ILLUSTRATIONS João Pirolla
In general, out of prejudice or implication. Although the association of red hair with the idea of danger already occurred in ancient Egypt, things turned ugly between the Late Middle Ages (from the 11th century) and the 17th century. to spread prejudice. Furthermore, from the 15th century onwards, women with “fiery hair” were hunted by the Inquisition and prejudice turned to terror. Another possible reason for persecution is rarity: it is estimated that only 1 to 2% of the world’s population has red hair (the “red hair gene”, called melanocortin-1, has five variations, but is rare because it is recessive). Most of them are concentrated in Europe, mainly in Scotland, where they are 13% of the population.
RED INVASION
Remember the main cases of discrimination against freckles
DIVINE DISGRACE
Seth, god of ancient Egypt, was not originally evil: he came to be portrayed as such after the invasion of peoples such as the Persians. He was then associated with the red desert, storms and destruction – things the Egyptians feared. Consequently, redheaded men like him began to be hated and sacrificed – many died as an offering in the Tomb of Osiris. The prejudice against redheads in Egypt was such that they were complexed to the point of being ashamed to start conversation with others
(DO NOT LISTEN) WHAT THE FOX SAYS
The Greeks thought that a lot of people could turn vampire: suicides, excommunicates, people who ate the flesh of a sheep killed by a wolf, and, of course, redheads. Therefore, hair in this tone was seen with suspicion. The philosopher Aristotle went so far as to say that while blondes were as brave as lions, redheads were as bad-natured as foxes.
SEND THE FIRE!
During the Inquisition, in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, redheads had a hard time. The color, associated with evil, led the Catholic Church to persecute and condemn them as witches. Many went to the bonfire. The fat of redheads was also believed to be a potent ingredient for making poison – a practice cited in plays such as The Witch by Thomas Middleton.
TEMPERAMENTS AND TRAITORS
In the Middle Ages, the poem Ruodlieb, which has an unknown author and appeared around the year 1000, said: “No redhead should be trusted, because they are bad people and owners of a bad temper”. It was a time of severe discrimination: from the 1300s onwards, works of art began to portray Judas Iscariot as red-haired, and the devil with red, pointy hair. But it is worth saying: some historians argue that the idea of portraying Judas with red hair, originally, was just to highlight him in the paintings.
THE ORIGIN OF EVIL
Lilith is a goddess present in several beliefs: for the Sumerians and Mesopotamians, for example, she represented fertility. In Judeo-Christian mythology, however, she loses this divine character, becoming a succubus, a kind of demon, and is portrayed as a redhead. According to Kabbalah, Lilith is the serpent that offered Adam the apple of sin. In addition to Lilith and Judas, other biblical figures portrayed as redheads were Cain (who killed his brother Abel) and Mary Magdalene
THAT MAKES IT DIFFICULT
In India, between 1500 and 500 BC, men were strictly forbidden to marry red-haired women. It was not the only restriction: girls with deformed limbs, those who talked a lot, those with “inflamed eyes” and those named after constellations, rivers, barbarian nations, winged creatures or anything else that evoked an “image” were also banned. Horror»
STAFF COLOR
After the Romans invaded and conquered the Scythians, an ancient people of Thrace, they began to consider the Thracians as slaves. As these were redheads, red hair became an inferior characteristic, something of lazy people. Roman actors wore wigs in this shade to interpret them in plays and represent their servitude.
REDEEMER QUEEN
Even Shakespeare spoke badly: in the play As You Like It, red hair is mentioned as the “dissimulation color” and Judas’ hair color. But it was at this time that, after centuries associated with evil, red finally managed to improve its image. In the 17th century, the red-haired Queen Elizabeth I took the English throne and gained the sympathy of the people – her long reddish hair became fashionable.
TdF suggested – Gustavo Birolini
SOURCES Books Encyclopedia of Hair: A Cultural Historyby Victoria Sherrow The Invention of Greek Ethnography: From Homer to Herodotuby Joseph E. Skinner, Racism: A Global Reader, several authors, Encyclopedia of Superstitions, Folklore, and the Occult Sciences of the Worldby Cora Linn Daniels and CM Stevans, Gods and Myths of Ancient Egyptby Robert A. Armour, Dracula in the Dark: The Dracula Film Adaptationsby James Craig Holte The History of India from the Earliest Agesby James Talboys Wheeler, Lucifer: The Devil in the Middle Agesby Jeffrey Burton Russell, and websites The Independent It is Everything for Redheads