#medieval folklore

[interventionlullabies]

Unknown, The Unicorn Tapestries, c. 1495-1505

1. The Start of the Hunt

2. The Unicorn at the Fountain

3. The Unicorn Attacked

4. The Unicorn Defending Himself

5. The Mystic Capture of the Unicorn

6. The Unicorn Killed and Brought to the Castle

7. The Unicorn in Captivity

[briefbestiary]

A hot, shining-backed snake. The scitalis is known for having an arrangement of glittering scales upon its back, leaving its prey stunned from seeing the glistening creature.

[maverick-werewolf]

Folklore Fact - Gryphons/Griffins

Gryphons, griffins, griffons, however you prefer to spell it (I personally use gryphon) - let's talk their folklore and mythology!

(Attic pottery depicting a satyr and a griffin and an Arimaspus from around 375-350 BC, Eretria.)

You probably already know the common popular culture concept of a gryphon: a big, vicious beast that attacks people and probably eats them and/or carries people away to its nest to feed them to its babies. Not much about it has changed in legend, though in a lot of popular culture today, it has seemed to lose its divinity. Gryphons - griffins, whatever you prefer - have quite the robust history, like so many creatures of myth and folklore. Unlike some, however, they have changed very little over time.

Note that this article a general overview of concepts, not a detailed history.

Let's start with etymology, because I just love that stuff. The word "griffin" comes from the Greek word "gryps," which referred to a dragon or griffin and literally meant "curved [or] hook-nosed." Late Latin spelled it "gryphus," a misspelling of grypus, a Latinized version of the Greek (source: https://www.etymonline.com/, one of my favorite websites).

Griffins are said to have the head and wings of an eagle and body of a lion. They may or may not also have pointed ears, depending on the depiction (they more often did, overall, though the griffin of Crete is a notable exception). They were said to guard the gold in the mountains of the north, specifically the mountains of Scythia. The one-eyed Arimaspian people rode on horseback and attempted to steal the griffins' gold, causing griffins to nurture a deep hatred of and hostility toward horses.

A Scythian pectoral, thought to have been made in Greece, depicting - among other things - griffins slaughtering horses. Griffins really, really hate horses.

The famous griffin in the palace of Knossos at Crete, from the Bronze Age (restored).

Griffins appear in truly ancient civilizations, not only Greece but also ancient Egypt and civilizations to the east, including ancient Sumeria. Griffins were later said to also dwell in India and guard gold in that region, and they continued to appear in art throughout ancient Persia, Rome, Byzantium, and into the Middle Ages throughout other regions such as France; they were depicted in ancient Greece with relative frequency and occasionally of considerable importance.

Griffins appeared in many ancient Greek writings, including Aristeas in the 7th century BC. Herodotus and Aeschylus preserved and continued these writings in the 5th century BC, including lines such as,

"But in the north of Europe there is by far the most gold. In this matter again I cannot say with assurance how the gold is produced, but it is said that one-eyed men called Arimaspoi (Arimaspians) steal it from Grypes (Griffins). The most outlying lands, though, as they enclose and wholly surround all the rest of the world, are likely to have those things which we think the finest and the rarest." Herodotus, Histories 3. 116. 1 (trans. Godley) (Greek historian C5th B.C.), source: https://www.theoi.com/Thaumasios/Grypes.html (a wonderful site)

Physical descriptions of the griffin were not commonplace until some later works, and even then, their appearance wasn't always agreed upon. Even the notion of griffins having wings was sometimes disputed. Some scholars even got pretty wild, claiming griffons had no wings at all but instead skin-flaps that they used to glide. They apparently hated awesome things, so it turns out there were always boring people who thought they knew everything, wanted to explain everything "logically," and generally assume they were the smartest ever while also ruining mystique. They would make great scientists today.

