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{{Short description|Mythological creature combining body parts of more than one real species}}
{{Short description|Mythological creature combining body parts of more than one real species}}
{{Further| Human–animal hybrid}}
{{Further| Human–animal hybrid}}
{{more footnotes|date=January 2016}}
{{more footnotes needed|date=January 2016}}
[[File:Human headed winged bull profile.jpg|thumb|Assyrian [[Shedu]] from the entrance to the throne room of the palace of [[Sargon II]] at [[Dur-Sharrukin]] (late 8th century BC), excavated by Paul-Émile Botta, 1843–1844, now at the Department of Oriental antiquities, Richelieu wing of the [[Louvre]].]]
[[File:Human headed winged bull profile.jpg|thumb|Assyrian [[shedu]] from the entrance to the throne room of the palace of [[Sargon II]] at [[Dur-Sharrukin]] (late 8th century BC), excavated by [[Paul-Émile Botta]], 1843–1844, now at the Department of Oriental antiquities, Richelieu wing of the [[Louvre]].]]
'''Hybrid beasts''' are creatures composed of parts from different [[animal]]s, as well as [[Human-animal hybrids|humans]], appearing in the [[folklore]] of a variety of cultures as [[legendary creature]]s.
'''Hybrid beasts''' are creatures composed of parts from different [[animal]]s, including [[Human-animal hybrids|humans]], appearing in the [[folklore]] of a variety of cultures as [[legendary creature]]s.


==In burial sites==
==In burial sites==
Remains similar to those of mythological hybrids have been found in burial sites discovered by archaeologists. Known combinations include horse-cows, sheep-cows, and a six-legged sheep. The skeletons were formed by ancient peoples who joined together body parts from animal carcasses of different species. The practice is believed to have been done as an offering to their gods.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nbcnews.com/science/weird-science/weird-horse-cows-6-legged-sheep-found-iron-age-burials-n395871|title=Horse-Cows? Bizarre 'Hybrid' Animals Found in Ancient Burials|publisher=LiveScience|author=Laura Geggel|date=July 21, 2015}}</ref>
Remains similar to those of mythological hybrids have been found in burial sites discovered by archaeologists. Known combinations include [[horse]]-cows, sheep-[[cows]], and a six-legged [[sheep]]. The skeletons were formed by ancient peoples who joined together body parts from animal carcasses of different species. The practice is believed to have been done as an offering to their gods.<ref>{{cite web |author=Geggel |first=Laura |date=July 21, 2015 |title=Horse-Cows? Bizarre 'Hybrid' Animals Found in Ancient Burials in England |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/science/weird-science/weird-horse-cows-6-legged-sheep-found-iron-age-burials-n395871 |publisher=LiveScience}}</ref>


==Description==
==Description==
Line 14: Line 14:


===Paleolithic===
===Paleolithic===
Partly human hybrids appear in [[petroglyph]]s or [[cave painting]]s from the [[Upper Paleolithic]], in [[shamanism|shamanistic]] or [[totemism|totemistic]] contexts. Ethnologist Ivar Lissner theorized that [[cave paintings]] of beings combining human and animal features were not physical representations of mythical hybrids, but were instead attempts to depict [[shaman]]s in the process of acquiring the mental and spiritual attributes of various beasts or [[power animal]]s.<ref name="Steiger 1999">{{cite book| last=Steiger| first= B.| year=1999| title=The Werewolf Book: The Encyclopedia of Shape-Shifting Beings| location=Farmington Hills, MI| publisher=Visible Ink| isbn=978-1-57859-078-0}}</ref> Religious historian [[Mircea Eliade]] has observed that beliefs regarding animal identity and [[shapeshifting|transformation into animals]] are widespread.<ref name=Eliade>{{cite book | last=Eliade | first=Mircea | title=Rites and Symbols of Initiation: the mysteries of birth and rebirth | publisher=Harper & Row | year=1965}}</ref> The iconography of the [[Vinca culture]] of [[Neolithic Europe]] in particular is noted for its frequent depiction of an owl-beaked "[[bird goddess]]",<ref>a term of [[Marija Gimbutas]]', see e.g. ''The language of the goddess: unearthing the hidden symbols of western civilization'' San Francisco: Harper & Row; London: Thames and Hudson (1989).</ref> although this interpretation is being criticized as feminist archeology.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Talalay|first=Lauren E.|date=October 1999|title=Review of: The Living Goddesses|url=http://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/1999/1999-10-05.html|journal=Bryn Mawr Classical Review|issn=1055-7660}}</ref>
Partly human hybrids appear in [[petroglyph]]s or [[cave painting]]s from the [[Upper Paleolithic]], in [[shamanism|shamanistic]] or [[totemism|totemistic]] contexts. Ethnologist Ivar Lissner theorized that cave paintings of beings combining human and animal features were not physical representations of mythical hybrids, but were instead attempts to depict shamans in the process of acquiring the mental and spiritual attributes of various beasts or [[power animal]]s.<ref name="Steiger 1999">{{cite book| last=Steiger| first= B.| year=1999| title=The Werewolf Book: The Encyclopedia of Shape-Shifting Beings| location=Farmington Hills, MI| publisher=Visible Ink| isbn=978-1-57859-078-0}}</ref> Religious historian [[Mircea Eliade]] has observed that beliefs regarding animal identity and [[shapeshifting|transformation into animals]] are widespread.<ref name=Eliade>{{cite book | last=Eliade | first=Mircea | title=Rites and Symbols of Initiation: the mysteries of birth and rebirth | publisher=Harper & Row | year=1965}}</ref>


