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Biblical and Mythological Creatures ~ Lamia

According to Greek mythology, Lamia was a queen from Libya who was transformed in to a snake demon who ate children as the inevitable result of having an affair with the god Zeus. Hera, wife of Zeus, killed all of Lamia’s childrens and transformed her. Losing her mind from grief and despair, she started stealing and devouring others’ children out of envy, the repeated monstrosity of which transforms her into a monster on its own. Zeus then gave her the ability to remove her eyes, the purpose of this ability is unclear, but other versions state Lamia’s ability to remove her eyes came with the gift of prophecy.

Over time the myth evolved and a single lamia became many; at this point they were simply snake women who sucked the blood of young men and performed succubus-like duties.