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 in Affricke, it is thought that
the Gorgon is brought foorth in that countrey. It is a feareful and
terrible beast to behold: it hath high and thicke eie-lids, eies not
very g
neyther looke directly forwarde, nor yet upwards, but continuallye downe
to the earth, and therefore are called in Greeke Catobleponta. From
the crowne of their head downe to their nose, they have a long hanging
mane, which makes them to look fearefully. It eateth deadly and
poysonfull hearbs, and if at any time he see a Bull, or other creature
whereof he is afraid, he presently causeth his mane to stand upright,
and, being so lifted up, opening his lips, and gaping wide, sendeth
forth of his throat a certaine sharpe and horrible breath, which
infecteth, and poysoneth the air above his head, so that all living
creatures which draw the breath of that aire are greevously afflicted
thereby, loosing both voyce and sight, they fall into leathall and
deadly convulsions. It is bred in Hesperia and Lybia.
"The Poets have a fiction that the Gorgones were the Daughters of
Medusa and Phorcynis, and are called Steingo, and by Hesiodus,
Stheno, and Eyryale inhabiting the Gorgadion Ilands in the
AEthiopick Ocean, over against the gardens of Hesperia. Medusa is
said to have the haires of his head to be living Serpentes, against whom
Perseus fought, and cut off his hed, for which cause he was placed in
heaven on the North side of the Zodiacke above the Waggon, and on the
left hand holding the Gorgons head. The truth is that there were
certaine Amazonian women in Affricke divers from the Scythians,
against whom Perseus made warre, and the captaine of those women was
called Medusa, whom Perseus overthrew, and cut off her head, and
from thence came the Poet's fiction describing Snakes growing out of it
as is aforesaid. These Gorgons are bred in that countrey, and have
such haire about their heads, as not onely exceedeth all other beastes,
but also poysoneth, when he standeth upright. Pliny calleth this beast
Catablepon,[29] because it continually looketh downwards, and saith
all the parts of it are but smal excepting the head, which is very
heavy, and exceedeth the proportion of his body, which is never lifted
up, but all living creatures die that see his eies.
"By which there ariseth a question whether the poison which he sendeth
foorth, proceede from his breath, or from his eyes. Whereupon it is more
probable, that like the Cockatrice, he killeth by seeing, than by the
breath of his mouth, which is not competible to any other beasts in the
world. Besides, when the Souldiers of Marius followed Iugurtha,
they saw one of these Gorgons, and, supposing it was some sheepe,
bending the head continually to the earth, and moving slowly, they set
upon him with their swords, whereat the Beast, disdaining, suddenly
discovered his eies, setting his haire upright, at the sight whereof the
Souldiers fel downe dead.
"Marius, hearing thereof, sent other souldiers to kill the beaste, but
they likewise died, as the former. At last the inhabitantes of the
countrey, tolde the Captaine the poyson of this beast's nature, and that
if he were not killed upon a Sodayne, with onely the sight of his eies
he sent death into his hunters: then did the Captaine lay an ambush of
souldiers for him, who slew him sodainely with their speares, and
brought him to the Emperour, whereupon Marius sent his skinne to Rome,
which was hung up in the Temple of Hercules, wherein the people were
feasted after the triumphes; by which it is apparent that they kill with
their eies, and not with their breath....
"But to omit these fables, it is certaine that sharp poisoned sightes
are called Gorgon Blepen, and therefore we will followe the Authoritie
of Pliny and Athenaeus. It is a beast set all over with scales like a
Dragon, having no haire except on his head, great teeth like Swine,
having wings to flie, and hands to handle, in stature betwixt a Bull and
a Calfe.
"There be Ilandes called Gorgonies, wherein these monster-Gorgons
were bredde, and unto the daies of Pliny, the people of that countrey
retained some part of their prodigious nature. It is reported by
Xenophon, that Hanno, King of Carthage, ranged with his armie in
that region, and founde there, certaine women of incredible swiftenesse
and perniscitie of foote. Whereof he tooke two onely of all that
appeared in sight, which had such roughe and sharp bodies, as never
before were seene. Wherefore, when they were dead, he hung up their
skinnes in the Temple of Juno, for a monument of their straunge
natures, which remained there untill the destruction of Carthage. By
the consideration of this beast, there appeareth one manifest argument
of the Creator's devine wisdome and providence, who hath turned the eies
of this beaste downeward to the earth, as it were thereby burying his
poyson from the hurt of man; and shaddowing them with rough, long and
strong haire, that their poysoned beames should not reflect upwards,
untill the beast were provoked by feare or danger, the heavines of his
head being like a clogge to restraine the liberty of his poysonfull
nature, but what other partes, vertues or vices, are contained in the
compasse of this monster, God onely knoweth, who, peradventure, hath
permitted it to live uppon the face of the earth, for no other cause but
to be a punishment and scourge unto mankind; and an evident example of
his owne wrathfull power to everlasting destruction. And this much may
serve for a description of this beast, untill by God's providence, more
can be known thereof."
