Aspidochelone

Aspidochelone - According to the tradition of the Physiologus and medieval bestiaries, the aspidochelone is a fabled sea creature, variously described as a large whale or sea turtle, that is as large as an island. The name aspidochelone appears to be a compound word combining Greek aspis (which means either "asp" or "shield"), and chelone, the turtle. It rises to the surface from the depths of the sea, and entices unwitting sailors to make landfall on its huge shell. In Old English literature, in the poem The Whale, the creature appears under the name Fastitocalon, apparently a variant of aspidochelone. In the moralistic allegory of the Physiologus and bestiary tradition, the aspidochelone represents Satan, who deceives those whom he seeks to devour.

One version of the Latin text of the Physiologus reads:

"There is a monster in the sea which in Greek is called aspidochelone, in Latin "asp-turtle"; it is a great whale, that has what appear to be beaches on its hide, like those from the sea-shore. This creature raises its back above the waves of the sea, so that sailors believe that it is just an island, so that when they see it, it appears to them to be a sandy beach such as is common along the sea-shore. Believing it to be an island, they beach their ship alongside it, and disembarking, they plant stakes and tie up the ships. Then, in order to cook a meal after this work, they make fires on the sand as if on land. But when the monster feels the heat of these fires, it immediately submerges into the water, and pulls the ship into the depths of the sea.
Such is the fate of all who pay no heed to the Devil and his wiles, and place their hopes in him: tied to him by their works, they are submerged into the burning fire of Gehenna: for such is his guile.


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Hippopodes

HIPPOPODES
THE HIPPOPODES were a tribe of horse-footed men who lived in the mythical islands of the far north.
Pliny the Elder, Natural History 4. 94 (trans.

Rackham) (Roman encyclopedia C1st A.D.) :
"Crossing the Ripaean Mountains [probably the Carpathians of central Europe] must coast to the left along the shore of the
northern ocean until we reach Gadis. In this direction a number of islands are reported to exist [perhaps in the Baltic Sea] . . . [and] the Hippopodes on which people are born with horses’ feet, which gives them their Greek name."






This scene probably represents the witches of some barbarous nation, as introduced upon the stage. There was a tribe of Scythians named Hippopodes, to which we may conjecture these personages belong.

One holds a small mummy in her hand, which might seem to have a reference to the Egyptian colony of Colchos ; but Colchos was a part of Sarmatia, which might easily in a vague account be confounded with Scythia by Dionysius Periegetes. The borders are from the house of the Dioscuri.

hippogriff

Hippogrif

The Hippogrif is legendary animal that is half Griffin and half horse. The forequarters and head is that of the griffin that would be the father's half and hindquarters would be of its mother a filly. The Hippogrif is a ferocious creature. The Hippogrif is often found in ancient Greek paintings but it was more largely seen in medieval times.

Peryton

Peryton

The Peryton lived in Atlantis, it is a large flying creature with the antlered head and legs of a dear with the wings and body of bird. The Peryton casts a shadow of a man until it kills one. When an earthquake destroyed Atlantis the Peryton took to the air and were seen flying above the Pillars of Hercules.

Sphinx

A winged creature with a lion's body and a human head, usually a female head. They can be very dangerous and will sometimes kill those who cannot answer their riddles.
he word sphinx comes from the Greek Σφίγξ, apparently from the verb σφίγγω (sphíngō), meaning "to strangle" This name may be derived from the fact that the hunters for a pride of lions are the lionesses, and kill their prey by strangulation, biting the throat of prey and holding them down until they die. The word sphincter derives from the same root. However, the historian Susan Wise Bauer suggests that the word "sphinx" was instead actually a Greek corruption of the Egyptian name "shesepankh," which meant "living image," and referred rather to the statue of the sphinx, which was carved out of "living rock" (rock that was present at the construction site, not harvested and brought from another location), than to the beast itself

Roc

A huge bird, with a wingspan of 30 paces that is capable of carrying off an elephant It is so large that drinking cups can be made of its nails.
Allegedly the Kubla Khan sent men to inquire about the Roc, and they returned with a "feather" of the Roc that was 90 spans long (about 67 feet.) It may have been a palm frond.

Griffin

There are a couple descriptions for Griffins: one is that it is part bird and part lion. Sometimes it is specified as part lion, part eagle. Occasionally, it is represented as a lion's body with an eagles head (without wings.) Griffins are frequently large, capable of carrying a man and horse, or an elephant, in its talons. The term Griffin is also used to describe a large bird.
The long nails on a griffin's feet are as big as oxen horns, and can be used as cups. The ribs can be used to make a bow. A male griffin that mates with a female horse produces a Hippogryph. According to Olaus Magnus, they live in the "Northern Mountains." According to Marco Polo, they are from Madagascar. Can be hostile to horses.