Where do zombies come from?

I have started to read a bit about zombies and their past. My not-so-extensive research pointed to the depths of Haitian history and being rooted way back in the slave trade when Haiti was a brutal slave colony surviving only on imported slavery from Africa (as the local population had mostly been killed off).  One third of the slaves who arrived on the island were worked to death within 3 years. 

So when Haiti gained its independence it is no surprise that one of the biggest fears that plagued popular culture was the idea of becoming a mindless, identity less, helpless manual worker. During the 1800’s, evil voodoo sourcers on the island, were said to prey on dead bodies, bringing them back to life for grueling work in the fields.  The locals were not afraid of the ‘zombies’ (who were often thought to be their dead relatives and friends) but of becoming one.  They would go to great lengths to protect their deceased from this fate, sometimes even shooting a body twice to lessen the chances being preyed upon.

 

Zombie make-up evening

 

A whacking great thanks to everyone who contributed some ideas to my zombie forum.  We had a large amount of fun trying out some of the ideas last night.  Here are some things that we learned:

1)    coloured face paints that comes in tubes from the fancy dress shop on Pottenger street are popular

2)    But you have to be careful as the colours are very strong and even a little bit can turn a previously white face in to a grey one, or even a smurf.

3)    Some people are allergic to latex - me, my skin went very red and I felt really rather uncomfortable, fortunately we had someone with some medical experience on hand who noticed and advised me to take it off before my face started peeling away.

4)    Other than that latex is pretty cool.

5)    Even cooler is latex and toilet paper, ripped apart to look like an open wound.

6)    Making up a whole face can be time consuming

7)    Latex is very fun when it dries and you peel it off.

If I have missed anything off let me know.  Here are some snap shots of our antics.