UNICORNS!!1

Just because unicorns are mythical doesn’t mean they haven’t had a real impact on history. Just ask a narwhal!

1. The first known depiction of a unicorn—found in the Lascaux Caves of modern-day France—dates to around 15,000 BCE! Or so people thought, until they realized that the so-called Lascaux unicorn had two horns, drawn confusingly close together.

2. The earliest record of unicorns in Western literature belongs to Greek historian Ctesias. In the 5th century BCE, he wrote that the beast had a white body, purple head, blue eyes, and a multicolored horn—red at the tip, black in the middle, and white at the base.

3. In his travels, Marco Polo believed he stumbled across unicorns. He wrote, “They are very ugly brutes to look at. They are not at all such as we describe unicorns.” That’s because they were actually rhinoceroses.

4. Genghis Khan reportedly decided not to conquer India after meeting a unicorn, which bowed down to him; he viewed it as a sign from his dead father and turned his army back.

5. During the Dark Ages, when science famously took a back seat to illogical hunches, collections known as bestiaries listed the biological properties and medicinal use of known animals, which at the time included unicorns. It’s in these collections that virgins were first described as having great power over the creatures.

6. The King James version of the Old Testament contains nine references to unicorns, thanks to a mistranslation of the Hebrew word re’em. The original word was likely the Assyrian rimu (auroch), an extinct species of wild ox.

7. The legend that unicorn horns could counteract poison and purify water was bad news for narwhal populations, as the single tooth protruding from the front of the whale’s head made for a popular counterfeit. The Danes even had a throne made of narwhal horns.

8. At its height, “unicorn horn” was literally worth 10 times its weight in gold. In 1560, German merchants sold a unicorn horn for an astronomical 90,000 scudi—then about £18,000—to the pope. Pharmacies in London sold powdered unicorn horn as late as 1741.

9. Early unicorn heraldry can be found on the ancient seals of Babylonia and Assyria, but it’s most famously attached to Scotland’s King James III in the 1400s. Two gold coins of that era were even known as the unicorn and the half-unicorn!

10. If you’re looking to hunt a unicorn, but don’t know where to begin, try Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Since 1971, the university has issued permits to unicorn questers. Anyone embarking on such a search is advised to carry a flask of cognac and a pair of pinking shears.

     

        Watch a day in life of our fluffy friend -->


                                                                                       More facts about Unicorns: Cornies<3

PEGASUS :*

Appearance: A beautiful horse with wings.

Symbol or Attribute: His wings are his identifying symbol.

Strengths: Can fly.

Weaknesses: Can be captured and ridden.

Parents: Medusa - Pegasus was born from the blood of her severed head when Perseus killed her. His brother Chrysaor was born at the same moment; Chrysaor was not a horse though little is known of his appearance and he may have been a giant. Poseidon was the father of Chrysaor and may also have been the father of Pegasus.

Spouse: None

Children: None known.

Associated Sites: Mount Helicon, where Pegasus kicked the mountain to stop it growing larger and at the same moment, created the spring called Hippocrene; Corinth, where the ill-fated hero Bellerophon captured him on the high hill of Acrocorinth.

Basic Story: Bellerophon tried to use Pegasus to fly to Mount Olympus, but Zeus was not amused and sent an insect to bite Pegasus.Pegasus then bucked off Bellerophon, who fell to earth and died. Moral: don't try to crash Mount Olympus without an invite.

Alternate name: Sometimes spelled "Pegasos", which may mean his name has non-Greek origins indicated by the "-os" ending, which is pre-Greek. Winged horses and other winged animals were also sometimes depicted in Minoan art on the island of Crete.

Interesting Fact: Pegasus is sometimes called "The Thundering Horse of Jove," an alternate name for Zeus,  and is thought to carry Zeus' thunderbolts through the sky. Pegasus is the best-known winged horse in mythology. The image of the flying horse is well-known in the United States as the secondary logo to Mobil Oil, now ExxonMobil, and it  graced gas stations for decades and can still occasionally be seen.

Pegasus' bio ---> here                     

HIPPOGRIFF

A Hippogriff (also spelled Hippogryph and Hippogryphe) is a legendary creature, supposedly the offspring of a griffin and a mare. Ludovico Ariosto's poem, Orlando furioso (1516) contains an early description (canto IV):

XVIII

No empty fiction wrought by magic lore,

But natural was the steed the wizard pressed;

For him a filly to griffin bore;

Hight hippogryph. In wings and beak and crest,

Formed like his sire, as in the feet before;

But like the mare, his dam, in all the rest.