===Ancient Egypt===
===Ancient Egypt===
[[File:Seth + Horus = 2 terres.jpg|thumb|The falcon-headed Horus and crane-headed Seth.]]
[[File:Seth + Horus = 2 terres.jpg|thumb|The falcon-headed Horus and crane-headed Seth.]]
Examples of humans with animal heads ([[theriocephaly]]) in the [[ancient Egyptian pantheon]] include jackal-headed [[Anubis]], cobra-headed [[Amunet]], lion-headed [[Sekhmet]], falcon-headed [[Horus]], etc. Most of these deities also have a purely zoomorphic and a purely anthropomorphic aspect, with the hybrid representation seeking to capture aspects of both of which at once. Similarly, the [[Gaul]]ish ''[[Artio]]'' sculpture found in [[Berne]] shows a juxtaposition of a bear and a woman figure, interpreted as representations of the theriomorphic and the anthropomorphic aspect of the same goddess.
Examples of humans with animal heads ([[theriocephaly]]) in the [[ancient Egyptian pantheon]] include jackal-headed [[Anubis]], cobra-headed [[Amunet]], lion-headed [[Sekhmet]], and falcon-headed [[Horus]]. Most of these deities also have a purely zoomorphic and a purely anthropomorphic aspect, with the hybrid representation seeking to capture aspects of both of which at once. Similarly, the [[Gaul]]ish ''[[Artio]]'' sculpture found in [[Bern]], Switzerland shows a juxtaposition of a [[bear]] and a woman figure, interpreted as representations of the theriomorphic and the anthropomorphic aspect of the same goddess.


Non-human hybrids also appear in ancient Egyptian iconography as in [[Ammit]] (combining the [[crocodile]], the [[lion]], and the [[hippopotamus]]).
Non-human hybrids also appear in ancient Egyptian iconography, as in [[Ammit]] (combining the [[crocodile]], [[lion]], and [[hippopotamus]]).


===Ancient Middle East===
===Ancient Middle East <span id="Middle_East_anchor" class="anchor"></span>===
Mythological hybrids became very popular in [[Luwian]] and [[Neo-Assyrian|Assyrian]] art of the [[Late Bronze Age]] to [[Early Iron Age]]. The angel (human with birds' wings, see [[winged genie]]) the mermaid (part human part fish, see [[Enki]], [[Atargatis]], [[Apkallu]]) and the [[Shedu]] all trace their origins to Assyro-Babylonian art. In [[Mesopotamian mythology]] the ''urmahlullu'', or lion-man served as a guardian spirit, especially of bathrooms.<ref>{{cite book |author=Black, Jeremy A. and Anthony Green |title=Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia |publisher=University of Texas Press |year=1992 |isbn=978-0-292-70794-8}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Wiggermann |first=F. A. M. |title=Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts |publisher=Styx |year=1992 |isbn = 978-90-72371-52-2}}</ref>
Mythological hybrids became very popular in [[Luwian]] and [[Neo-Assyrian|Assyrian]] art of the [[Late Bronze Age]] to [[Early Iron Age]]. The angel (human with [[birds]]' wings, see [[winged genie]]) the mermaid (part human part [[fish]], see [[Enki]], [[Atargatis]], and [[Apkallu]]) and the [[shedu]] all trace their origins to Assyro-Babylonian art. In [[Mesopotamian mythology]] the ''[[urmahlullu]]'', or lion-man, served as a guardian spirit, especially of bathrooms.<ref>{{cite book |author=Black, Jeremy A. and Anthony Green |title=Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia |publisher=University of Texas Press |year=1992 |isbn=978-0-292-70794-8}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Wiggermann |first=F. A. M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xYX64ZkwkMIC |title=Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts |publisher=Styx |year=1992 |isbn=978-90-72371-52-2}}</ref>