Griffins were, however, often said to be holy in nature. They were referred to as the "unbarking hounds of Zeus" by Aeschylus, who warned others never to approach them. Gryphons were also considered sacred to several gods, including prominently Apollo, who was said to depart Delphi each winter, flying on a griffon (griffin, gryphon, etc, I keep swapping this around, I know; my brain spells it differently because I've read way too many sources), and he also is occasionally depicted as hitching griffins to his chariot in addition to riding one. This was particularly prominent in the cults of Hyperborean Apollo, one of the many endless and fascinating cults of ancient Greece.

Medieval bestiary depiction of a griffin slaughtering a horse.

Even by the Middle Ages, gryphons still hated and slaughtered horses and guarded gold, elements that certainly persisted throughout their legends. They also killed men and carried them away to their nests, similar to the manner in which Aeschylus warned people to stay away from gryphons even back when. We can obviously assume griffons were never cuddly, so that isn't much of a change.

Griffins also did not entirely lose their divine relations even into the Middle Ages. Christianity often used positive portrayals of griffins to represent and uphold certain positive tenets of Christian faith; likewise, they became important symbols of medieval heraldry, used to represent a Christian symbol of divine power, as well as general courage, strength, and leadership, especially in a military sense. The depiction of the griffin as a powerful and majestic creature - killing horses and men or not - throughout its history is no doubt because they are a combination of two beasts often considered noble symbols of bravery, power, and divinity: the lion and the eagle, kings of land animals and birds, respectively.

That's a general overview! As you can see, griffins aren't always so bad, at least not compared to some of the other creatures out there from folklore and myth.

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[connorsartcorner]

Does anyone else kind of wish there was a fantasy rpg out there that was based entirely of of the art of the Middle Ages?

[cuties-in-codices]

a nuclear family of 'wild people'

in the "hours of mary of burgundy", flanders, ca. 1470

source: Vienna, ÖBN, Cod. 1857, fol. 37r

[aquatic-indie-gal]

Inktober 2024 Day 23: Peryton

A Mythical Hybrid between a Deer & Stag.

These Creatures were said to live at Atlantis at some point until when the City got destroyed, they flew away into New Valleys of Home. They are also said to be very Cursed Creatures in which they were said to be the Reason of Rome's Downfall & even hunt down Men through a shadow to most likely to kill.

The Name itself was only invented by Jorge Luis Borges in the 50s to perhaps refer to a Long-Lost Medieval Manuscript as some Historical Versions showed the Heraldry of King Charles IV which featured the Winged-Stag as Heraldic Supporters. Though some versions did show this Creature in the Late Medieval Battle of the Dukes of Bourbon.

Peryton (c) Medieval Art & Folklore

[elyaqim]

Robert the Devil, probably ca. 1564.

Having been given over to the Devil before birth, he ran a career of cruelties and crimes unparalleled, till he was miraculously reclaimed, whereupon he did penance by living among the dogs, became an exemplary Christian, and married the emperor’s daughter. It is thought in Normandy that his wandering ghost is doomed to expiate his crimes until the day of judgment.

—William A. Wheeler, An Explanatory and Pronouncing Dictionary of the Noted Names of Fiction …, 1865.

He proved unruly from the cradle, biting his nurses and tormenting his play‐fellows to the utmost of his infantile capacity. At the age of seven he stabbed a tutor who had reprimanded him. In early manhood he pillaged churches, seduced virgins, outraged wives and killed their husbands. His father hoped to reform him by making him a knight. The ceremony concluded with a tournament in which Robert defeated all his opponents and was with difficulty restrained from killing them. ¶Then he turned bandit, gathering around him a gang of outlaws who made their headquarters in the castle of Thuringia.

—William S. Walsh, Heroes and Heroines of Fiction, vol. 2, 1915.

☞ “Here begynneth the lyfe of Roberte the Deuyll,” illustration for Roberte the Deuyll (illuminated manuscript), probably ca. 1564. (In the public domain.

☞ “Here begynneth the lyfe of Roberte the Deuyll,” frontispiece for Roberte the Deuyll (printed book), 1798. (In the public domain.)

[oncanvas]

Genoveva, Ludwig Richter, 1820-84

Watercolor on paper 12 ¼ x 7 ¼ in. (31.1 x 18.4 cm) The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, NY, USA