Such on Riphaean hills, though rarely found,

Are bred, beyond the frozen ocean's bound.

XIX

Drawn by enchantment from his distant lair,

The wizard thought but how to tame the foal;

And, in a month, instructed him to bear

Saddle and bit, and gallop to the goal;

And execute on earth or in mid air,

All shifts of manege, course and caracole;

He with such labour wrought. This only real,

Where all the rest was hollow and ideal.

According to Thomas Bulfinch's Legends of Charlemagne
:

“

Like a griffin, it has the head of an eagle, claws armed with talons, and wings covered with feathers, the rest of its body being that of a horse. This strange animal is called a Hippogriff.

”

The reason for its great rarity is that griffins regard horses as prey. It has been suggested this idea was strong enough in medieval times to produce an expression, "to mate griffins with horses", which meant about the same as the modern expression, "When pigs fly". The hippogriff was therefore a symbol of impossibility and love. This was supposedly inspired by Virgil's Ecologues: ... mate Gryphons with mares, and in the coming age shy deer and hounds together come to drink.., which would also be the source for the reputed medieval expression, if indeed it was one.
Among the animal combat themes in Scythian gold adornments may be found griffins attacking horses.

The hippogriff seemed easier to tame than a griffin. In the few medieval legends when this fantastic creature makes an appearance, it is usually the pet of either a knight or a sorcerer. It makes an excellent steed, being able to fly as fast as lightning. The hippogriff is said to be an omnivore, eating either plants or meat. Another description of the Hippogriff can be found in Arnold Sundgaard's poem, The Hippogriff: 
When Mare and Griffin meet and mate
Their offspring share a curious fate.
One half is Horse with hooves and tail,
The rest is Eagle, claws and nail.
As a Horse it likes to graze
In summer meadows doused in haze,
Yet as an Eagle it can fly
Above the clouds where dreams drift by.
With such a Beast I am enthralled,
The Hippogriff this beast is called.

More detailed info: HP wikia

                                                   Hippogriff's biggest TV appearance:

HIPPOCAMPUS

The hippocamp (also: hippocampe, hippokamp, or hippocampus, pl: hippocampi or hippokampoi) is a sea monster in Greek mythology. The creature has a horse's body and a fish's tail. It was not commonly pictured in Classical Greek art but when it is, it is sometimes ridden by the sea god Nereus or sea nymphs. The hippocamp plays no part in any known mythological tale. The ancients believed it was the adult form of the seahorse. It draws the chariot of Poseidon and other sea divinities in the works of ancient writers and artists.

Hippocampus springs from Greek and Phoenician mythology, however, its name is purely of Greek provenance as the word hippo in Greek means horse and kampos means sea monster. These mythical creatures are believed to have been created from the crests of sea waves.

MERMAID

With nearly three-quarters of the Earth covered by water, it's little wonder that, centuries ago, the oceans were believed to contain many mysterious creatures, including sea serpents and mermaids. Merfolk (mermaids and mermen) are, of course, only the marine version of half-human, half-animal legends that have captured human imagination for ages.

C.J.S. Thompson, a former curator at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, noted in his book "The Mystery and Lore of Monsters" (Kessinger, 2010), "Traditions concerning creatures half-human and half-fish in form have existed for thousands of years, and the Babylonian deity Era or Oannes, the Fish-god, is represented on seals and in sculpture, as being in this shape over 2,000 years B.C. He is usually depicted as having a bearded head with a crown and a body like a man, but from the waist downwards, he has the shape of a fish covered with scales and a tail."

Greek mythology contains stories of the god Triton, the merman messenger of the sea, and several modern religions, including Hinduism and Candomblé (an Afro-Brazilian belief), worship mermaid goddesses to this day. In folklore, mermaids were often associated with bad luck and misfortune. They lured errant sailors off course and even onto rocky shoals, much like their cousins, the sirens  — beautiful, alluring half-bird, half-women who dwelled near rocky cliffs and sung to passing sailors. The sirens would enchant men to steer their ships toward the singing — and the dangerous rocks that were sure to sink them. Homer's "Odyssey," written around 800 B.C., tells tales of the brave Ulysses, whose naked ears were tortured by the sweet sounds of the sirens. In other legends — from Scotland and Wales, for example — mermaids befriended, and even married, humans.

'Real' mermaid?

There are many legends about mermaids and even a few dozen historical claims of supposedly "real" mermaid sightings. Hundreds of years ago, sailors and residents in coastal towns around the world told of encounters with sea-maidens. One story, dating back to the 1600s, claimed that a mermaid had entered Holland through a dike, and was injured in the process. She was taken to a nearby lake and was soon nursed back to health. She eventually became a productive citizen, learned to speak Dutch, performed household chores and converted to Catholicism.

