Cain

Cain
	;
Real Name	Cain
Born	64-70 AM
Died	930 AM (aged 860-866)

Origin[]

Cain is a biblical figure in the Book of Genesis within Abrahamic religions. He is the elder brother of Abel, and the firstborn son of Adam and Eve, the first couple within the Bible. He was a farmer who gave an offering of his crops to God. However, God was not pleased and favored Abel's offering over Cain's. Out of jealousy, Cain killed his brother, for which he was punished by God with the curse and mark of Cain. He had several children, starting with Enoch and including Lamech.

The narrative is notably unclear on God's reason for rejecting Cain's sacrifice. Some traditional interpretations consider Cain to be the originator of evil, violence, or greed. According to Genesis, Cain was the first human born and the first murderer.

According to Genesis 4:1–16, Cain treacherously murdered his brother, Abel, lied about the murder to God, and as a result, was cursed and marked for life. With the earth left cursed to drink Abel's blood, Cain was no longer able to farm the land. He becomes a "fugitive and wanderer", and receives a mark from God - commonly referred to as the mark of Cain - so that no one can enact vengeance on him.

A millennia-old explanation for Cain being capable of murder is that he may have been the offspring of a fallen angel or Satan himself, rather than being the son of Adam.

In the Old English classic poem Beowulf (c. 1000 CE), the monstrous Grendel and his mother are said to be descended from Cain.

A medieval legend has Cain arriving at the Moon, where he eternally settled with a bundle of twigs. This was originated by the popular fantasy of interpreting the shadows on the Moon as a face such as the Man in the Moon.

Public Domain Appearances[]

All published appearances of Cain from before January 1, 1929 are public domain in the US.

Some notable appearances are listed below:

Public Domain Literary Appearances[]

The Bible
The Quran
Life of Adam and Eve
Beowulf
La Conscience (1853)
Abel Sánchez: A Story of a Passion (1917)

Public Domain Theatrical Appearances[]

Cain (1821)

Public Domain Comic Appearances[]

The Saturday Evening Post (1897 series) v197 #29
Judge (1881 series) #2278
Treasure Chest of Fun and Fact v15 #13 (279)
Captain Midnight #58: Like Columbus before him, Captain Albright and Icky head into space to discover a new planet. Upon arrival, they are met by a green-skinned inventor, who shows Albright and Icky some of his inventions. Suddenly, they are attacked by the Purple Men, and, during the battle, the villains use the Molecular Projector to bring four infamous villains including Cain, Genghis Khan, Bluebeard, and Satan from the past to do battle. Unable to overcome Captain Midnight, the villains board Cap's spaceship and head toward Eath to enslave its people. Accomplishing this, Cap is further honored by having the new planet named Planet Albright!
Tomb of Terror #10: In the feature titled Why We Call It Blue Monday, it tells of terrible historic events took place on a Monday including the murder of Abel by Cain. It also mentions the destruction of Sodom & Gomorrah, the betrayal of Christ by Judas, the murder of Julius Caesar on the Ides of March, the destruction of the Spanish Armada, and the execution of Marie Antoinette.

Public Domain Comic Appearances Inspired by Cain[]

Green Hornet Comics #23: The Zebra story Gore of the Vampire features characters Cain and Abel Murdair who are named after the Biblical figures.