How the Witch of Kings Cross sparked a ‘satanic panic’
Rosaleen Norton shocked Australian society amid wild tales of devil worship, blood sacrifices, sex orgies and obscene art.
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Rosaleen Norton was an artist and occultist known as “the witch of Kings Cross”.
She horrified Australian society in the 1950s and ’60s amid sensational allegations of satanic rituals, blood sacrifices, sex orgies and obscene art.
Her story is told in the free In Black and White podcast on Australia’s forgotten characters:
Peter Coleman tells her story in his new book, Australia’s Most Bizarre Crimes.
Rosaleen was born in 1917 in New Zealand with naturally pointed ears and two spots on her knees.
“These were the kind of physical characteristics that in centuries past would have been considered witches’ marks,” Mr Coleman says.
“Later in life she claimed that she was born a witch.”
The family moved to Sydney in 1925. Rosaleen had a strange childhood, and apparently slept outside the family home in a tent for three years.
Mr Coleman says Rosaleen was expelled from school at 14 for being a “corrupting influence” after sharing “depraved drawings” of vampires and werewolves with classmates.
In 1949, she hitchhiked south to attend an exhibition of her art at the University of Melbourne.
“She showcased a series of paintings and drawings of pagan deities, demons, supernatural entities, often depicted in sexually suggestive poses,” Mr Coleman says.
“This was all extremely controversial for Menzies-era Australia.
“So it wasn’t really a huge surprise when the cops showed up, seized four of the paintings and charged Norton with obscenity.”
The case was dismissed after a judge accepted Rosaleen’s explanation for her artworks.
“But she remains to this day the only artist to ever have had any of her artwork destroyed by the police,” Mr Coleman says.
Rosaleen’s home in Kings Cross became an epicentre for the Sydney bohemian scene.
“There was apparently a placard on the door which said, ‘Welcome to the house of ghosts, goblins, werewolves, vampires, witches, wizards and poltergeists,’” Mr Coleman says.
Rosaleen established an altar to the Greek god Pan, a god of nature, but many people equated Pan with Satan and accused Rosaleen of devil worshipping.
The controversy exploded in 1952 when she released her book, The Art of Rosaleen Norton, featuring her art alongside poems written by her lover Gavin Greenlees.
The images included demons, skull serpents, erotic emblems and religious symbols, as well as pictorial lampoons of churchmen, including a naked priest.
Rosaleen was charged, found guilty of obscenity and fined, and the book was banned in NSW.
“It was actually burned by Customs officials in the US,” Mr Coleman says.
“She was basically at the centre of her own satanic panic.”
To learn more, listen to the interview in the free In Black and White podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or web.
See In Black & White in the Herald Sun newspaper every Friday for more stories and photos from the past.
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