The more odious a crime is, the more attention it gets. Because of this, serial murders have been in the spotlight since the onset of such criminal behaviors. In fact, serial killings have become so notorious as to acquire multiple definitions from different organizations. According to the FBI definition:
"The term ‘serial killings’ means a series of three or more killings, not less than one of which was committed within the United States, having common characteristics such as to suggest the reasonable possibility that the crimes were committed by the same actor or actors."
Mythology and Early History
The Encyclopedia of Serial Killers suggests that the first known case of serial murder originated in the vicinity of Rome around 331 B.C. There, 170 women were proved guilty for poisoning an indefinite number of men and attributing their deaths to the then dominant plague. Poison was also used by Calpurnius Bestia, who “killed multiple wives by means of aconite.”
Early mythological literature has suggested a case of serial murders, which could be traced back to the times of Greek mythology. In a path between Athens and Eleusis, a bandit named Procrustes, tied his victims in an iron bed of specific measurements and attempted to stretch or cut a victim’s body in order to fit the bed. Most of the times, this procedure resulted in the victim's agonizing death. Sources from Greek mythology support that the killings were stopped by Theseus, who made Procrustes face his own torture.
Cult Murders
Information of the Encyclopedia of Serial Killers also suggests that cult murders are not a fresh induction to serial murder cases. Among the earliest recorded cult murder groups were the Assassins in Persia during the 11th century. The Assassins was a “Muslim splinter group” that had a sacred murder command by its “god and earthy ruler”, the “Old Man of the Mountains.” The Muslim group was held responsible for an abundance of ritual deaths that included the use of psychedelic drugs by the members. The drugs were used so that the members can visualize how paradise looks like for people who abide by the laws of the sect.
Later on, in the advent of the 13th century, a new sect called thuggee, rose from India. According to the Encyclopedia of Serial Killers, the thuggee:
“worshipped Kali, the Hindu goddess of destruction, and aside from random homicide homicide, their rituals also incorporated masochistic elements in which devotees were flogged and mutilated by their priests or hoisted aloft with hooks in their flesh, while the ecstatic audience chanted, “Victory to Mother Kali.”
The thuggee continued being formidable for centuries. In fact, British records indicate that the Indian cult murdered around 40,000 people, all during 1812.
Serial Murders in Europe and Jack the Ripper
Notorious serial killers can also be traced back to Europe of 15th to 19th centuries. Horrific figures, such as the English poisoner-cook, Margaret Davy and the child torturer, Gilles de Rais, who was also the richest man in France, terrorized Europe for a long time. Evidently, serial killer cases contributed to the myth of werewolves because of the atrocious nature of crimes committed by cannibals.
Among the most notorious names in the history of serial murder is that of Jack the Ripper. According to casebook.com, the Ripper reportedly slaughtered four to eight prostitutes in 1888. The serial killer allegedly used to strangle his victims and often take a part of their body or an organ as a 'trophy.' The way he committed his crimes suggests that he may have had anatomical knowledge and surgical skills.
Recently, the authorities unveiled the riddle of Jack the Ripper’s identity with the help of DNA examinations to a piece of cloth that belonged to Aaron Kosminski, a Polish Jew lunatic barber that had already been suspected. The piece of cloth was found at the murder scene of a victim called Eddowes. It was kept out of publicity until the author and researcher Russell Edwards bought it in order to run DNA tests that were matched with descendants of both the suspect, Kosminski, and the victim, Eddowes.
Cases of serial murders have stimulated the society in several ways through meticulous police investigations and thorough research by journalists, authors, and people who are fascinated by the pursuit of such cases.
In the next article, the brief history of American serial killers will be reviewed.
