by Daniel Harms
VON JUNZT, FRIEDRICH WILHEIM (1795–1840)
Noted explorer and author of Unaussprechlichen Kulten. Friedrich was born in Cologne in 1795 to Ava and Heinrich von Junzt, a family rich in the coal industry. (Solar Pons’ claim that von Junzt was a baron remains unsubstantiated.) The birth of his brother Augustus in 1804 led to his mother’s death. This led Friedrich’s father to seek out spiritualists in a quest that was to affect von Junzt for the rest of his life. Despite his young age, he was also inducted into a Miltenberg fraternal order, inspiring a love of secret societies and their lore that would last throughout his life.
Von Junzt entered the University of Berlin in 1814, meeting his friend Gottfried Mülder the following year. The two of them spent some time after their graduation travelling through Asia, after which von Junzt returned to Germany and completed his doctoral thesis, “The Origin and Influence of Semantic Magical Texts.” He taught at the University of Wurttemberg for four years, after which he travelled through Europe, the Americas, and Africa, investigating and joining as many secret societies as he could discover. At one point, his wanderings took him to Paris, where he would meet Alexis Ladeau, with whom he travelled for a short time. During this time he published two short monographs, Les Vampires (1827) and Les Lupines (an 1828 treatise on werewolves), but in 1835 he returned to his family’s estate and began work on his magnum opus, Unaussprechlichen Kulten (or Nameless Cults) which was published in Dusseldorf in 1839.
After the completion of his manuscript, von Junzt set out for parts unknown. Years later, upon his return from an expedition to Mongolia, von Junzt secluded himself in a locked and barred room in Dusseldorf, writing a manuscript whose exact nature remains a mystery. A few months later, he was killed in his lodgings with the marks of talons on his throat and the chamber’s locks still intact. Alexis Ladeau, a Frenchman who had been von Junzt’s best friend in life, took the mutilated pages of the manuscript and put them together. Having read them, he then burnt the manuscript and cut his own throat with a razor. Following these events, frantic owners burned many copies of the Black Book.
Von Junzt’s research was exhaustive and comprehensive. He is known to have infiltrated many different religious sects and secretive cults in order to write about their practices. Von Junzt was able to access many secret collections of books, and was one of the few who had seen the unexpurgated Book of Iod, the Ghorl Nigral kept at Yian-Ho, and the Necronomicon’s Greek translation. (Rumor has it that the German scholar made a German translation of the latter entitled Das Verichteraraberbuch, published posthumously in 1848.) Though his stories seem unbelievable to many, subsequent scholars in the field of medieval metaphysics have been able to substantiate many of his findings.
Since his time, von Junzt has attracted considerable controversy. Many call him a pioneer in the fields of anthropology and religion, while others point out his rambling style of writing and outrageous claims as evidence of mental instability. The debate over von Junzt’s writings is one is likely to continue far into the future. To add fuel to the fire, some even insist that von Junzt survived his supposed death and still walks the earth via sorcery.
[It was Lovecraft who provided Howard with von Junzt’s first and middle names. Occasionally, Von Junzt’s first name is given as “Fvindvuf,” the result of Lin Carter’s inability to read Lovecraft’s handwriting in one of his letters.]
See Abbith; Black Stone; Black Sutra, Bran Mak Morn; Ghatanothoa; Ghorl Nigral; Kn’aa; Ladeau, Alexis; Mülder, Gottfried; Necronomicon (appendices); Pnakotus; Secret Mysteries of Asia; Temple of the Toad; Unaussprechlichen Kulten; Yian-Ho; Yog-Sothoth. (“Dead of Night”, Carter; “Zoth-Ommog”, Carter; “Solar Pons and the Cthulhu Mythos”, DeBill and Berglund; “The History of Von Unaussprechlichen Kulten”, Harris; “Timeline of Von Unaussprechlichen Kulten”, Harris; “The ‘True’ History of Friedrich Wilheim von Junzt”, Hillebrand, Harms, and Harris; “The Black Stone”, Howard; “The Children of the Night”, Howard (O); “The Thing on the Roof”, Howard; Schrodinger’s Cat Trilogy, R. Wilson.)
VOOLA RITUAL
Incantation that calls up beings of the earth, especially a creature living beneath a rock somewhere within the Severn River Valley. Several people must perform the ritual if it is to be effective, however. This ritual may also be used to call up Tsathoggua, but does not provide the means to put him back down without making a sacrifice.
