Nachzehrer

Lore

The Nachzehrer is often equated with vampires, but in reality, it is a completely different type of creature.

Unlike vampires, the Nachzehrer, according to legends, does not drink the blood of the living but consumes its own dead body while in its grave. Because it eats its own flesh, a diseased environment begins to form, which infects people through the air—usually those living near the cemetery or burial site.

In other sources, it's suggested that these monsters are simply a type of undead who, for some reason, lack the strength to become full-fledged vampires. However, the Nachzehrer cannot turn another person into a Nachzehrer by biting them or through a wound. Typically, a person becomes a Nachzehrer after dying an unusual death—for example, by suicide, as a victim of a violent death, or as one of the first to contract the plague. It was also believed that drowned individuals could become Nachzehrers.

An interesting observation by a priest revealed that Nachzehrers do not leave their graves. Instead, after awakening, they begin by consuming their burial shrouds, in which the deceased were previously wrapped, and then themselves. The more they consume themselves, the weaker their family members become, dying one after another from illness and exhaustion. It was also believed that the Nachzehrer would not move if its grave were opened. It could be identified by its inverted thumbs and open left eye.

To prevent a person who died an unusual death from becoming a Nachzehrer after death, various uncommon measures were taken: placing a stone, brick, or coin in the mouth of the deceased; a clod of earth under the chin; tightly tying a scarf around the neck; placing metal objects (scissors, nails, or knives) on the chest; binding the hands (sometimes only symbolically—with rosary beads); and filling the coffin with pebbles or dried vegetables. The eyes of the deceased were always kept closed; sometimes all of this was accompanied by burying the deceased face down. The purpose of these precautions was to ensure that no orifice of the potential monster was open (even the eyes), so it could not have a mystical connection with its relatives. The mouth was sealed to prevent the supposed Nachzehrer from starting to gnaw on its own flesh.