Another supposed mermaid encounter is described in Edward Snow's "Incredible Mysteries and Legends of the Sea" (Dodd Mead, 1967). A sea captain off the coast of Newfoundland described his 1614 encounter: "Captain John Smith saw a mermaid 'swimming about with all possible grace.' He pictured her as having large eyes, a finely shaped nose that was 'somewhat short,' and well-formed ears that were rather too long. Smith goes on to say that 'her long green hair imparted to her an original character that was by no means unattractive.'" In fact, Smith was so taken with this lovely woman that he began "to experience the first effects of love" (take that as you will) as he gazed at her before his sudden (and surely profoundly disappointing) realization that she was a fish from the waist down. This dilemma is reflected in a popular song titled "The Mermaid," by Newfoundland band Great Big Sea:

"I love the girl with all me heart
But I only like the upper part
I do not like the tail!"

Another story, from 1830 in Scotland, claimed that a young boy killed a mermaid by throwing rocks at it; the creature looked like a child of about 3 or 4, but had a salmon's tail instead of legs. The villagers are said to have buried it in a coffin, though there seems to be no historical evidence of this fishy tale.

By the 1800s, hoaxers churned out faked mermaids by the dozen to satisfy the public's interest in the creatures. The great showman P.T. Barnum was well aware of the public's interest in mermaids and, in the 1840s, displayed the "Feejee Mermaid," which became one of his most popular attractions. People paying 50 cents hoping to see a long-limbed, fish-tailed beauty comb her hair were surely disappointed; instead, they saw a grotesque fake corpse a few feet long. It had the torso, head and limbs of a monkey and the bottom part of a fish. To modern eyes, it was an obvious fake, but it fooled and intrigued many people at the time.

Modern mermaids?

Could there be a scientific basis for any of the mermaid stories? Some researchers believe that sightings of human-size ocean animals, such asmanatees and dugongs, might have inspired merfolk legends. These animals have a flat tail and two flippers that resemble stubby arms — traits that may make them resemble merfolk. They don't look exactly like typical mermaids or mermen, of course. But many sightings were from quite a distance away, and since they were mostly submerged in water and waves, only parts of their bodies were visible. A glimpse of a head, arm or tail just before it dives under the waves might have spawned at least some mermaid reports.

Modern mermaid reports are very rare, but they do occur; for example, news reports in 2009 claimed

LEPRECHAUN

1. According to the book "The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures," by John and Caitlin Matthews, the leprechaun legend can be traced back to eighth-century tales of water spirits called "luchorpán," meaning small body. The legend eventually evolved into a mischievous household fairy said to haunt cellars and drink heavily.

2. Leprechauns are shoemakers. Some researches claim that the word leprechaun came from the Irish 'leath bhrogan,' meaning shoemaker, said to be the sprites' main vocation.

3. If you happen to come across a leprechaun, be sure to hold on to him.  According to Irish legends, people lucky enough to capture a leprechaun can barter his freedom for three wishes. But dealing with a leprechaun can be a tricky proposition.

4. A leprechaun is a trickster figure who cannot be trusted. Folklorist Carol Rose offers a typical tale of leprechaun trickery in her encyclopedia "Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins," it concerns "a man who managed to get a leprechaun to show him the bush in the field where his treasure was located. Having no spade [shovel], the man marked the tree with one of his red garters, then kindly released the sprite and went for a spade. Returning almost instantly he found that every one of the numerous trees in the field sported a red garter!"

5. Like most fairies, leprechauns have a distinctive sound associated with them. While the Irish banshee can be identified by a mournful wail, leprechauns are recognized by the tap-tap-tapping of a tiny cobbler hammer, driving nails into shoes, that announces they are near.

6. Leprechauns are always male. In the 1825 book "Fairy Legends" noted that  "Leprechauns seem to be entirely male and solitary. They are often described as bearded old men dressed in green and wearing buckled shoes. Sometimes they wear a pointed cap or hat and may smoke a pipe.

7. Leprechauns weren't always dressed in green. Early tales of the creatures reported red clothing.

8.  In his collection of Irish fairy and folk tales, W.B. Yeats offered an 18th-century poem by William Allingham titled "The Lepracaun; Or, Fairy Shoemaker." It describes the tapping sound of the sprite:

"Lay your ear close to the hill.

Do you not catch the tiny clamour,

Busy click of an elfin hammer,

Voice of the Lepracaun singing shrill

As he merrily plies his trade?"

