Prehuman Europeans

[Tom Pleasant]

Deep cut research needed! Does anyone know what species lived in Europe during the time of Hyperborea? The fandom wiki says: "200,000 years ago, the human kingdom in Mu reaches its height, while Europe is inhabited by "hybrid entities" and Hyperborea is home to the cult of Tsathoggua." I've looked everywhere and can't find anything. Obviously happy to make it up, but going HPL canon would be nice!

[AlHazred]

In old CoC scenarios, the Hyperboreans of Satampra Zeiros' time (one of the original "pre-human civilizations" of the classic pulp stories) gradually devolved into what The Trail of Tsathogghua calls the "Voormis," basically modern Sasquatch and Yeti. They are exceedingly rare worldwide, having been hunted to extinction in many regions by primitive humans. Their story is addressed in the adventures "The Trail of Tsathogghua" and "The Curse of Tsathogghua," originally printed in the aforementioned The Trail of Tsathogghua (1984) and later reprinted in The Compact Trail of Tsathoggua (1997).

[Tom Pleasant]

Interesting! Is there anything canon from the fiction that says the Voormis were devolved humans from Hyperborea? I thought that was thought to be Greenland.

In his story 'Out of Aeons' he wrote: "that to which legend has given the name of Mu, and which old tablets in the primal Naacal tongue speak of as flourishing 200,000 years ago, when Europe harboured only hybrid entities, and lost Hyperborea knew the nameless worship of black amorphous Tsathoggua."

That "hybrid entities" suggests something associated with, but not human, maybe. The Serpent People in Valusia encompassed part of southern Europe, so maybe an offshoot of them?

The Little People are supposed to be the offspring of the human Viburnia and Ghoth the Burrower, but that's supposed to be just Wales.

I'm fairly certain there's nothing canon, but it would be interesting to find anything specific nonetheless.

[AlHazred]

18 hours ago, Tom Pleasant said:

Interesting! Is there anything canon from the fiction that says the Voormis were devolved humans from Hyperborea? I thought that was thought to be Greenland.

The Voormis were specifically from Clark Ashton Smith, specifically his story "The Seven Geases."

Quote

...Much was said regarding the genesis of the Voormis, who were popularly believed to be the offspring of women and certain atrocious creatures that had come forth in primal days from a tenebrous cavern-world in the bowels of Voormithadreth. ... Ralibar Vooz... avowed his skepticism.... They were merely the remnant of a low and degraded tribe of aborigines, who, sinking further into brutehood, had sought refuge in those volcanic fastnesses after the coming of the true Hyperboreans.

They kind of resemble Lovecraft's "hairy cannibal Gnophkehs" from "Polaris" (later expanded in Clark Ashton Smith's and Lin Carter's "The Scroll of Morloc"); the degenerate people in Robert E. Howard's "Worms of the Earth;" and August Derleth's conception of Tcho-tchos.

[hasevir]

wikipedia polar bears:

"18th-century Icelandic writings mention the legend of a "polar bear king" known as the bjarndýrakóngur. This beast was depicted as a polar bear with "ruddy cheeks" and a unicorn-like horn, which glows in the dark. The king could understand when humans talk and was considered to be very astute."

 

Sounds like something we know. Figures the magical horn glows. Also clearly peaceful interactions and discussions are a possibility and why not they are sentient, earthly. and not some abstract thing from beyond time and matter made manifest. So if you can talk to a ghoul why not a gnop-keh.. ok elder thing might be a better comparison? A common language might be tough to find, but then they are the brainiacs and humans the less clever species.

Furthermore absolutely brimming with POW. Probarbly possible to enslave its mind, soul and magics with the right spell into its horn (soultrap see kingsport/old man?). And right there we have a auction, suddenly and almost a-seasonally trapped by a sudden winter (someone messed with the wrong family of royal polar bears). Really shouldnt have removed the horn from its protective display during cataloguing. "very intriguing" Definately not a narwhale or deer. On the other hand the bone has no equine features either. Ursidae may be the closest match tho that is like comparing humans to whales.

[SunlessNick]

On 5/3/2024 at 9:12 AM, Tom Pleasant said:

The Serpent People in Valusia encompassed part of southern Europe, so maybe an offshoot of them?

That would be my guess.  Maybe ghouls eating their dead.

[Darius West]

On 5/3/2024 at 6:03 AM, Tom Pleasant said:

Deep cut research needed! Does anyone know what species lived in Europe during the time of Hyperborea? The fandom wiki says: "200,000 years ago, the human kingdom in Mu reaches its height, while Europe is inhabited by "hybrid entities" and Hyperborea is home to the cult of Tsathoggua." I've looked everywhere and can't find anything. Obviously happy to make it up, but going HPL canon would be nice!

I think the inference is that there homo sapiens sapiens alive and active in Mu, but elsewhere the humans were more primitive.  Within our scientific knowledge, Europe would have had Homo Sapiens Neanderthalensis, and perhaps Denisovians.  It is also distinctly possible that the races of the degenerate "little people" from "worms of the Earth" and Arthur Machen's "The White People" were still living on the surface at this time, and had not become "little faeries under the hill" yet.