GOLEM

GOLEM
"This is the name of a gigantic artificial humanoid being in the Jewish legends of Europe, of which a number were said to have existed. The most famous was created in Prague in the Czech state. In the tale, Rabbi Judah Loew ben Bezabel, who was well versed in the use of holy letters for magical purposes, created from clay an image of a human form that was activated by placing the formulaic 'Ameth' or 'Emet' or or 'AMTh' (meaning 'truth,' 'reality') on a Shem tablet under the being's tongue. Then the Golem, which means 'a clod of earth,' would, on command, do menial tasks such as ringing bells for the synagogue. However, it was essential to remove the tablet from its tongue for the Golem, being inhuman, never slept and would carry on. One night this was forgotten, and the Golem rampaged through the streets, creating mayhem, knocking down both people and things in the way. At last the rabbi caught it and removed the tablet. the Golem shrank back to its little clay image, which then had the words 'Meth' or 'Met,' or 'MTh,' meaning 'Death,' inscribed on its forehead to prevent a recurrence."
Carol Rose, Giants, Monsters and Dragons

“It was huge, bigger than the box it came out of, which was impossible, she knew. But it was. There was light from the door, and some from the window⁠—moonlight or streetlights⁠—and in it, she saw a smooth, featureless, empty face; an oval of scraped clay. The arms and legs were tree trunks, rough and jointless, and the hands were lumps without fingers. It took a step, the walls shook, and Garfield moaned.”

“Then raise your hand to the monster’s forehead. On it will be this word Emet, the seal of the Holy One.”
Bari Wood, The Tribe

For my interpretation of this magical monster I combined both the myth and Bari Wood's excellent novel. My version is humanoid, like the myth, but has the words אמת inscribed on the forehead of an otherwise featureless face like in The Tribe.

 In 2012, I was lucky enough to travel to Prague where I got to visit a bunch of sites related to this myth!

First up, is the Old Jewish Cemetery which has a caricature of the golem inlaid into the mosaic floor at the entrance. This cemetery, one of the largest of its kind in Europe and one of the most important Jewish historical monuments in Prague, is the resting place of Rabbi Loew, creator of the golem. Here's a few pics of his grave and the mosaic.

Our next stop was the Old New Synagogue. The Golem's body was stored in the attic genizah of the Old New Synagogue, where it would be restored to life again if needed.

The golem shows up often in pop culture. The first film depiction was in Paul Wegener's trilogy The Golem (1915), The Golem and The Dancing Girl (1917), and The Golem: How He Came Into The World (1920). Unfortunately, all but the first film are lost. 

The golem makes appearances or is referenced in television shows as diverse as The X-Files (Kaddish), The Simpsons (Treehouse Of Horror XVII), Gargoyles (Golem) The Sopranos (Denial, Anger, Acceptance) and Supernatural (Everybody Hates Hitler).

Golems also show up in tabletop games and DnD...too many places to be counted but here's two great examples. The first is Dave Trampier's Flesh Golem and the second is, friend of the blog Christopher Burdett's Stone Golem.

Tune in tomorrow for the last of the week's magic monsters...I'll be revisiting a creature Lovecraft himself mentioned!