(“The Mine on Yuggoth”, Campbell; “The Thing under Memphis”, Carter; “The White People”, Machen (O).)
VOONITHS
Amphibious creatures that dwell in the swamps of Oriab in the Dreamlands. Vooniths are creatures with salamander-like heads, poisonous skin, and long tails. Those on Oriab can often be heard howling at night. They are a risk to travelers, but those who pass close enough to Mount Ngranek are safe from them.
(“The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath”, Lovecraft (O); H. P. Lovecraft’s Dreamlands, Petersen et. al.; S. Petersen’s Field Guide to Creatures of the Dreamlands, Petersen et. al..
VOOR
Kingdom beyond the edge of the world where, according to the Green Book, water leaves with the sun and the light can be extinguished. This was probably the “Desolation of Voor”, a site on the isle of Ultima Thule near Hyperborea. The people of this land once built huge domes and cemeteries, but then vanished, and later civilizations shunned their ruins. Their magic was preserved, however, and such spells as the “Voorish sign” originated here.
See Deep Dendo; Green Book; Voorish Sign. (“The Offering”, Carter; “The Secret in the Parchment”, Carter; “The White People”, Machen (O).)
VOORISH SIGN
Hand pass or glyph that might aid in making the invisible visible. It might also make certain spells more efficacious or create a passageway to other worlds.
See Voor. (“The Dunwich Horror”, Lovecraft (O); “The Adventure of the Voorish Sign”, Lupoff; Call of Cthulhu, Petersen and Willis.)
VOORMIS
Sub-human entities that lived in the land of Hyperborea (present-day Greenland) before the arrival of humans. All voormis traced their ancestry back to Voorm, the Thing Without a Face, a being allegedly the product of the mating of the minor deity Shathak with Tsathoggua. According to other sources, the Valusian serpent people bred the Voormis during the Pleistocene as a race of slaves. With the decline of their masters, the Voormis broke free of their enslavement and went to live on the continent of Hyperborea. There, they beat back the horrible Gnophkehs into the polar wasteland and laid the groundwork for a new civilization.
The worship of Tsathoggua, the founder of their race, was especially important to the Voormis, many of whom dwelt underground so as to be closer to their lord. At one point in their history, however, the Voormis became involved in a rebellion in which the worshipers of the new god Ithaqua struck out against the followers of Tsathoggua. In the end, Ithaqua’s followers were soundly beaten and exiled from the lands of the more orthodox Voormis.
Between this great civil war and the coming cold, the Voormis’ civilization had been exhausted by the time the first humans arrived in Hyperborea. At first, the Voormis aided these newcomers in finding food and shelter, instructing them in the scientific and magical arts. As the number of humans increased, the Voormis slowly dwindled, until the few remaining left their cities to hide in the mountains, with their largest colony at Mount Voormithadreth. The humans quickly forgot about their one-time benefactors and proclaimed themselves lords of Hyperborea, often hunting the Voormis for sport.
Many years later, when the cold came once again to Hyperborea, the Voormis, who had sunk to almost bestial levels, made raids on human villages for food. The Hyperboreans retaliated, crushing most of the remaining Voormis and staging periodic hunting expeditions to exterminate the rest. Little has been heard of this once-great race following the fall of Hyperborea, but it is rumored that the mysterious ape-men, such as the yeti and Bigfoot, sighted in various parts of the world are the last surviving Voormis.
See
Aphoom Zhah; Gnoph-keh; Hyperborea; Knygathin Zhaum, Pnakotic Manuscripts; Sfatlicllp; Tsathoggua; Ubbo-Sathla; Voormithadreth. (“The Acolyte of the Flame”, Carter; “The Scroll of Morloc”, Carter and Smith; “The Trail of Tsathogghua (sic)”, Herber; “The Seven Geases”, Smith; “The Testament of Athammaus”, Smith (O).)
VOORMISH TABLETS
Tablets written by the Voormis during their heyday. Their lore is considered to be powerful, and both Eibon and Haon-Dor consulted them during their researches. The tablets mention Aphoom Zhah, the Fishers from Outside, and how the Voormi wizard Hurun succumbed to the Curse of Rhan-Tegoth, but most of their contents are unknown.
