Koschei
Encyclopedia
Koschei cannot be killed by conventional means targeting his body. His soul is hidden separate from his body inside a needle, which is in an egg
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
, which is in a duck
Duck
Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...
, which is in a hare
Hare
Hares and jackrabbits are leporids belonging to the genus Lepus. Hares less than one year old are called leverets. Four species commonly known as types of hare are classified outside of Lepus: the hispid hare , and three species known as red rock hares .Hares are very fast-moving...
, which is in an iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
chest
Chest (furniture)
A chest is one of the oldest forms of furniture. It is typically a rectangular structure with four walls and a liftable lid, for storage. The interior space may be subdivided...
(sometimes the chest is crystal and/or gold), which is buried under a green
Green
Green is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 520–570 nanometres. In the subtractive color system, it is not a primary color, but is created out of a mixture of yellow and blue, or yellow and cyan; it is considered...
oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
, which is on the island
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
of Buyan
Buyan
In Slavic mythology, Buyan is described as a mysterious island in the ocean with an ability to appear and disappear. Three brothers – Northern, Western, and Eastern Winds – live there...
, in the ocean
Ocean
An ocean is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the hydrosphere. Approximately 71% of the Earth's surface is covered by ocean, a continuous body of water that is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller seas.More than half of this area is over 3,000...
. As long as his soul is safe, he cannot die. If the chest is dug up and opened, the hare will bolt away. If it is killed, the duck will emerge and try to fly off. Anyone possessing the egg has Koschei in their power. He begins to weaken, becomes sick and immediately loses the use of his magic. If the egg is tossed about, he likewise is flung around against his will. If the egg or needle is broken (in some tales this must be done by specifically breaking it against Koschei's forehead), Koschei will die.
In popular culture
- In Vasilisa PrekrasnayaThe Frog PrincessThe Frog Princess is a fairy tale that exists in many versions from several countries.Russian variants include the Frog Princess or Tsarevna Frog and also Vasilisa the Wise ; Alexander Afanasyev collected variants in his Narodnye russkie skazki...
(Vasilisa the Beautiful), a Russian cartoon based on the Russian fairy tale. - A villain in Igor StravinskyIgor StravinskyIgor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....
's The FirebirdThe FirebirdThe Firebird is a 1910 ballet created by the composer Igor Stravinsky and choreographer Michel Fokine. The ballet is based on Russian folk tales of the magical glowing bird of the same name that is both a blessing and a curse to its captor....
. - In the Soviet animated film Beloved BeautyBeloved BeautyBeloved Beauty is a 1958 feature-length stop motion-animated film from the Soviet Union. The film, which was made at the Soyuzmultfilm studio, is based on Russian folk tales.-Creators:-See also:*History of Russian animation...
(1958). - Nikolai Rimsky-KorsakovNikolai Rimsky-KorsakovNikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov was a Russian composer, and a member of the group of composers known as The Five.The Five, also known as The Mighty Handful or The Mighty Coterie, refers to a circle of composers who met in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in the years 1856–1870: Mily Balakirev , César...
wrote an operaOperaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
involving Koschei, titled Кащей бессмертный —Kashchey the Deathless. - Mercedes LackeyMercedes LackeyMercedes "Misty" Lackey is a best-selling American author of fantasy novels. Many of her novels and trilogies are interlinked and set in the world of Velgarth, mostly in and around the country of Valdemar...
's novel of Stravinsky's Firebird features Katschei as the main villain, retelling the classic tale for a modern audience. Also, in her 500 Kingdoms series, the Katschei is referenced in the novels The Fairy GodmotherThe Fairy GodmotherThe Fairy Godmother is a novel by Mercedes Lackey, published in 2004 and the first book of the Tales of the Five Hundred Kingdoms series.-Plot summary:...
and "Fortune's Fool." - Koschei appears as an antagonist to the hero in the 2007 comic bookComic bookA comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
Hellboy: Darkness CallsHellboy: Darkness CallsHellboy: Darkness Calls is a comic book limited series created by Mike Mignola published by Dark Horse Comics starring Hellboy.- Plot :In Darkness Calls, several plotlines and characters from earlier stories converge....
. The Baba YagaBaba YagaBaba Yaga or Baba Roga is a haggish or witchlike character in Slavic folklore. She flies around on a giant pestle, kidnaps small children, and lives in a hut that stands on chicken legs...
will grant him death only through Hellboy's destruction, but in Hellboy, Koschei's soul is hidden in an egg, inside a duck, inside a hare, inside a goat. Vasilisa PrekrasnayaThe Frog PrincessThe Frog Princess is a fairy tale that exists in many versions from several countries.Russian variants include the Frog Princess or Tsarevna Frog and also Vasilisa the Wise ; Alexander Afanasyev collected variants in his Narodnye russkie skazki...
also appears and helps Hellboy. Koschei's origin story is later revealed in (as yet uncollected) backup stories to single issues of Hellboy: The Wild Hunt. - In The Sandman: Fables and ReflectionsThe Sandman: Fables and ReflectionsFables & Reflections is the sixth collection of issues in the DC Comics series, The Sandman. It was written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Bryan Talbot, Stan Woch, P...
