The "icelandic" castle dracula The
ancient Castle at Törzburg (Bran), Romania Since two-thirds of Makt Myrkranna is dedicated to Harker’s stay in Castle Dracula and his desperate attempts to find a way out, I started wondering whether this part of the narrative was based on a consistent map of the building, and if yes, whether it could be logically reconstructed from clues in the text. After analysing Harker's description of his exploration tours, and the views he has from the various rooms, I can conclude that the chapters about the young lawyer's stay in the Count's castle indeed show a logical plan of the edifice's wings, floors and rooms. While Harker sleeps and dines at the fourth floor, where the library and the Count's private rooms are also located, the basement of the castle harbours many horrifying surprises, including withering skulls, marble stone coffins, transport boxes with ingenuous hidden mechanisms to close and open them from within. Most terrifying of all seems a kind of primitive temple, where Harker witnesses how the Count leads a horde of ape-like, naked people in a terrifying ceremony, during which helpless, fettered girls are sacrificed. But also the top floors await the imprisoned guest with surprising encounters, including a love night with the blonde vampire girl, orchestrated with storm and lightning, a portrait gallery where pictures seem to come alive, and the room of the Countess, where both she and her young lover once met a gruesome ending.... Last but not least, there is the secret corridor, watched over by a deaf and dumb old housekeeper woman... Old Natra, as the Count calls her, translating to "viper" or "snake"... The floorplans are presented on the following pages. These drawings were created by Pienette Coetzee, based on my research and provisory designs. An essay explaining how I came to these results will appear at the end of the translated novel. |
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Ground floor |
Fourth floor |
Top floor |
Basement |