(“The Shadow of the Sleeping God”, Ambuehl; “The Acolyte of the Flame”, Carter (O); The Life of Eibon according to Cyron of Varaad, Carter; “The Descent into the Abyss”, Carter and Smith.)
VOORMITHADRETH, MOUNT
Highest peak of the Eiglophian Mountains of Hyperborea. This mountain was volcanic in origin (though the wizard Eibon insisted it was artificial) and named for the Voormis who inhabited the tunnels which honeycombed it. The braver of the Hyperborean nobility hunted these creatures on the mountain’s slopes.
The toad-god Tsathoggua lurked in deep caverns beneath this peak, and because of this the Hyperborean cultists of Tsathoggua turned toward Mount Voormithadreth during their worship of the Great Old One. There were darker rumors that even more hideous beings dwelt under Voormithadreth.
See Abhoth; Atlach-Nacha; Eibon; Haon-Dor; Shub-Niggurath; Sss’haa, Tsathoggua; voormis. (“Shaggai”, Carter; “The Seven Geases”, Smith (O).)
VORVADOSS
Entity known as the Flaming One, the Troubler of the Sands, or the Lord of the Universal Spaces. Vorvadoss appears as a cloaked and hooded figured surrounded by green flames, and has a face veiled in silver mist and black eyes with tiny flames dancing inside. Vorvadoss sometimes referred to as Vorvadoss of the Gray Gulf of Yarnak (or Bel Yarnak), where law decreed that only the Sindara of Bel Yarnak might worship him. The people of Mu revered Vorvadoss at the peak of the mountain Nergu-K’nyan, and many considered him to be the mightiest of earth’s gods.
The Book of Iod mentions that Vorvadoss is neither a Great Old One nor Elder God, leaving his position to be decided on a case-by-case basis. In one invocation of Vorvadoss, the being seemed to be beneficent toward humanity, though in such matters, it is difficult to be certain.
See Book of Iod. (“The Star-Seed”, Ambuehl; “Wizards of Hyperborea”, Fultz and Burns; “The Eater of Souls”, Kuttner (O); “The Invaders”, Kuttner.)
VULTHOOM
Being said to be one of Yog-Sothoth’s sons. Vulthoom resembles a many-rooted plant with a gigantic trunk and a huge blossom at the top holding the semblance of a tiny fairy-like creature. Vulthoom dwells in the cavern of Ravormos on Mars.
Millions of years ago, Vulthoom fled to Mars in its ether-ship from a conflict with more powerful entities. Upon its arrival on the red planet, it subjugated the natives of that world using its vast knowledge of science and technology. After a while, Vulthoom tired of its worshipers, and retired beneath the ground into the caverns of Ravornos. Over several centuries, the people forgot the true nature of the extraterrestrial visitor, eventually believing that Vulthoom was the devil and his home in Ravornos was actually the underworld. Soon, the majority of the Aihai people had dismissed Vulthoom as a legend.
A cult dedicated to Vulthoom managed to survive among the lower classes. According to this group, Vulthoom still lives; though the creature is not immortal, its lifespan is immeasurable. The monster dwells within the caverns of Ravornos, where it undergoes a cycle of a thousand years of activity, followed by a thousand years of rest. Vulthoom may bless those who are especially faithful with the same longevity, falling asleep when Vulthoom does so and awakening at the same time as their master. When awake, these servants plot to expand the worship of their master across Mars and to other worlds.
According to the Revelations of Glaaki, Vulthoom only a child of the race upon which the legends of vampires are based.
See Yog-Sothoth. (“The Inhabitant of the Lake”, Campbell; “Zoth-Ommog”, Carter; “Vulthoom”, Smith (O).)
VYONES
See Averoigne.
W
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WAILING WRITHER
See Nyarlathotep (Wailing Writher).
WAITE, ASENATH (1905–1932)
Daughter of Ephraim Waite and an unknown mother. Asenath Waite grew up in the Innsmouth home of her father. Following his madness and death, she became a ward of the principal of Kingsport’s Hall School and later attended Miskatonic University.
It was at Miskatonic that Asenath met Edward Derby, poet and author of Azathoth and Other Horrors. The two became attracted to one another and married shortly thereafter. During their marriage, Asenath became Derby’s tutor in the magical arts. Although on the surface their union was happy, those close to Derby noticed a shocking change in his personality during this period.
