85/100 - Night bird

This a creepier than usual subject but I'm fascinated by the way a biological phenomenon is modulated by cultures around the world. Sleep paralysis is sometimes experienced as a creature sitting on your chest, and this creature has been drawn and described and named in many different ways. Growing up in Colombia someone described it to me when I was a kid as a witch that sat on your chest as you were sleeping, and the way to prevent it was to leave a sewing needle on your night table. I suppose witches either get distracted by sewing or prick themselves with the sharp point and then leave. 

It is know in Japanese as "kanashibari", in Mexico as "subirse el muerto" which means "a dead person on you" (extra creepy), in Catalonia it is supposed to be a giant dog or cat called pesanta, and my favorite is the mouse from Eastern Chinese folklore that is supposed to steal the sleeping person's breath to gain strength and the ability to shapeshift into human form. The wikipedia article on the Night hag has all of these and more, it's a fun read. 

I didn't find any references to two-headed birds so that one is on me. Night bird is 3.75" by 3.75". Available here(sold).

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