"Shadows in Zamboula" is one of the original stories by
Robert E. Howard about
Conan the Cimmerian, first published in ''
Weird Tales
''Weird Tales'' is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine founded by J. C. Henneberger and J. M. Lansinger in late 1922. The first issue, dated March 1923, appeared on newsstands February 18. The first editor, Edwin Baird, prin ...
'' in November 1935. Its original title was "The Man-Eaters of Zamboula".
The story takes place over the course of a night in the desert city of Zamboula, with political intrigue amidst streets filled with roaming
cannibals
Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is well documented, bo ...
. This story also introduced a fearsome strangler named Baal-Pteor, who is one of the few humans in the Conan stories to be a physical challenge for the main character himself.
By present-day sensibilities, the story is marred by including a racial stereotype - blacks as cannibals - though Howard strove to lessen this by making it clear that the cannibals in Zamboula are only the specific blacks from Darfar, other blacks being untainted. A white character, Aram Baksh, proves to be a more sinister antagonist by facilitating, exploiting, and profiting from the cannibalism of the Dafari slaves.
Plot summary
Despite the warning he received in a
suq
A bazaar () or souk (; also transliterated as souq) is a marketplace consisting of multiple small stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, North Africa and India. However, temporary open markets elsewhere, such as in the W ...
by an elderly nomad, Conan spends the night at a cheap tavern in Zamboula, owned by Aram Baksh. As night falls, a black
cannibal
Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is well documented, bo ...
from Dafar enters his chamber, by means of a trick lock, to drag Conan away and feast on him. All of the Darfarian
slave
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
s in the city are cannibals who roam the streets at night. Since the cannibals only prey on travelers, the inhabitants of the city tolerate this and stay locked securely in their homes, while nomads and beggars make sure to spend the night at a comfortable distance from Zamboula. Even worse, Aram Baksh has made a deal with the cannibals - he provides them with "fresh meat" and profits from the belongings of his ill-fated guests at the inn. This night, however, the unfortunate cannibal attempts to prey on a fully aware Conan and pays with his life. Realizing his room is actually a trap, Conan escapes into the Zamboulan streets where he encounters a naked woman being attacked by the roaming cannibals. Conan rescues her, and the woman tells him how she tried to secure her fiancé's affection with a love potion, which instead made a raving lunatic of him, and he chased her out of their home. After promising Conan "a reward" for his assistance, the two capture the mad lover, and then attempt to murder the high priest responsible for the lover's insanity.
The woman is captured in their attempt, and forced - via hypnotism - to dance before the high priest until she is exhausted. Conan, after defeating a strangler named Baal-Pteor at his own game, rescues the woman and kills the corrupt priest. Right before Conan could claim his payment, the woman reveals herself as Nafertari,
mistress
Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to:
Romance and relationships
* Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a d ...
of the
satrap
A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires.
The satrap served as viceroy to the king, though with consid ...
of Zamboula, Jungir Khan (the insane lover). Taking the antidote to Jungir, Nafertari promises Conan a position in her council and vast wealth.
Conan, however, leaves the city and reveals to the reader how he had recognized the two almost immediately. He takes his revenge on Aram Baksh by cutting out Baksh's tongue and slicing off his beard. Soon, Conan renders him both mute and unrecognizable. Eventually, he turns Baksh over to the hungry cannibals so they can devour him (one of the most profound displays of Conan's ironic sense of humor). After dealing with Aram Baksh, Conan leaves the city with a bag of gold and a magic ring which started the night's intrigues (Conan had stolen it from the insane Jungir during their first encounter), with the intent of selling his prize to another interested party.
Reprint history
The story was republished in the collections ''
Conan the Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including '' Conan the Barbarian'' and '' Conan the Destroyer'') ...
'' (
Gnome Press
Gnome Press was an American small-press publishing company primarily known for publishing many science fiction classics. Gnome was one of the most eminent of the fan publishers of SF, producing 86 titles in its lifespan — many considered classi ...
, 1954) and ''
Conan the Wanderer
''Conan the Wanderer'' is a 1968 collection of four fantasy short stories by American writers Robert E. Howard, L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. Most of the stories were origina ...
'' (
Lancer Books
Lancer Books was a publisher of paperback books founded by Irwin Stein and Walter Zacharius that operated from 1961 through 1973. While it published stories of a number of genres, it was noted most for its science fiction and fantasy, particularl ...
, 1968). It has more recently been published in the collections ''
The Conan Chronicles Volume 1: The People of the Black Circle'' (
Gollancz, 2000) as "Shadows in Zamboula" and in ''
Conan of Cimmeria: Volume Three (1935-1936)'' (Del Rey, 2005) under its original title, "The Man-Eaters of Zamboula."
The story was also published in Karl Edward Wagner's Berkley Medallion Editions (Red nails, People of the Black Circle and Hour of the Dragon), published by Berkley Books in 1977. The story is also found in 'The Essential Conan' published in 1998 by the Science Fiction Book Club. This collection contains the Conan stories as edited back to their original form by Karl Edward Wagner in 1977 Berkley editions.
Adaptation
The story was adapted by
Roy Thomas
Roy William Thomas Jr."Roy Thomas Checklist" ''Alter Ego'' vol. 3, #50 (July 2005) p. 16 (born November 22, 1940) is an American comic book writer and editor, who was Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibl ...
and
Neal Adams
Neal Adams (June 15, 1941 – April 28, 2022) was an American comic book artist. He was the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates, and was a creators-rights advocate who helped secure a pension and recognition for Supe ...
in ''
Savage Sword of Conan
''The Savage Sword of Conan'' was a black-and-white magazine-format comic book series published beginning in 1974 by Curtis Magazines, an imprint of American company Marvel Comics, and then later by Marvel itself. ''Savage Sword of Conan'' starred ...
'' #14.
External links
*
Shadows in Zamboula at Project GutenbergConan the Barbarian at AmratheLion.comConan.com: The Official Website*
*
{{Conan
1935 short stories
Conan the Barbarian stories by Robert E. Howard
Pulp stories
Fantasy short stories
Horror short stories
Works originally published in Weird Tales
Cannibalism in fiction