The Chimaera
Aldrovandus gives us the accompanying illustration of a Chimaera, a
fabulous Classical monster, said to possess three heads, those of a
lion, a goat, and a dragon. It used so to be pictorially treated, but in
more modern times as Aldrovandus represents. The mountain Chimaera, now
called Yanar, is in ancient Lycia, in Asia Minor, and was a burning
mountain, which, according to Spratt, is caused by a stream of
inflammable gas, issuing from a crevice. This monster is easily
explained, if we can believe Servius, the Commentator of Virgil, who
says that flames issue from the top of the mountain, and that there are
lions in the vicinity; the middle part abounds in goats, and the lower
part with serpents.
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Hairy Men
If, as we may conjecture from the above, the ancient Briton was "a rugged man, o'ergrown with hair," his full-dress toilette must have occupied some time. But extreme hairiness in human beings is by no means singular, and very many cases are recor... Moon Woman
One would have imagined that this Egg would be sufficient to test the credulity of most people, but Aldrovandus was equal to the occasion, and he gives us a "Moon Woman," who lays eggs, sits upon them, and hatches Giants; and he gives this on t... Pygmies
The antitheses of men--Dwarfs, and Giants--must not be overlooked, as they are abnormal, and yet have existed in all ages. Dwarfs are mentioned in the Bible, Leviticus xxi. 20, where following the injunction of "Let him not approach to offer the b... Remarkable Egg
No wonder that a credulous age, which could see nothing extraordinary in the Barnacle goose, could also, metaphorically, swallow such an egg, as Licetus, first of all, and Aldrovandus, after him, gives us in the accompanying true picture. The l... Satyrs
He also mentions and delineates a curious Ape which closely resembles the classical Satyr: "Under the Equinoctiall, toward the East and South, there is a kind of Ape called AEgopithecus, an Ape like a Goate. For there are Apes like Beares, called ... Senses Of Fishes
He also tells us about the senses of fishes, and first of their hearing:--"Among the marine animals, it is not probable that Oysters enjoy the sense of hearing, but it is said that immediately a noise is made, the Solen (razor-sheath) will sink to... Serpents
Of Serpents Topsell has written a "Historie," which, if not altogether veracious, is very amusing; and I shall quote largely from it, as it shows us "the latest thing out" in Serpents as believed in, and taught, in the time of James I. He begins, ... Snow Birds
But we must leave warm climes, and birds of Paradise, and speak of "Birds shut up under the Snow." "There are in the Northern Countries Wood-Cocks, like to pheasant for bigness, but their Tails are much shorter, and they are cole black all o... Sponges
"We find three kinds of sponges mentioned; the first are thick, very hard, and rough, and are called tragi: the second are thick, and much softer, and are called mani: of the third, being fine, and of a closer texture, tents for sores are made; th... The Alle Alle
"There is also in this Lake (the White Lake) a kind of bird, very frequent; and in other Coasts of the Bothnick and Swedish Sea, that cries incessantly all the Summer, Alle, Alle, therefore they are called all over, by the Inhabitants, Alle, Al... The Ant
No one would credit the industrious Ant, whose ways we are told to consider, and gather wisdom therefrom, was avaricious and lustful after gold; but it seems it was even so, at least, in Pliny's time; but then they were abnormally large:--"The hor... The Antelope
When not taken from living specimens, or skins, the artists of old drew somewhat upon their imaginations for their facts, as is the case with this Antelope, of which Topsell gives the following description:--"They are bred in India, and Syria, ... The Barnacle Goose
Of all extraordinary beliefs, that in the Barnacle Goose, which obtained credence from the eleventh to the seventeenth centuries, is as wonderful as any. The then accepted fact that the Barnacle Goose was generated on trees, and dropped alive in t... The Basilisk And Cockatrice
Aldrovandus portrays the Basilisk with eight legs. Topsell says it is the same as the Cockatrice, depicts it as a crowned serpent, and says:--"This Beast is called by the Graecian Baziliscos, and by the Latine, Regulus, because he seemeth to be... The Bear
As Pliny not only uses all Aristotle's matter anent Bears, but puts it in a consecutive, and more readable form, it is better to transcribe his version than that of the older author. "Bears couple in the beginning of winter. The female then reti... The Bee
The Busy Bee, too, according to Olaus Magnus, developed, in the regions of the North, a peculiarity to which it seems a stranger with us, but which might be encouraged, with beneficial effect, by the Temperance Societies. The Bees infested d... The Cat
Aldrovandus gives us a picture of a curly-legged Cat, but, beyond saying that it was so afflicted (or ornamented) from its birth, he gives no particulars. Topsell, too, is singularly silent on the merits of Cats; but yet he mentions some interesti... The Centaur
