Baron Samedi

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

Baron Samedi The Chief Spirit of the Dead, and possibly one of the most infamously well known personality in the Voodou pantheon.

Fashionable and menacing, he dons a dark tailcoat, shiny top hat and dark spectacles.

You got it right he’s outfitted as an undertaker.

However not like many human undertakers, he smokes stogies on duty, twirls a walking stick that he uses for dancing.

If not around the graveyard he loves to party, especially on Saturday night’s. This is why he is called Baron Saturday.

As part of his graveyard identity of BARON-CIMETIERE, he watches over cemeteries.

This is not simply a passive role, with body snatchers looking for zombie subject matter.

As BARON-LA-CROIX, he too stands on the transcendental crossroads of life and death and might even be considered a manifestation of GHEDE him self.

Keep in mind he may simply be a drinking buddy.

You’ll find people who claim they have witnessed both of them together. . .

however many things can happen after you consume huge amounts of rum and hot pepper and dance the evening away.

Baron Samedi belongs to the Guédés, or spirits of Death, linked to Baron Cimitère and Baron La Croix.

Just like Papa Legba, he’s a protector of the crossroads, where spirits cross into our planet.

His better half is MAMAN-BRIGITTE and boasts two colleagues, BARON-LA-CROIX and BARON-CIMETIERE  which might or might not be facets of his very own serious personality.

[Dept of PMM Artists & things]

The Unbound Witch

There is at least one major player in Voodoo that most people will know by sight, even if you don't know his name. For those who will be wondering later, his name is Baron Samedi.

The Baron has some very particular looks when he's represented. Most times he's shown as a tall, handsome black man decked out in a tuxedo and top hat that will be either black or white. Sometimes he has a cadaverous, skull like face with plugs up his nose in the tradition of Haitian burial. Other times he will be shown as a skeleton dressed in the same way. The Baron is fond of cigars and cigarettes (he doesn't care which is healthier), strong alcohol (particularly rum), and debauchery while still keeping a soft spot in his heart for children. He is sometimes referred to as Baron Saturday, or the Baron of Saturday Night because Samedi is the French word for Saturday, though the names of the days of the week technically come from an older list of gods.

He is the eldest of the family of Ghede, which are considered the loa of death. Baron Samedi stands at the crossroads of life and death, watching as the souls of the departed pass from our world to Guinee (the afterlife). This is why the Baron is depicted dressed in his best funerary suit, but it's also why he represents debauchery and the enjoyment of life. According to the theories of Baron Samedi death is the universal constant; everyone is going to die no matter who they are or how much money they have. So the Baron reminds everyone to live a little bit, because sooner or later they won't be able to.

artist: chronoperates on deviantart