The Old Babylonian [[Lilitu]] demon, particularly as shown in the [[Burney Relief]] (part-woman, part-owl) prefigures the [[harpy]]/[[Siren (mythology)|siren]] [[Motif (narrative)|motif]].
The Old Babylonian [[Lilitu]] demon, particularly as shown in the [[Burney Relief]] (part-woman, part-owl) prefigures the harpy/[[Siren (mythology)|siren]] motif.


[[Harpy|Harpies]] were human sized birds with the faces of human women. They were once considered beautiful creatures but over time were then considered to be ugly and hideous creatures. Harpies were used for torture, their most known torture was that of [[Phineus]] who was said to have offended the heavens. They would torture their victims by taking food from them and polluting what was left with their feces. They would leave just enough for their victims to stay alive.
[[Harpy|Harpies]] were human sized birds with the faces of human women. They were once considered beautiful creatures but over time were then considered to be ugly and hideous. Harpies were used for torture; their most known torture was that of [[Phineus]] who was said to have offended the heavens. They would torture their victims by taking food from them and polluting what was left with their feces. They would leave just enough for their victims to stay alive.


===Mediterranean===
===Mediterranean===
[[File:Zeus Typhon Staatliche Antikensammlungen 596.jpg|thumb|[[Zeus]] darting his lightning at [[Typhon]], shown as a hybrid with a human torso, bird's wings and a reptilian lower body (Chalcidian black-figured [[hydria]], c. 550 BC, [[Staatliche Antikensammlungen]] Inv. 596).]]
[[File:Zeus Typhon Staatliche Antikensammlungen 596.jpg|thumb|[[Zeus]] darting his lightning at [[Typhon]], shown as a hybrid with a human torso, bird's wings and a reptilian lower body (Chalcidian black-figured [[hydria]], c. {{Circa|550 BC}}, {{Lang|de|[[Staatliche Antikensammlungen]]|italic=no}} Inv. 596).]]


In [[Archaic Greece]], Luwian and Assyrian motifs were imitated, during the [[Orientalizing Period]] (9th to 8th centuries BC), inspiring the monsters of the [[Greek mythology|mythology]] of the [[Classical Greek period]], such as the [[Chimera (mythology)|Chimera]], the [[Harpy]], the [[Centaur]], the [[Griffin]], the [[Hippocampus (mythology)|Hippocampus]], [[Talos]], [[Pegasus]], etc.
In [[Archaic Greece]], Luwian and Assyrian motifs were imitated, during the [[Orientalizing Period|Orientalizing period]] (9th–8th centuries BC), inspiring the monsters of the [[Greek mythology|mythology]] of the [[Classical Greek period]], such as the [[Chimera (mythology)|chimera]], [[harpy]], [[centaur]], [[griffin]], [[Hippocampus (mythology)|hippocampus]], [[Talos]], and [[Pegasus]].


The motif of the winged man appears in the Assyrian [[winged genie]], and is taken up in the Biblical [[Seraphim]] and [[Chayot]], the Etruscan [[Vanth]], Hellenistic [[Eros]]-[[Cupid|Amor]], and ultimately the Christian iconography of [[angel]]s.
The motif of the winged man appears in the Assyrian [[winged genie]], and is taken up in the Biblical [[seraphim]] and [[Chayot]], Etruscan [[Vanth]], Hellenistic [[Eros]]-[[Cupid]], and ultimately the Christian iconography of [[angel]]s.