, Koschei's emerald heart (or, more likely a piece of green glass being passed off as such) passes into the possession of a Gypsy trader, then a werewolfWerewolfA werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...
, and finally Baba YagaBaba YagaBaba Yaga or Baba Roga is a haggish or witchlike character in Slavic folklore. She flies around on a giant pestle, kidnaps small children, and lives in a hut that stands on chicken legs...
. - In the comic AtomikaAtomikaAtomika is an American comic book series created in 2005 by Andrew Dabb , Sal Abbinanti and Buzz , and published first by Speakeasy Comics and later by Abbinanti's Mercury Comics.-Plot:...
, he appears as one of the old gods of RusRus' (region)Rus' is an ethno-cultural region in Eastern Europe inhabited by Eastern Slavs. Historically, it comprises the northern part of Ukraine, the north-western part of Russia, Belarus and some eastern parts of Poland and Slovakia.The name comes from Old East Slavic , and remains the same in modern...
who fight Atomika, the new god of the Soviets. In the comic's mythology, he murdered Lada, causing Rus to be covered in ice and snow. - In Monday Begins on SaturdayMonday Begins on SaturdayMonday Begins on Saturday is a 1964 science fiction / science fantasy novel by Boris and Arkady Strugatsky. Set in a fictional town in northern Russia, where highly classified research in magic occurs, the novel is a satire of Soviet scientific research institutes, complete with an inept...
by Arkady and Boris StrugatskyArkady and Boris StrugatskyThe brothers Arkady and Boris Strugatsky are Soviet Jewish-Russian science fiction authors who collaborated on their fiction.-Life and work:...
as one of the creatures held in the NIIChaVo institute. - Koschei appears as one of the central characters in Catherynne Valente's novel Deathless, which sets his story against the rise and fall of the Soviet Union.
- Koschei appears as a historic character in Monster Hunter Alpha by Larry CorreiaLarry CorreiaLarry Correia is a New York Times bestselling novelist who originally self-published in 2008. His self-published novel, Monster Hunter International, reached the Entertainment Weekly bestseller list in April 2008. He then received a publishing contract with Baen Books...
- Koschei appears as the focus of the song Unavenged by Random EncounterRandom Encounter (band)Random Encounter is an energetic independent Russian-American video game music cover/inspired band from Orlando, Florida that features an accordion as the lead instrument...
Other uses of the name
- James Branch CabellJames Branch CabellJames Branch Cabell, ; April 14, 1879 – May 5, 1958) was an American author of fantasy fiction and belles lettres. Cabell was well regarded by his contemporaries, including H. L. Mencken and Sinclair Lewis. His works were considered escapist and fit well in the culture of the 1920s, when his...
used the spelling Koshchei in several of his books. His character, however, was a sort of over-deity who presides over all the "first-level" human gods (such as JehovahJehovahJehovah is an anglicized representation of Hebrew , a vocalization of the Tetragrammaton , the proper name of the God of Israel in the Hebrew Bible....
and LokiLokiIn Norse mythology, Loki or Loke is a god or jötunn . Loki is the son of Fárbauti and Laufey, and the brother of Helblindi and Býleistr. By the jötunn Angrboða, Loki is the father of Hel, the wolf Fenrir, and the world serpent Jörmungandr. By his wife Sigyn, Loki is the father of Nari or Narfi...
). Robert A. HeinleinRobert A. HeinleinRobert Anson Heinlein was an American science fiction writer. Often called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was one of the most influential and controversial authors of the genre. He set a standard for science and engineering plausibility and helped to raise the genre's standards of...
used Cabell's version in his book Job: A Comedy of JusticeJob: A Comedy of JusticeJob: A Comedy of Justice is a novel by Robert A. Heinlein published in 1984. The title is a reference to the biblical Book of Job and James Branch Cabell's book Jurgen, A Comedy of Justice...
. - In John C. Wright's Last Guardian of EvernessLast Guardian of EvernessLast Guardian of Everness is a fantasy novel by John C. Wright...
Koschei is the herald of death, the taker of souls when someone has to die. - In Keith TaylorKeith Taylor (author)Keith John Taylor is an Australian science fiction and fantasy writer.-Biography:Born in Tasmania, Taylor now resides in Melbourne, Australia. Getting his start in Ted White's Fantastic magazine, Taylor went on to collaborate with Andrew J. Offutt on two novels based upon the Robert E. Howard...
