In
Catalan myth, Dip () is an evil, black
Hellhound
A hellhound is a mythological hound that embodies a guardian or a servant of hell, the devil, or the underworld. Hellhounds occur in mythologies around the world, with the best known examples being Cerberus from Greek mythology, Garmr from N ...
and emissary of the
Devil
A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of t ...
, who sucks people's blood. Like other figures associated with demons in Catalan myth, he is lame in one leg. Dip is pictured on the escutcheon of
Pratdip
Pratdip () is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of Baix Camp, in the province of Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain.
Most of the people of Pratdip work in agriculture in the pastures, fields, and forests around the village. Prominent local agricultural ...
.
The legend is very old. Images of these vampire dogs already appear on the altarpiece of Santa Marina de Pratdip, from 1602. They also appear in another altarpiece from 1730, cut out on a gold background. Legend has it that these dogs sucked the blood of cattle, but only went out at night, and among their victims were drunken night owls who went to drink wine in the village taverns.
It was said that evil eyes could be seen in the shadows of the night. It is believed that this legend was intended to frighten the drunkards of the village and thus prevent them from engaging in more drinking.
According to tradition, the name of the village comes from these dogs, which are said to have disappeared in the nineteenth century. At the entrance to Pratdip there is a monument to this mythological being, but as it is depicted it has a very kind image.
Due to his thirst for blood, the dip served to inspire Joan Perucho who, in his novel ''The Natural Stories'' (1960), tells the story of Onofre de Dip, a vampire with the ability to transform himself into many animals. The central part of the play takes place in Pratdip at the beginning of the nineteenth century, in the middle of the Carlist war, and the dip was actually an ambassador of King James who 700 years earlier had gone to the Carpathians on a diplomatic mission and had been attacked there by a noble vampire.
See also
*
Cadejo
The cadejo () is a supernatural Spirit world (Spiritualism), spirit that appears as a dog-shaped creature with blue eyes when it's calm and red eyes when it's attacking. It roams isolated roads at night, according to Central American folklore of ...
*
Black Shuck
In English folklore, Black Shuck, Old Shuck, Old Shock or simply Shuck is the name given to a ghostly black dog which is said to roam the coastline and countryside of East Anglia, one of many such black dogs recorded in folklore across the Bri ...
*
Barghest
In Northern English folklore, the Barghest or Barguest is a mythical monstrous black dog with large teeth and claws, This in turn cites:
*Wirt Sikes, ''British Goblins'' (1880)
*''Notes and Queries'', first series, ii. 51.
*Joseph Ritson, ''Fai ...
References
Sources
*''El gran libro de los vampiros''. Angel Gordon, Morales y Torres editores. (Spanish)
External links
Seal of Pratdipon the bottom right of the webpage
Catalan mythology
Mythological dogs
Mythological canines
Catalan legendary creatures
Catalan words and phrases
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