Case file · High strangeness
Saint Anthony's demons
The 'Life of Antony' written by Athanasius of Alexandria around 360 tells how the hermit was attacked by demons in the shape of beasts, soldiers and women in the Egyptian desert.
360 CE · 28.93, 32.35 · status: legend
The account
The book shaped Christian ideas of spiritual warfare, and his temptations became one of the great subjects of European art. The Monastery of Saint Anthony stands near his cave in the Red Sea mountains.