Gryphon & Mock Turtle Poster Print by A Rackham

I just happened to be reading Alice's Adventures in Wonderland the other day and I got to the part where the Queen wakes up the Gryphon to take Alice to see the Mock Turtle. There's a little note that says a gryphon is a "Mythical creature with an eagle's head and wings and a lion's body; also spelled 'griffin.'" Funnily enough Alice is not sure it's safe to go with a creature that's part eagle and part lion, but since the Queen spends most of her time saying "Off with their heads" she reckons she'll stay with the gryphon. Good choice!

Their meeting with the Mock Turtle, who is so sorrowful he is constantly sobbing, is hilarious. They begin by discussing school, where the Mock Turtle studied "Reeling and Writhing" and the different parts of Arithmetic - "Ambition, Distraction, Uglification, and Derision." The gryphon enlightens Alice who says she's never heard of "uglification" by telling her she knows what beautification is so she must know what uglification is. Then, they do the "Lobster Quadrille," a dance which seems to involve dancing with lobsters except they do it without the lobsters.

Now the griffin (or gryphon if you prefer) has always been one of my favorite mythical creatures. It probably would be quite dangerous if you really encountered one, but they do look rather magnificent standing up all regally as lions do, and with their eagle wings raised up. Much more impressive than the silly gryphon Alice met!

For more information about griffins, and more pictures, check out this page on Griffins and Griffin Mythology

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Nessie

Growing up in Scotland how could I not be fascinated by Nessie, the creature believed to inhabit Loch Ness. I've even been there on a couple of occasions, and stared out across the waters of the loch looking for signs of the monster. With all that mist swirling around and the deep dark water it's quite easy to imagine seeing something, if not actually the famous creature itself. You can read about my adventures, as well as much more about Loch Ness Monsters here.

Of course, for many Scots, the sight of tourists and scientists making vain attempts to locate Nessie is a constant source of amusement. It's also a source of income though, and for that reason at least they continue to support the legends. But I reckon there's plenty of Scots who have sighted Nessie, or at least think they have. So you never know, there might be something down in the depths of Loch Ness after all!

Here's an interesting photo of Nessie, with a challenge by the photographer to readers to prove it's a fake. Check it out at My Amazing Nessie Photo!

Welcome!

This is where I get to write about all those fantastic legendary creatures, also known as mythical or mythological creatures, even imaginary creatures. That's so exciting! There are just so many kinds, and they all have such amazing stories, not to mention fascinating shapes and forms and abilities. They really reflect great imagination and creativity!

I know some people are skeptical, and just reject all these legendary creatures as just that, imaginary, made up through the ages by story tellers usually with some ulterior motive like "encouraging" children to be good. And then there are the artists who put their imagination into visual form, creating chimeras of various beasts to produce new, maybe improved, versions like a flying horse, the pegasus, or intriguing and beautiful sphinxes, or the half-human half-horse centaur. Yes, you can be skeptical that any of these amazing creatures are or ever have been "real" in having a physical existience. But, to rule them out as nonexistent and just "fairytales" seems to be missing the point, losing sight of their purpose, and maybe denying the existence of very real creatures.

Some mythical creatures like mermaids and unicorns seem to transcend cultures, appearing in narratives around the world, while others like the Irish Leprechaun and the Yeti of the Himalayas and Nessie from Loch Ness are specific to a particular location and culture. While scientists or cryptozoologists search high and low for evidence of such creatures, it is often the casual passer-by or the humble local person who has the encounter. Are these people "special," chosen in some way, lucky, or just foolish?

Whatever the answers, and there may be different ones for different mythical creatures, I'm excited to go on a journey to find out more about them. Feel free to join me!