Bat wings in the devil: origin and spreading of this peculiar attribute in art

Abstract

In Western culture, for centuries the figure of the bat has been associated with the forces of evil, with demons living in the dark, in the most hidden recesses of human fears. Some characteristics of demons of the pagan world (dark color of the body, wings, etc.) pass into the Christian iconography of the devil. Baltrušaitis has shown several elements that place the origin of bat-winged devils in China. From that area they spread out to the West and soon became common images in Europe starting from the 13th century. In the Middle Ages travelling was frequent and even long-range, from Europe to Central Asia, through the Silk Road network and also attested by the diffusion of the Nestorian Church as far as China, beginning from the 7th century. Some of the artistic images of devils with bat wings are shown also in contrast to the wings of angels with feathered wings. The oldest depiction in Europe of a devil with bat wings is the mosaic representing the fall of Simon Magus in the Cappella Palatina (Palatine Chapel) in Palermo (1135–1143).