Golem
Golems are represented by the ' character and come in several varieties. As they are inanimate objects given life, their corpses are sometimes useful (or valuable) objects, especially in the case of paper of gold golems.
Symbol | Monster | Corpse |
---|---|---|
' | clay golem | rocks |
' | glass golem | pieces of worthless glass |
' | iron golem | iron chains |
' | leather golem | leather armours |
' | paper golem | scrolls of blank paper |
' | rope golem | |
' | stone golem | statue of a stone golem |
' | straw golem | |
' | wood golem | quarterstaffs |
' | gold golem | gold |
' | flesh golem | flesh golem corpse |
Golems are randomly generated, and an appropriate golem can also arise when trying to polymorph large piles of objects at once. For example, a pile containing many scrolls may become a paper golem, and a pile of rocks may become a clay golem.
In addition, polypiling many bone objects (such as unicorn horns) can produce a skeleton.
Mythology
Golems are creatures from ancient Jewish folklore. See the Wikipedia article for more information. They are not connected with Gollum in The Lord of the Rings.
Although the encyclopaedia entry for gold golem describes their mythological counterparts as female, the NetHack monster is neuter.
Encyclopedia entries
Golem:
"The original story harks back, so they say, to the sixteenth century. Using long-lost formulas from the Kabbala, a rabbi is said to have made an artificial man -- the so-called Golem -- to help ring the bells in the Synagogue and for all kinds of other menial work. "But he hadn't made a full man, and it was animated by some sort of vegetable half-life. What life it had, too, so the story runs, was only derived from the magic charm placed behind its teeth each day, that drew down to itself what was known as the `free sidereal strength of the universe.' "One evening, before evening prayers, the rabbi forgot to take the charm out of the Golem's mouth, and it fell into a frenzy. It raged through the dark streets, smashing everything in its path, until the rabbi caught up with it, removed the charm, and destroyed it. Then the Golem collapsed, lifeless. All that was left of it was a small clay image, which you can still see in the Old Synagogue." ... [ The Golem, by Gustav Meyrink ]
Gold golem:
The bellows he set away from the fire, and gathered all the tools wherewith he wrought into a silver chest; and with a sponge wiped he his face and his two hands withal, and his mighty neck and shaggy breast, and put upon him a tunic, and grasped a stout staff, and went forth halting; but there moved swiftly to support their lord handmaidens wrought of gold in the semblance of living maids. In them is understanding in their hearts, and in them speech and strength, and they know cunning handiwork by gift of the immortal gods. [ The Iliad, by Homer ]