The motif of otherwise human figures sporting [[Horn (anatomy)|horn]]s may derive from partly [[goat]] hybrids (as in [[Pan (mythology)|Pan]] and the [[Devil]] in Christian iconography) or as partly [[Bull (mythology)|bull]] hybrids ([[Minotaur]]). The [[Gundestrup cauldron]] and the [[Pashupati]] figure have [[stag]]'s [[antlers]] (see also [[Horned God]], [[horned helmet]]). The Christian representation of [[Moses]] with horns, however, is due to a mistranslation of the Hebrew text of [[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 34:29–35 by [[Jerome]].
The motif of otherwise human figures sporting [[Horn (anatomy)|horn]]s may derive from partly [[goat]] hybrids (as in [[Pan (mythology)|Pan]] in Greek mythology and the [[Devil]] in Christian iconography) or as partly [[Bull (mythology)|bull]] hybrids ([[Minotaur]]). The [[Gundestrup cauldron]] and the [[Pashupati]] figure have [[stag]]'s [[antlers]] (see also [[Horned God]], [[horned helmet]]). The Christian representation of [[Moses]] with horns, however, is due to a mistranslation of the Hebrew text of [[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 34:29–35 by [[Jerome]].


===Hinduism===
===Hinduism===
[[File:Ganesh mimarjanam EDITED.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Street festivities in [[Hyderabad, India]], during the festival of [[Ganesha Chaturthi]].]]
[[File:Ganesh mimarjanam EDITED.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Street festivities in [[Hyderabad, India]], during the festival of [[Ganesha Chaturthi|Ganesh Chaturthi]].]]
The most prominent hybrid in [[Hinduism|Hindu]] iconography is [[elephant]]-headed [[Ganesha]], god of wisdom, knowledge and new beginnings.
The most prominent hybrid in [[Hinduism|Hindu]] iconography is [[elephant]]-headed [[Ganesha]], god of wisdom, knowledge and new beginnings.


Both [[Nāga]] and [[Garuda]] are non-hybrid mythical animals ([[snake]] and [[bird]], respectively) in their early attestations, but become partly human hybrids in later iconography.
Both [[Nāga]] and [[Garuda]] are non-hybrid mythical animals ([[snake]] and bird, respectively) in their early attestations, but become partly human hybrids in later iconography.


The [[Hindu deities|god]] [[Vishnu]] is believed to have taken his first four [[incarnation]]s in human-animal form, namely: [[Matsya]] ([[human]] form with [[fish]]'s body below waist), [[Kurma]] (human form with [[turtle]]'s body below waist), [[Varaha]] (human form with a [[boar]]'s head), [[Narasimha]] (human form with [[lion]]'s head).
The [[Hindu deities|god]] [[Vishnu]] is believed to have taken his first four [[incarnation]]s in human-animal form, namely: [[Matsya]] ([[human]] form with fish's body below waist), [[Kurma]] (human form with [[turtle]]'s body below waist), [[Varaha]] (human form with a [[boar]]'s head), and [[Narasimha]] (human form with lion's head).


[[Kamadhenu]], the [[mythical]] cow which is considered to be the mother of all other [[cattle]] is often portrayed as a cow with human head, [[peacock]] tail and bird wings.
[[Kamadhenu]], the [[mythical]] cow which is considered to be the mother of all other cattle, is often portrayed as a cow with human head, [[peacock]] tail and bird wings.
{{clear}}
{{clear}}


