Bringing in the Sheaves

In "Bad Captions", I mentioned a visit to Monash University Library.

What I didn't mention, however, is why I was there!

That should be obvious, either way. But, for the record, I was looking for some research materials!

I got quite the bounty too.


From left to right: 1) the Charles Grivel-edited Dracula: De la mort à la vie (Paris : Editions de l’Herne, 1997), 2) James B. Twitchell's The Living Dead: A Study of the Vampire in Romantic Literature (Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 1981), 3) the Julie Bertschik/Christa Agnes Tuczay-edited Poetische Wiedergänger: Deutschsprachige Vampirismus-Diskurse vom Mittelalter bis zur Gegenwart (Tübingen : Francke/Verlag, 2005), 4) Martin V. Riccardo's Vampires Unearthed: The Complete Multimedia Vampire & Dracula Bibliography (New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1983), 5) the Christopher Frayling-edited The Vampyre: Lord Ruthven to Count Dracula (London: Victor Gollancz Ltd, 1978), 6) & 7) Volumes 1 and 2 of James Malcolm Rymer or Thomas Peckett Prest's Varney the Vampyre or The Feast of Blood (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1972) and 8) the Dieter Sturm und Klaus Völker-edited Von denen Vampiren oder Menschensaugern: Dichtungen und Dokumente (München: Carl Hanser Verlag, 1968).

On top of that, I also had a browse through Dudley Wright's Vampires and Vampirism (London: William Rider and Son, Limited, 1914), photocopied a particular section of Jessie Adelaide Middleton's Another Grey Ghost Book: With a Chapter on Prophetic Dreams and a Note on Vampires (London: Eveleigh Nash, 1915) and leafed through Ornella Volta's Le Vampire: La Mort, le Sang, la Peur (Paris: Jean-Jaques Pauvert Éditeur, 1962). All in the Rare Books Collection reading room.

Just a day in the life, really.

Bad Captions

Yesterday, I was in the Rare Books Collection reading room at Monash University Library (Clayton), having a browse through Ornella Volta's Le Vampire: La Mort, le Sang, la Peur (Paris: Jean-Jaques Pauvert Éditeur, 1962).

When I came to page 26, I noticed a picture I had seen elsewhere.

I immediately thought of a plate (3) in Christopher Frayling's Vampyres: Lord Byron to Count Dracula (London: Faber and Faber, 1992).

The difference, however, is in the way they're captioned.

In Volta's book, the image is credited thusly:

Jan Luiken : Bianca Rubea, 1711.
Coll. Henry Kahnweiler

Meanwhile, Frayling's version reads:

A vampire rises from the grave, illustrating an early eighteenth century treatise on the undead.

And sure enough, if we turn to Frayling's "Bibliography and Acknowledgements", we get a reference to a certain source consulted for his book:

On the erotic angle, Ornella Volta's Il Vampiro (1962) is interesting (if a little strange at times) and has some extraordinary illustrations (p. 424)

However, the riddle doesn't quite end there.

I thought it'd be easy to trace Bianca Rubea as a novel. Thus far, I haven't been able to trace anything by that name.

I've been able to track down Luiken (or Luyken, 1649-1712) easily enough, though. Turns out he was a Dutch engraver. But the only books I've been able to turn up, that fit the year Volta's caption gives (1711), are: De bykorf des gemoeds and Het leerzaam huisraad.[1]

Rest assured, these are not treatises of the "undead". Indeed, Luiken never illustrated any such treatise.

Looks like Faber and Faber and Frayling tried to pull the wool over our eyes!

[1] "Jan Luyken". DBNL auteur. 1 August 2008.