More
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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
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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
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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... The Leontophonus The Pegasus The Crocotta
The Lion has a dreadful enemy, according to Pliny, who says:--"We have heard speak of a small animal to which the name of Leontophonus[36] has been given, and which is said to exist only in those countries where the Lion is produced. If its flesh ... The Leucrocotta The Eale Cattle Feeding Backwards
"There are oxen, too, like that of India, some with one horn, and others with three; the leucrocotta, a wild beast of extraordinary swiftness, the size of the wild ass, with the legs of a Stag, the neck, tail, and breast of a lion, the head of a b... The Lion
Of the great Cat, the Lion, the ancients give many wonderful stories, some of them not altogether redounding to his character for bravery:--"A serpent, or snake doth easily kill a lion, where of Ambrosius writeth very elegantly. Eximia leonis pulc... The Manticora
Of curious animals, other than Apes, depicted as having some approach to the human countenance, perhaps the most curious is the Manticora. It is not a parvenu; it is of ancient date, for Aristotle mentions it. Speaking of the dentition of animals,... The Martlet And Footless Birds
Of the Martin, or, as in Heraldry it is written, Martlet, Guillim thus writes:--"The Martlet, or Martinet, saith Bekenhawh, hath Legs so exceeding short, that they can by no means go: (walk) And thereupon, it seemeth, the Grecians do call them Apo... The Mimick Dog
"The Mimicke or Getulian Dogge," is, I take it, meant for a poodle. It was "apt to imitate al things it seeth, for which cause some have thought that it was conceived by an Ape, for in wit and disposition it resembleth an Ape, but in face, shar... The Narwhal
generally called the Monoceros or Sea Unicorn, is thus shown in one place, by Gesner; and, rough though it is, it is far more like the Narwhal's horn than is the other, also, in his work, of a Sea Rhinoceros or Narwhal engaged in combat with an ou... The Orca
is probably the Thresher whale. Pliny thus describes it:--"The Balaena (whale of some sort) penetrates to our seas even. It is said that they are not to be seen in the ocean of Gades (Bay of Cadiz) before the winter solstice, and that at periodica... The Ostrich
Modern observation, and especially Ostrich farming, has thoroughly exploded the old errors respecting this bird. We believe in its powers of swallowing anything not too large, but not in its digesting everything, and certainly not, as Muenster ... The Ouran Outan
Transition from hirsute humanity to the apes, is easy, and natural--and we need only deal with the Simiinae, which includes the Orang, the Chimpanzee, and the Gorilla. These are the largest apes, and nearest approach to man--but, although they may... The Pelican
The fable of the Pelican "in her piety, vulning herself," as it is heraldically described--is so well known, as hardly to be worth mentioning, even to contradict it. In the first place, the heraldic bird is as unlike the real one, as it is poss... The Phoenix
Pliny says of the Phoenix:--"AEthiopia and India, more especially produce birds of diversified plumage, and such as quite surpass all description. In the front rank of these is the Phoenix, that famous bird of Arabia; though I am not sure that its... The Remora
Of this fish Pliny writes:--"There is a very small fish that is in the habit of living among the rocks, and is known as the Echeneis, [Greek: Apo tou echein neas]. (From holding back ships.) It is believed that when this has attached itself to the... The Rhinoceros
The true Unicorn is, of course, the Rhinoceros, and this picture of it is as early an one as I can find, being taken from Aldrovandus de Quad, A.D. 1521. Gesner and Topsell both reproduce it, at later dates, but reversed. The latter says that Gesn... The Sahab
"There is also another Sea-Monster, called Sahab, which hath small feet in respect of its great body, but he hath one long one, which he useth in place of a hand to defend all his parts; and with that he puts meat into his mouth, and digs up grass... The Salamander
Many writers have essayed this fabled creature, but almost all have approached the subject with diffidence, as if not quite sure of the absolute entity of the animal. Thus, Aristotle does not speak of it authoritatively:--"And the Salamander shews... The Saw Fish
"The Saw fish is also a beast of the Sea; the body is huge great, the head hath a crest, and is hard and dented like to a Saw. It will swim under ships and cut them, that the Water may come in, and he may feed on the men when the ship is drowned."... The Scorpion
Of the Scorpion, Pliny says:--"This animal is a dangerous scourge, and has a venom like that of the serpent; with the exception that its effects are far more painful, as the person who is stung will linger for three days before death ensues. The s... The Sea Dragon
Of the Ray tribe of fishes, the Sea Dragon is the most frightful-looking, but we know next to nothing about it. Pliny only cursorily mentions it thus:--"The Sea Dragon again, if caught, and thrown on the sand, works out a hole for itself with i... The Sea-hare
"The Sea-Hare is found to be of divers kinds in the Ocean, but so soon as he is caught, onely because he is suspected to be Venemous, how like so ever he is to a Hare, he is let loose again. He hath four Fins behind his Head, two whose motion is a... The Sea-mouse
"The Sea-Mouse makes a hole in the Earth, and lays her Eggs there, and then covers them with Earth: on the 30th day she digs it open again, and brings her young to the Sea, first blind, and, afterwards, he comes to see. ... The Sea-pig
Again we are indebted to Gesner for the drawing of this Sea Monster. Olaus Magnus, speaking of "The Monstrous Hog of the German Ocean," says:--"I spake before of a Monstrous Fish found on the Shores of England, with a clear description of his... The Sea-serpent
Of the antiquity of the belief in the Sea-Serpent there can be no doubt, for it is represented on the walls of the Assyrian palace at Khorsabad, more than once, in the sculpture representing the voyage of Sargon to Cyprus, thus giving it an authen... The Sphynx
"The SPHYNGA or Sphinx, is of the kind of Apes, but his breast up to his necke, pilde and smooth without hayre: the face is very round, yet sharp and piked, having the breasts of women, and their favor, or visage, much like them: In that part of t...