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Baron Samedi




In Vodun or Voodoo , Baron Samedi ("Baron Saturday", also '''Baron Samdi''', '''Bawon Samedi''', '''Bawon Sanmdi''') is one of the aspects of Baron, one of the Loa . He is a loa of the dead, along with Baron's other incarnations Baron Cimetière , Baron La Croix and Baron Kriminel. Baron Samedi is usually depicted with a top hat, black tuxedo, dark glasses, and cotton plugs in the nostrils, as if to resemble an undertaker. He has a white, frequently skull-like face and speaks in a nasal voice. He is one of the Guédé , or an aspect of them, or possibly their spiritual father. His wife is the loa Maman Brigitte .

Baron Samedi stands at the crossroads, where the souls of the dead pass on their way to Guinee . As well as being the all-knowing god of death, he is a sexual god, frequently represented by phallic symbols and noted for disruption, obscenity, debauchery, and having a particular fondness for rum. Additionally he is the god of love and resurrection.

He is New World in origin, not African. The Haitian dictator François "Papa Doc" Duvalier was infamous for taking on the guise of Baron Samedi, a persona which helped the tyrant oppress the rural populace of the island. It is said that Papa Doc looked exactly like the classic representation of the Baron and used this much to his advantage.


POPULAR CULTURE APPEARANCES

  • Baron Samedi is a featured character in the 1991 Video Board Game "Nightmare", which was known as "Atmosfear" in the UK.

  • Baron Saturday was also an important character in The Pretty Things' Rock Opera S.F. Sorrow .

  • He appears as a James Bond Character .

  • He has a few brief cameos in the 2001 novel '' American Gods '' by Neil Gaiman both as himself and while he possesses a goth girl, presumably due to her ownership of a silk top-hat.

  • "Baron Saturday" is a featured character in the Terry Pratchett novel " Witches Abroad ", and fairly direct references are made to the mythos of the Baron near the end of the novel.

  • In Russell Banks's 1985 Novel "Continental Drift", the Voodun religion and the Loas play an important role. The loas of Ghede are personified as Baron Cimetiére. He plays a crucial role in the novle's climax.



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