Many first-hand accounts of vampirism in the 17th and early 18th century were collected by Dom Augustin Calmet, the Benedictine Abbot of Senones. His anthology, _Treatise on the Vampires of Hungary and Surrounding Regions_, was first published in Paris in 1746, and became a bestseller shortly thereafter.
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The vampires that appear in modern film and literature are moreso distant cousins of the original vampires of eastern and central Europe than close relatives. Todays’ vampires, for the most part, are desirable creatures; although still evil in some respects, many are upper-class, refined individuals with both a conscience and a definable sensuality about them.
The vampire was sometimes used as a means to explain the untimely death of a member of the community, or the demise of their livestock. Once it was generally accepted that they indeed were under attack by a vampire, a search would begin of those recently deceased. Should any corpse appear lifelike (for example, have pliable joints), or have fingernails and hair that had continued to grow after death, it was deemed to be a vampire. Although there were several variations on the proper disposal of the vampire, many involved driving a stake into the heart or other areas of the body, as well as decapitation. In countries such as Greece and Crete, the head was either burned, or boiled in vinegar, while in Poland, the body was re-buried face down. In most parts of Europe, however, those who desecrated the bodies of the dead could potentially face both religious and non-religious penalties, and although there is conflicting opinions on this, these actions were most probably a rare event. Modern-day vampires are created purposely by another, as a means of obtaining an eternal companion, or perhaps in order to procreate, since they are unable to have children by normal means. The vampire of the 17th and 18th century, however, was created not by another, but as a result of how the person was born, or how they died. For example, if a child was born out of wedlock or born with teeth, then he was destined to become a vampire. Dying by violent means, such as suicide, could also lead to the corpse rising again. Vampires are as hot a topic of discussion as they were 300 years ago, and although the belief in them may not be as commonplace, the interest in them still is. Once thought of as a different species distint from the human race, we have anthropomorphicized them into _someone_, not _something_. Many no longer see them as harbingers of death and disease, but as the chance at eternal life. Sources: Frayling, Christopher. _Vampyres, Lord Byron to Count Dracula_, Melton, Gordon J. _The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead_, Ronay, Gabriel. _The Dracula Myth_, This work is the copyright of the author. You may not copy, reproduce, distribute, publish, display, perform, modify, create derivative works, transmit, or in any way exploit any such content, nor may you distribute any part of this content, sell or offer it for sale.
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