This extraordinary combination of man and animal is very ancient--and the first I can find is Assyrian. Mr. W. St. Chad Boscawen, in one of his British Museum Lectures (afterwards published under the title of From under the Dust of Ages), speaking... The Chimaera
Aldrovandus gives us the accompanying illustration of a Chimaera, a fabulous Classical monster, said to possess three heads, those of a lion, a goat, and a dragon. It used so to be pictorially treated, but in more modern times as Aldrovandus re... The Circhos
"There is also another Monster like to that, called Circhos, which hath a crusty and soft Skin, partly black, partly red, and hath two cloven places in his Foot, that serve for to make three Toes. The right foot of this Animal is very small, but t... The Crocodile
The largest of the Saurians which we have left us, is the Crocodile; and it formerly had the character of being very deceitful, and, by its weeping, attracted its victims. Sir John Mandeville thus describes them:--"In this land, and many other pla... The Dog-fish And Ray
Olaus Magnus writes of "The cruelty of some Fish, and the kindness of others. There is a fish of the kind of Sea-Dogfish, called Boloma, in Italian, and in Norway, Haafisck, that will set upon a man swimming in the Salt-Waters, so greedily, in ... The Dolphin
Pliny says:--"The Dolphin is an animal not only friendly to man, but a lover of music as well; he is charmed by melodious concerts, and more especially by the notes of the water organ. He does not dread man, as though a stranger to him, but comes ... The Fox
By Englishmen, the Fox has been raised to the height of at least a demigod--and his cult is a serious matter attended with great minutiae of ritual. Englishmen and Foxes cannot live together, but they live for one another, the man to hunt the fox,... The Gorgon
In the title-page of one edition of "The Historie of Foure-footed Beastes" (1607) Topsell gives this picture of the Gorgon; and he says, respecting this curious animal, the following:--"Among the manifold and divers sorts of Beasts which are bred ... The Griffin
There always has been a tradition of birds being existent, of far greater size than those usually visible. The Maoris aver that at times they still hear the gigantic Moa in the scrub--and, even, if extinct, we know, by the state of the bones fou... The Gulo
Olaus Magnus thus describes the Gulo or Gulon:--"Amongst all creatures that are thought to be insatiable in the Northern parts of Sweden, the Gulo hath his name to be the principall; and in the vulgar tongue they call him Jerff, but in the Germ... The Halcyon
Of this bird, the Kingfisher, Aristotle thus discourses:--"The halcyon is not much larger than a sparrow; its colour is blue and green, and somewhat purple; its whole body is composed of these colours as well as the wings and neck, nor is any part... The Harpy And Siren
The conjunction of the human form with birds is very easy, wings being fitted to it, as in the case of angels--and as applied to beasts, this treatment is very ancient, vide the winged bulls of Assyria, and the classical Pegasus, or winged hors... The Hoopoe And Lapwing
Whether the following bird is meant for the Hoopoe, or the Lapwing, I know not. The Latin version has "De Upupis," which clearly means Hoopoes--and the translation says, "Of the Whoups or Lapwings"--I follow the latter. "Lapwings, when at a set ti... The Hornet
So also, up North, they seem to have had a special breed of Hornets, which must have been ferocious indeed, sparing neither man nor beast, as is evidenced by the corpses, and by the extremely energetic efforts of the yet living man to cope with... The Horse
Aldrovandus gives us a curious specimen of a horse, which the artist has drawn with the slashed trunk breeches of the time. He says that Fincelius, quoting Licosthenes, mentions that this animal had its skin thus slashed, from its birth, and was t... The Kraken
This enormous monster, peculiar to the Northern Seas, is scarcely a fable, because huge Calamaries are not infrequently seen. Poor Pontoppidan has often been considered a Danish Ananias, but there are authentic accounts of these enormous Cuttle-fi... The Lamb-tree
As a change from this awful animal, let us examine the Planta Tartarica Borometz--which was so graphically delineated by Joannes Zahn in 1696. Although this is by no means the first picture of it, yet it is the best of any I have seen. A mos... The Lamia
The Lamiae are mythological--and were monsters of Africa, with the face and breast of a woman, the rest of the body like that of a serpent; they allured strangers, that they might devour them; and though not endowed with the faculty of speech, the... The Leech
The Leech has, from a very early age, been used as a means of letting blood; but, among the old Romans, it had medicinal uses such as we know not of now. It was used as a hair dye. Pliny gives two receipts for making it, and it must have been powe...