- "They had nearly reached the first rock when they heard a rough voice cry out, "KEEP BACK!" "Who are you?" asked the Scarecrow. Then a head showed itself over the rock and the same voice said, "THIS HILL IS OUR HILL, THE HILL OF US HAMMERHEADS, AND WE DO NOT ALLOW ANYONE TO EVER CROSS IT!" "But we must cross it," said the Scarecrow. "We're going to the country of the Quadlings to see its ruler, Glinda, we must." "BUT YOU MUST NOT!" replied the voice, and there stepped from behind the large jagged rocks the strangest man the travelers had ever seen. He was quite short and stout, standing no more than three feet high and had a big head, which was smooth and flat at the top like a hammer, and supported by a thick, fat neck full of layers of wrinkles. But he had no arms at all, and, seeing this, the Scarecrow did not fear that so helpless a creature could prevent them from climbing the hill. So he said, "I'm sorry not to do as you wish, but we must pass over your hill whether you like it or not," and he walked boldly forward. As quick as lightning the man's head shot forward and his neck stretched out until the top of the head, where it was flat, struck the Scarecrow in the middle and sent him tumbling, over and over, down the hill. Almost as quickly as it came the head went back to the body, and the man laughed harshly as he said, "IT ISN'T AS EASY AS YOU THINK!" A chorus of boisterous laughter came from the other rocks, and Dorothy saw hundreds of the armless Hammer-Heads upon the hillside, one behind every rock. "
- ―The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900)
A Hammer-Head of Oz as they appeared in the book of 1900.
The Hammer-Heads of Oz are a rather small and rare race. They are a unusual and bizzare species who live strictly on the top of a high and dry rocky mountain in the Southern quadrant known as the Quadling Country in the magical Land of Oz. They first originally appeared briefly towards the end of Baums' first Oz book titled 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz', published in 1900. Not too much is known about them and they only make a few appearances in the Oz stories by Baum, if at all.
The Hammer-Head tribe of Oz.
The Hill Of The Hammer-Heads of Oz...
The Hammer-Heads are not very sociable and do not interact with anyone else in Oz, preferring to stick close with their own kind. They are extremely independent and not nice at all. Nor are they welcoming to visiters who come across them, as they are known for being quite unfriendly and sometimes even hostile and violent. They do not negotiate, compromise or agree with anyone or thing other than their own tribe and are always difficult and disagreeable. They will not allow any travelers to cross and pass the mountain they live on and dwell within because it is their territory. The Hammer-Heads live a reclusive and isolated existence and do not like to be disturbed. Because of their nature, they are usually avoided by the majority of people who live in Oz. Like the fierce Kalidahs in the forest of Oz, the Hammer-Heads are also refereed to and known as mysteriously unpleasant "Wild Creatures" who will harm others out of mere spite.
Original Description
Placed as another rough obstacle Dorothy Gale and her companions must venture through on their Journey, these peculiar creatures are not happy to see the traveling group of friends as they approach them.
Hammer-Heads 1900.
Baum introduces the Hammer-Heads towards the ending of the first Oz story 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'. They are rather funny looking critters who are short, stubby and stout with no arms at all. Their big oversized heads are flat on top, and their necks are incredibly long like elastic, stretching out like an accordion. They can shoot these necks out like a spring of a Jack in the Box. This allows the Hammer-Heads to defend themselves as they will strike at intruders with their heads to knock them down hard to keep them away.
The Hammer-Heads knock down the helpless Scarecrow.
After hitting their targets, they then quickly pull their slinky like necks back to their shoulders and back into place until someone else steps foot on their mountain or comes too close to their turf.(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz)
Adaptations
The Hammer-Heads appeared in the Broadway musical Wicked. They perform a small number during the intermission between act 1 and act 2.
Hammer-Heads in Broadways' Wicked.
In Magician of Oz (2009), by James C. Wallace II, the Hammer-Heads are viewed from afar as Jamie Diggs, the great grandson of O.Z. Diggs, travels with Dorothy and Glinda to the Tin Palace of the Tin Woodman. Known as the Valley of Fear and located between the Forest of the Fighting Trees and the base of the Mountain of the Hammer-Heads, it is the place where Jamie Diggs confronts his fear of the dreaded hammer-Heads, who he had learned earlier had threatened his great grandfather, O.Z. Diggs, the Wizard of Oz.