for a refund; if buying from a seller, ask for the white strip on the cover.

Check this: [ https://books.google.com/books?id=qDda4Q27kXYC&pg=PT4 ]
 
hank you. comprehensive help!
 
..isn't there a schnaps that has 22ct gold in it that's supposed to be good for you?

Goldschlager (there's an umlaut over that a, I'm sure some smart-arse will re-format it for me). Swiss cinnamon schnapps, dunno about it being good for you, but it's not to my taste. 24 carat flakes, worth about £0.40 per litre bottle.
 
There's also edible gold which comes in extremely thin sheets that poncey chefs use to tart up their dishes occasionally. Why? Does it taste of anything or is it just food porn bling?
 
There's also edible gold which comes in extremely thin sheets that poncey chefs use to tart up their dishes occasionally. Why? Does it taste of anything or is it just food porn bling?
The latter. It's a waste of gold.
 
I assume it's for high status types who have at some point in their life been told their sh1t is brown like everyone else's.
This is terribly more accurate than you think. Gold can't be corroded by the chloridric acid in stomach, so the flakes reach... the other side intact.
Isn't it wonderful?
 
Goldschlager (there's an umlaut over that a, I'm sure some smart-arse will re-format it for me). Swiss cinnamon schnapps, dunno about it being good for you, but it's not to my taste. 24 carat flakes, worth about £0.40 per litre bottle.

When I was a student the story was that the gold flakes make tiny cuts on the inside of your throat so you got pissed quicker.

Utter bullshit I'd imagine.
 
I seem to remember the family next door having 2 daughters that suffered badly from arthritis,
as a last ditch treatment they were given gold injections, there seemed to be some risk involved
with this but it seemed to go well and I never heard anything more about it.
 
This is terribly more accurate than you think. Gold can't be corroded by the chloridric acid in stomach, so the flakes reach... the other side intact.
Isn't it wonderful?

Yes, you can mine your turds afterwards, sell the proceeds & in effect get your meal for free.
 
I seem to remember the family next door having 2 daughters that suffered badly from arthritis,
as a last ditch treatment they were given gold injections, there seemed to be some risk involved
with this but it seemed to go well and I never heard anything more about it.
I remember that happening with an old neighbour of my Mum's. It didn't seem to work for him.
 
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Goldschlager (there's an umlaut over that a, I'm sure some smart-arse will re-format it for me). Swiss cinnamon schnapps, dunno about it being good for you, but it's not to my taste. 24 carat flakes, worth about £0.40 per litre bottle.
Danziger Goldwasser - I found a 30 year old bottle (from Germany) in the garage when I moved home. So syrupy it didn't want to pour.

Goldwasser.jpg
 
Silver is a heavy metal and is toxic to humans in large-ish quantities. People have poisoned themselves thru the use of silver salts imbibed for their "health". Silver does have low level antiseptic properties.

It is worth pointing out that the use of garlic against vampires is based on a combination of folklore and some practical science. In the Balkans, garlic was known as the "little warrior" and its curative and antiseptic properties made it a crucial element in the herbal curatives of the region, and its medical value has been confirmed by science LINK. As disease itself was seen as a supernatural affliction rather than a merely physical one, it is unsurprising that the little warrior was sent in as a ward and a defense against vampirism, as it was seen to be sovereign against so many other afflictions. The placebo effect is a powerful thing, especially if supported by perceived results.

It is worth pointing out that the italian folk tradition, the Benandanti LINK, used swords made from stalks of fennel forged into silver blades in their spiritual warfare rituals.

In China, swords made of peach wood were used to attack spirits. The peach tree is called "Tao", but apart from the spiritual meaning, it also means "run away". Importantly, peach was also seen as being connected to spring, life, and rebirth, and thus would drive spirits into their next incarnation. The Chinese also make use of "cash swords", made of coins, as amulets, around their beds to ward off spirit attack. The best of these are made entirely of coins from the same lucky year. Typically these coins were brass.

In Japan, as the katana was seen as an extension of the spirit of the warrior using it, the weapon of a spiritually powerful individual wielded by their descendant was seen as a strong spirit fighting power. Katanas and Tachis were often kept in shrines and venerated for this, among other reasons.
 
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