DRAGON

In myths and legends of the world, dragons are often fire-breathing, reptilelike creatures with wings, huge claws, and a long tail. They are usually portrayed as frightening and destructive monsters. Gods and heroes must slay them in symbolic battles of good over evil. But a few cultures, notably those of China and Japan, view dragons in a positive light and use them as symbols of good fortune.

In ancient times, dragons often represented evil, destruction, and death. The dragon Apophis in Egyptian mythology was the enemy of Ra, the sun god. Babylonian creation myths describe the dragonlike monster Tiamat, who was associated with chaos. Dragons also play a role in theBible, where they are frequently identified with Satan.

Dragons appeared in various Greek and Roman myths. For example, Apollo * fought the dragon Python, which guarded the oracle at Delphi. In Greece and Rome, dragons were thought to understand the secrets of the earth. They had both protective and fearsome qualities. As a result, the dragon came to be used as a military symbol. Roman soldiers of the first century a.d. inscribed dragons on the standards that they carried into battle. The ancient Celts * also used the dragon symbol on their battle gear, and to this day a red dragon appears on the flag of Wales.

Cool dragon game: DC

In Norse * mythology, the best-known dragon is Fafnir, a giant who transformed himself into a dragon to guard treasure on which a curse had been placed. The young hero Sigurd slays Fafnir. The story was retold in the German epic the Nibelungenlied. In the story of Beowulf, the hero fights a dragon that has been terrorizing the people. He is mortally wounded in the struggle.

Christian legends generally blended the dragon's satanic image with elements of Greek and other mythologies. Many of the stories had symbolic meanings. In one famous legend, St. George, the patron saint of England, saved the daughter of a king from a dragon, symbolizing the triumph of the church over the devil. The dragon played a similar symbolic role in Christian art, representing sin overcome by saints and martyrs.

WEREWOLF

Are you a real werewolf?

Take a Werewolf Quiz

A human temporarily or permanently transformed into a wolf, from the Anglo-Saxon wer(man) and wulf (wolf). It is a term used in the phenomenon of lycanthropy, which in ancient and medieval times was of very frequent occurrence. It was in Europe, where the wolf was one of the largest carnivorous animals, that the superstition became prevalent. Similar tales in other countries usually introduced bears, tigers, leopards, or other animals. Origins

FAIRY

A species of supernatural beings or nature spirits, one of the most beautiful and important of mythological concepts. Belief in fairies is ancient and widespread, and similar ideas concerning them are found in primitive as well as civilized societies. Fairies have been celebrated in folklore, stories, songs, and poems. The term fairy comes from the Latin fata and fatum (fate), and in Middle English implied enchantment, or an enchanted land and its inhabitants. Fairies were known as "fays" or "fées" in the British Isles and Europe.

Fairies were often said to be invisible, usually of smaller stature than humans. It was believed they could be helpful to humans, but might be dangerous and evil if offended. They were often considered just mischievous and whimsical in a childlike manner, but were believed to have magical powers.

The strongest traditions of fairies are those of the British Isles and Europe, but belief in fairies has also been found in Asia, America, and Africa. There are scores of characteristic fairies in the European tradition, but the main types include the trooping fairies, who are the aristocrats of the fairy world, living in palaces or dancing and feasting underground; the hobgoblin fairies of a rougher, workman type; nature spirits of rivers, gardens, and woods; and deformed monsters, like hags and giants. For a comprehensive listing of pixies, nixies, elves, fauns, brownies, dwarfs, leprechauns, bogies, banshees, and other fairies, see the excellent work A Dictionary of Fairies (1976), by Katharine Briggs, a modern authority on the subject.

INTRO

A legendary creature is an animal described in non-historical stories that sometimes involve the supernatural. Other legendary animals, such as the unicorn, were claimed in accounts of natural history by various scholars of antiquity.

The definitions of legendary and mythological have been debated with no widely agreed upon application. Some legendary creatures have their origin in traditional mythology and were believed to be real creatures, for example dragons, griffins, and unicorns. Others were based on real encounters, originating in garbled accounts of travelers' tales, such as the Vegetable Lamb of Tartary, which supposedly grew tethered to the earth (and was actually a type of fern).

The origins to many legendary creatures can be found in writings from the Middle Ages. These descriptions emerged as ways to convey important concepts and messages through symbolism and metaphor rather than function as literal interpretations. Medieval accounts of these creatures often appear quite whimsical, but it should be understood that portraying the natural world’s physical accuracy was not likely a relevant priority.