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Fabulous Creatures

Fabulous creatures are strange and impossible animals which have never actually existed, but have been described in legends or in early works on natural history.

Some fabulous beasts combined the features of two or more real animals, while others were a blend of animal and man. The mermaid, for example, was said to be half woman and half fish - the upper half a pretty girl, and the lower half a large, graceful tail. Fishermen have been telling tales of mermaids for centuries, and some people still take them seriously.

Few of the other legendary creatures were so charming. They tended to be monstrous-looking and extremely fierce. The Chimera, a beast described by ancient Greek storytellers, was a combination of lion, goat and dragon. The Chimera had a daughter who was called the Sphinx. She had a woman's head and a lion's body. She lay near the roadside, asking each passer-by to solve a riddle. Anyone who could not give her the correct answer was devoured instantly.

The Roman naturalist Pliny gave the particulars of another horrid beast, the basilisk. Also called the cockatrice, this animal was the king of serpents. One glance from his evil eyes was supposed to cause instant death. Pliny said of him: He kills the shrubs, not only by contact, but by breathing on them, such power of evil is there in him.

Perhaps the best known of legendary animals is the unicorn, which looked like a horse with a single horn on its forehead. The horn was supposed to have magical properties, so unicorns were much sought after. According to legend, however, a unicorn could never be captured by force, but would come willingly to rest his head in the lap of an innocent young girl.