Around three years after the marriage, Asenath disappeared; Derby insisted that his wife had gone on an extended vacation, and no one thought anything amiss. Later, after her husband had been confined to an asylum, her body turned up just outside the house of Daniel Upton, Derby’s close friend, presumably having been left there by persons unknown.
See Cult of the Skull; Derby, Edward Pickman; Upton, Daniel; Waite, Ephraim. (“The Thing on the Doorstep”, Lovecraft (O).)
WAITE, EPHRAIM
Resident of Innsmouth, Massachusetts, who many considered to be a wizard of some power. Waite is an old Innsmouth name, but according to rumor, Ephraim Waite was originally Khemosh Ephraim ben-Daniel of New York, a young man interested in diabolism, who changed his name and moved to Innsmouth. Ephraim supposedly could control the weather and perform other mystical feats, and he often traveled to Miskatonic University to consult that institution’s occult holdings. He was known for solving many minor crimes among the locals and participated in rites of the Cult of the Skull.
In his later years, Waite took a wife whose face no one ever saw and who disappeared shortly after she bore his daughter Asenath. When his daughter was in her early teens, Ephraim lost his mind, and Asenath confined him in the attic of their Innsmouth residence. Ephraim died not long following his imprisonment. Some suspected poison, but most of Innsmouth’s residents had no misgivings about Asenath, and no one ever charged her with his death.
See Derby, Edward; Waite, Asenath. (“The Thing on the Doorstep”, Lovecraft (O).)
WALL OF NAACH-TITH
See Barrier of Naach-Tith.
WALMSLEY, GORDON (OF GOOLE)
One-time Professor-Curator of the Wharby Museum in Yorkshire, and author of the landmark work Notes on Deciphering Codes, Cryptograms, and Ancient Inscriptions. His aid in deciphering such inscriptions as the Phitmar Stone and the Geph Columns Characters proved invaluable. This famous expert on cryptography was murdered in his rooms near the museum, a crime that remains unsolved. Walmsley is best remembered for his work at translating the G’harne Fragments, an effort which was at first considered ludicrous but which has aided later scholars immeasurably.
See Book of Dzyan; Brick Cylinders of Kadatheron; Broken Columns of Geph; Geph Transcriptions; G’harne Fragments; Spheres of Nath. (“The Fairground Horror”, Lumley; “In the Vaults Beneath”, Lumley; “Rising with Surtsey”, Lumley; “The Sister City”, Lumley (O); The Transition of Titus Crow, Lumley.)
WALTERS, HARVEY
Reporter for Enigma magazine during the 1920s. Walters obtained a master’s in journalism from Miskatonic University, after which he moved to New York City. Walters was involved in the investigation of the mysteries of Castle Kriegs and possessed a gem that summoned a Hound of Tindalos when examined.
(“Juggernaut”, Henderson; Call of Cthulhu Rulebook, Petersen and Willis (O).)
WAMPS
Creatures living in the graveyards and necropoli of the Dreamlands’ surface world. A wamp has an egg-shaped body and
nine pale legs that appear to be splashed with scarlet. A wamp’s head features two large ears, a short wrinkled snout, and blank spaces where eyes should be.
Wamps spontaneously generate from the same rotting corpses on which they feed. Their practices are hideous in the extreme, so much so that ghouls do not feed from the graveyards of the upper Dreamlands, for fear of encountering these monstrosities.
[The Call of Cthulhu game wedded Smith’s creation with the wamps mentioned, but never seen, in Lovecraft’s “Dream-Quest”.]
(“The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath”, Lovecraft; H. P. Lovecraft’s Dreamlands, Petersen et. al., S. Petersen’s Field Guide to Creatures of the Dreamlands, Petersen et. al., “The Abominations of Yondo”, Smith (O).)
WARD, CHARLES DEXTER (1902–1928?)
Young antiquarian of Providence, Rhode Island. Ward received his high school education from the Moses Brown School, but was at the same time a self-trained historian of prodigious ability who spent most of his time researching his ancestor Joseph Curwen. To further his ends, he skipped college, instead spending a great amount of time traveling among the libraries of Europe. After his return to the United States, Ward became more and more eccentric, eventually being committed in early 1928. On April 13 of that year, Ward vanished from his room at the institution and was never heard from again.
