Regional Mountain Conference

In ancient times, rabies was also known as “Lyssa,” a term used to describe fits of rage in which those affected howled like wolves. The term is derived from the Greek word for “wolf.” Fear of rabies went hand in hand with fear of madness and the raging wolf, an animal portrayed as possessed by the devil. However, it was not wolves that spread rabies in municipalities and villages of the 18^th-and 19^th centuries, causing fear and horror, but cats and dogs kept as pets, which suddenly seemed to become threatening and insane wild animals, turning from friends to foes. Since the bite of an animal suspected of having rabies was an event that had to be reported immediately by each municipality to the Kreisamt and from there to the respective Gubernium, the Gubernium’s medical records provide detailed documentation of such cases. All in all, there are not that many cases – far fewer than one would expect given the scandalous nature of the disease – and these cases are not easy to find in the files, as most of them lack indexes. However, this archival work is more than worthwhile, as a close reading of each case description reveals remarkable facets of animal-human-environment relationships, which were located in urban centers as well as on peripheral alpine mountain villages and pastures. Affected were biting and bitten animals, women, men, and children of all ages. Other important actors were neighbors, pastors, surgeons, public health officers and veterinarians. The cases provide a wealth of valuable information about a history of pain and emotion between fear and hope, insights into human-animal relationships, including the fear of blurring the boundaries between species. A thorough documentation of the cases in medical records of the state archives can therefore provide an empirical basis for a larger research project at the intersection medical, religious, emotional, and sensory history and the environmental humanities that will be outlined in my presentation.