's novel Bard II, Koschei appears to menace Felimid mac Fal, a roving Irish bardBardIn medieval Gaelic and British culture a bard was a professional poet, employed by a patron, such as a monarch or nobleman, to commemorate the patron's ancestors and to praise the patron's own activities.Originally a specific class of poet, contrasting with another class known as fili in Ireland...
who is the novel's lead character, and his lover Gudrun Blackhair, a female pirate chieftain. - In Charles StrossCharles StrossCharles David George "Charlie" Stross is a British writer of science fiction, Lovecraftian horror and fantasy. He was born in Leeds.Stross specialises in hard science fiction and space opera...
's novelette A Colder WarA Colder War"A Colder War" is an English-language, alternate history novelette by Charles Stross written circa 1997.The story fuses the Cold War and the Cthulhu Mythos by exploring the consequences of a follow-up to the expedition in H. P. Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness...
, Koschei is the American code name for sleeping CthulhuCthulhuCthulhu is a fictional character that first appeared in the short story "The Call of Cthulhu", published in the pulp magazine Weird Tales in 1928. The character was created by writer H. P...
, captured along with shoggot'im (shoggothShoggothA shoggoth is a fictional monster in the Cthulhu Mythos. The being was mentioned in passing in sonnet XX of H.P...
s) from Nazi Germany by the SovietSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
Red ArmyRed ArmyThe Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
. - In David A. McInteeDavid A. McIntee-Biography:McIntee has written many spin-off novels based on the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who, as well as one each based on Final Destination and Space: 1999. He has also written a non-fiction book on Star Trek: Voyager and one jointly on the Alien and Predator movie franchises...
's Doctor WhoDoctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
novels The Dark PathThe Dark Path (Doctor Who)The Dark Path is an original novel written by David A. McIntee and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The novel features the Second Doctor, Jamie, Victoria and the Master , looking at the events that led to the Master's descent into villainy...
and Face Of The EnemyThe Face of the Enemy (Doctor Who)The Face of the Enemy is a BBC Books original novel written by David A. McIntee and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.It is a sequel to the Third Doctor serial Inferno...
, Koschei is a name used by a Time LordTime LordThe Time Lords are an ancient extraterrestrial race and civilization of humanoids in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, of which the series' eponymous protagonist, the Doctor, is a member...
who will later call himself the MasterMaster (Doctor Who)The Master is a recurring character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. He is a renegade Time Lord and the archenemy of the Doctor....
. Iris WildthymeIris WildthymeIris Wildthyme is a fictional character created by writer Paul Magrs, who has appeared in short stories, novels and audio dramas from numerous publishers...
briefly wonders whether a character she hunts in rural Russia is the same Koschei, in Stewart Sheargold's short story 'The Scarlet Shadow' from the collection Iris Wildthyme and the Celestial OmnibusIris Wildthyme and the Celestial OmnibusIris Wildthyme and the Celestial Omnibus is a short-story anthology edited by Paul Magrs and Stuart Douglas, published by Obverse Books and featuring Iris Wildthyme, a series character with a complicated publishing history, who previously appeared in the series of Doctor Who books from the BBC.It...
. - In Andrei BelyaninAndrei BelyaninAndrei Olegovich Belyanin is a modern Russian science fiction and fantasy writer, who wrote at least 15 novels with many of then selling over 2 million copies. He is especially known for humour and parody in his fiction. Belyanin's novels are mostly ironcal chrono-operas, where the pun is based on...
's Tsar Gorokh's Detective Agency series of novels, Koschei is the main villain of most of the stories. He is described as a criminal mastermind a hundred times worse than Osama bin LadenOsama bin LadenOsama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
. - In RiftsRifts (role-playing game)Rifts is a multi-genre role-playing game created by Kevin Siembieda in 1990 and published continuously by Palladium Books since then. Rifts takes place in a post-apocalyptic future, deriving elements from cyberpunk, science fiction, fantasy, horror, western, mythology and many other genres.Rifts...
, a role-playing game, the Koschei is a type of demon found in Russia (Rifts draws upon various mythologies and folk traditions for the demons and other creatures that populate its world). - In the MMORPGMMORPGMassively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
RuneScapeRuneScapeRuneScape is a fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game released in January 2001 by Andrew and Paul Gower, and developed and published by Jagex Games Studio. It is a graphical browser game implemented on the client-side in Java, and incorporates 3D rendering...