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* [[Power animal]]
* [[Power animal]]
* [[Shapeshifting]]
* [[Shapeshifting]]
* [[Therianthropy]]
* [[Theriocephaly]]
* [[Theriocephaly]]
}}
}}
Line 71: Line 70:
===Sources===
===Sources===
* {{cite web|title=Mischwesen|author=Frey-Anthes H.|url=http://www.bibelwissenschaft.de/stichwort/27841/|work=Wissenschaftliche Bibellexikon (WiBiLex)|publisher=Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft|date=2007|access-date=2015-12-28|language=de}}
* {{cite web|title=Mischwesen|author=Frey-Anthes H.|url=http://www.bibelwissenschaft.de/stichwort/27841/|work=Wissenschaftliche Bibellexikon (WiBiLex)|publisher=Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft|date=2007|access-date=2015-12-28|language=de}}
*Evslin, Bernard. “Monsters of Greek Mythology Volume One .” 2014. ''Hornung E.'' Komposite Gottheiten in der ägyptischen Ikonographie // ''Uehlinger C.'' (Hg.), Images as media. Sources for the cultural history of the Near East and the eastern Mediterranean (1st millennium BCE) (OBO 175), Freiburg (Schweiz) / Göttingen, 1–20. 2000. {{in lang|de}}
*Evslin, Bernard. "Monsters of Greek Mythology Volume One ." 2014. ''Hornung E.'' Komposite Gottheiten in der ägyptischen Ikonographie // ''Uehlinger C.'' (Hg.), Images as media. Sources for the cultural history of the Near East and the eastern Mediterranean (1st millennium BCE) (OBO 175), Freiburg (Schweiz) / Göttingen, 1–20. 2000. {{in lang|de}}
*Evslin, Bernard. “Monsters of Greek Mythology Volume One .” 2014.''Nash H.'' [http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00224545.1974.9923076 Judgment of the humanness/animality of mythological hybrid (part-human, part-animal) figures] // [[The Journal of Social Psychology]]. 1974. Т. 92. №. 1. pp.&nbsp;91–102.
*Evslin, Bernard. "Monsters of Greek Mythology Volume One ." 2014.''Nash H.'' [http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00224545.1974.9923076 Judgment of the humanness/animality of mythological hybrid (part-human, part-animal) figures] // [[The Journal of Social Psychology]]. 1974. Т. 92. №. 1. pp.&nbsp;91–102.
*Lawrence, Elizabeth. “The Centaur: Its History and Meaning in Human Culture.” 27 Apr. 1994, {{ProQuest|195357938}}
*Lawrence, Elizabeth. "The Centaur: Its History and Meaning in Human Culture." 27 Apr. 1994, {{ProQuest|195357938}}
*Murgatroyd, Paul. “5. Other Winged Monsters .” Mythical Monsters in Classical Literature, Bloomsbury, pp. 10–69.
*Murgatroyd, Paul. "5. Other Winged Monsters ." Mythical Monsters in Classical Literature, Bloomsbury, pp.&nbsp;10–69.
*''Nash H.'' [http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00221309.1980.9711756 Human/Animal Body Imagery: Judgment of Mythological Hybrid (Part-Human, Part-Animal) Figures] // The Journal of General Psychology. 1980. Т. 103. №. 1. pp.&nbsp;49–108.
*''Nash H.'' [http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00221309.1980.9711756 Human/Animal Body Imagery: Judgment of Mythological Hybrid (Part-Human, Part-Animal) Figures] // The Journal of General Psychology. 1980. Т. 103. №. 1. pp.&nbsp;49–108.
* ''Nash H.'' How Preschool Children View Mythological Hybrid Figures: A Study of Human/animal Body Imagery. [[University Press of America]], 1982. 214 p. {{ISBN|0819123242}}, {{ISBN|9780819123244}}
* ''Nash H.'' How Preschool Children View Mythological Hybrid Figures: A Study of Human/animal Body Imagery. [[University Press of America]], 1982. 214 p. {{ISBN|0819123242}}, {{ISBN|9780819123244}}
Line 80: Line 79:
* ''Nash H.'' [https://www.jstor.org/stable/4349592?seq=1 The Centaur’s Origin: A Psychological Perspective] // The Classical World. 1984. pp.&nbsp;273–291.
* ''Nash H.'' [https://www.jstor.org/stable/4349592?seq=1 The Centaur’s Origin: A Psychological Perspective] // The Classical World. 1984. pp.&nbsp;273–291.
* ''Pires B.'' ANATOMY AND GRAFTS: From Ancient Myths, to Modern Reality [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ivo_Furtado/publication/266208860_ANATOMY_AND_GRAFTS__From_Ancient_Myths_to_Modern_Reality/links/542a84b40cf277d58e8738d9.pdf][https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Maria_Bettencourt_Pires/publication/266386488_Grafts-Text.REV.Mar.8/links/542eead40cf29bbc12714423.pdf] / Pires M. A., Casal D., Arrobas da Silva F., Ritto I C., Furtado I A., Pais D., Goyri ONeill J E. / Nova Medical School, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portuguese Anatomical Society, (AAP/SAP), PORTUGAL.
* ''Pires B.'' ANATOMY AND GRAFTS: From Ancient Myths, to Modern Reality [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ivo_Furtado/publication/266208860_ANATOMY_AND_GRAFTS__From_Ancient_Myths_to_Modern_Reality/links/542a84b40cf277d58e8738d9.pdf][https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Maria_Bettencourt_Pires/publication/266386488_Grafts-Text.REV.Mar.8/links/542eead40cf29bbc12714423.pdf] / Pires M. A., Casal D., Arrobas da Silva F., Ritto I C., Furtado I A., Pais D., Goyri ONeill J E. / Nova Medical School, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portuguese Anatomical Society, (AAP/SAP), PORTUGAL.
* ''Posthumus L.'' [https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/6865 Hybrid monsters in the Classical World: the nature and function of hybrid monsters in Greek mythology, literature and art]. Stellenbosch: [[University of Stellenbosch]], 2011.
* ''Posthumus L.'' [https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/6865 Hybrid monsters in the Classical World: the nature and function of hybrid monsters in Greek mythology, literature and art]. Stellenbosch: [[University of Stellenbosch]], 2011.