, one of the quests (the Fremennik Trials) features Koschei the Deathless as a mysterious warrior whom the player must best thrice in combat to prove their worth as a warrior. - The Werewolf RPGWerewolf: The ApocalypseWerewolf: The Apocalypse is a role-playing game and series of novels from the now defunct World of Darkness line by White Wolf. In the game, players take the role of werewolves known as Garou , as well as other lycanthropes: warriors who are locked in a two-front war against both the spiritual...
sourcebook Rage Across Russia mentions Koschei as one of the five Talons of the Wyrm. It is summoned from the Umbra by Baba Yaga during her battle with Nosferatu. - In The Deathless by Keith R.A. DeCandido, the modern day resurrection of Koschei is thwarted by Buffy SummersBuffy SummersBuffy Summers is a fictional character from Joss Whedon's Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise. She first appeared in the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer before going on to appear in the television series and subsequent comic book of the same name...
, the Vampire Slayer. - In The WitcherThe WitcherThe Witcher, or , by Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski is a cult series of fantasy short stories and five novels about the witcher Geralt of Rivia...
(both video game and the story "The Road with No Return"), Koschei is a species of huge, magically-created spider-like creature. In the video game, Koschei serves as one of the "boss" creatures. - Russian punk group Sektor GazaSektor GazaSektor gaza was a Russian rock band formed on 5 December 1987 in the city of Voronezh, Russia. The group is still rather popular in Russia, despite having had a semi-official status during its existence due to obscene lyrics...
produced one of its albums in a form of rock-opera named "Koschei" in 1994. - In the MMORPG TibiaTibia (computer game)Tibia is a massively multiplayer online roleplaying game created by CipSoft GmbH. It is one of the oldest MMORPGs and was considered most noteworthy in its early years; however, with the development of MMORPGs its popularity has grown much slower than other gaming communities...
, Koshei The Deathless' Phylactery is a broken amulet, separated on 4 pieces hidden on the world. To permanently kill Koshei, you have to reforge the amulet, kill Koshei and use the amulet on his dead body. - Russian-American Video Game Cover group Random EncounterRandom Encounter (band)Random Encounter is an energetic independent Russian-American video game music cover/inspired band from Orlando, Florida that features an accordion as the lead instrument...
actively performs an original song titled Unavenged which features lyrics inspired by the Legend of Koschei. - Irregular Webcomic!Irregular Webcomic!Irregular Webcomic! is a webcomic created by David Morgan-Mar, an Australian physicist. The comic is illustrated photographically, primarily with Lego figures, although a few of the story arcs use role playing game miniatures. The comic debuted on 31 December 2002 and ended on 29 October 2011,...
recently ran a comic mentioning the Egg of Koschei the Deathless, as well as Baba YagaBaba YagaBaba Yaga or Baba Roga is a haggish or witchlike character in Slavic folklore. She flies around on a giant pestle, kidnaps small children, and lives in a hut that stands on chicken legs...
's hut. - Nickname of the Master from Doctor Who.
See also
- The Death of Koschei the DeathlessThe Death of Koschei the DeathlessThe Death of the Immortal Koschei or Marya Morevna is a Russian fairy tale collected by Alexander Afanasyev in Narodnye russkie skazki and included by Andrew Lang in The Red Fairy Book...
- AhiravanAhiravanIn the Ramayana Ahiravan , brother of Ravana, was a rakshasa who secretly carried away Rama and his brother Lakshmana to the nether-world, consulted his friends and decided to sacrifice the life of the two divine brothers at the altar of his chosen deity, goddess Mahamaya...
- LichLichIn modern fantasy fiction, a lich is a type of undead creature. Often such a creature is the result of a transformation, as a powerful magician or king striving for eternal life uses spells or rituals to bind his intellect to his animated corpse and thereby achieve a form of immortality...
- PhylacteryPhylacteryPhylactery may refer to:* An amulet or charm.* English name for Tefillin, a pair of small black leather boxes containing scrolls of parchment inscribed with verses from the Torah, which are worn by observant Jews during weekday morning prayers....
- Baš ČelikBaš ČelikBaš Čelik , meaning "head of steel", from Turkish baş for "head" and çelik for "steel", is a famous Serbian folk tale. It is similar to the Brothers Grimm's "The Crystal Orb" .-Synopsis:...
, arguably the same figure in Serbian folklore. - Horcrux
- SatyrSatyrIn Greek mythology, satyrs are a troop of male companions of Pan and Dionysus — "satyresses" were a late invention of poets — that roamed the woods and mountains. In myths they are often associated with pipe-playing....
External links
- Sir James George Frazer (1854–1941). The Golden Bough.
- The Golden Bough by Sir James George Frazer (Project Gutenberg)
- The Death of Koshchei the Deathless from Andrew Lang's Red Fairy Book
- Old Russia Entry on "Koshchey" also contains a link to a folk story proper.
- http://www.irregularwebcomic.net/3031.html Referencing Episode.