==External links==
==External links==

Latest revision as of 01:10, 8 November 2024

Further information: Human–animal hybrid
Assyrian shedu from the entrance to the throne room of the palace of Sargon II at Dur-Sharrukin (late 8th century BC), excavated by Paul-Émile Botta, 1843–1844, now at the Department of Oriental antiquities, Richelieu wing of the Louvre.

Hybrid beasts are creatures composed of parts from different animals, including humans, appearing in the folklore of a variety of cultures as legendary creatures.

In burial sites

[edit]

Remains similar to those of mythological hybrids have been found in burial sites discovered by archaeologists. Known combinations include horse-cows, sheep-cows, and a six-legged sheep. The skeletons were formed by ancient peoples who joined together body parts from animal carcasses of different species. The practice is believed to have been done as an offering to their gods.[1]

Description

[edit]

These forms' motifs appear across cultures in many mythologies around the world.

Such hybrids can be classified as partly human hybrids (such as mermaids or centaurs) or non-human hybrids combining two or more non-human animal species (such as the griffin or the chimera). Hybrids often originate as zoomorphic deities who, over time, are given an anthropomorphic aspect.

Paleolithic

[edit]

Partly human hybrids appear in petroglyphs or cave paintings from the Upper Paleolithic, in shamanistic or totemistic contexts. Ethnologist Ivar Lissner theorized that cave paintings of beings combining human and animal features were not physical representations of mythical hybrids, but were instead attempts to depict shamans in the process of acquiring the mental and spiritual attributes of various beasts or power animals.[2] Religious historian Mircea Eliade has observed that beliefs regarding animal identity and transformation into animals are widespread.[3]

Ancient Egypt

[edit]
The falcon-headed Horus and crane-headed Seth.

Examples of humans with animal heads (theriocephaly) in the ancient Egyptian pantheon include jackal-headed Anubis, cobra-headed Amunet, lion-headed Sekhmet, and falcon-headed Horus. Most of these deities also have a purely zoomorphic and a purely anthropomorphic aspect, with the hybrid representation seeking to capture aspects of both of which at once. Similarly, the Gaulish Artio sculpture found in Bern, Switzerland shows a juxtaposition of a bear and a woman figure, interpreted as representations of the theriomorphic and the anthropomorphic aspect of the same goddess.

Non-human hybrids also appear in ancient Egyptian iconography, as in Ammit (combining the crocodile, lion, and hippopotamus).

Ancient Middle East

[edit]

Mythological hybrids became very popular in Luwian and Assyrian art of the Late Bronze Age to Early Iron Age. The angel (human with birds' wings, see winged genie) the mermaid (part human part fish, see Enki, Atargatis, and Apkallu) and the shedu all trace their origins to Assyro-Babylonian art. In Mesopotamian mythology the urmahlullu, or lion-man, served as a guardian spirit, especially of bathrooms.[4][5]

The Old Babylonian Lilitu demon, particularly as shown in the Burney Relief (part-woman, part-owl) prefigures the harpy/siren motif.

Harpies were human sized birds with the faces of human women. They were once considered beautiful creatures but over time were then considered to be ugly and hideous. Harpies were used for torture; their most known torture was that of Phineus who was said to have offended the heavens. They would torture their victims by taking food from them and polluting what was left with their feces. They would leave just enough for their victims to stay alive.

Mediterranean

[edit]
Zeus darting his lightning at Typhon, shown as a hybrid with a human torso, bird's wings and a reptilian lower body (Chalcidian black-figured hydria, c. c. 550 BC, Staatliche Antikensammlungen Inv. 596).

In Archaic Greece, Luwian and Assyrian motifs were imitated, during the Orientalizing period (9th–8th centuries BC), inspiring the monsters of the mythology of the Classical Greek period, such as the chimera, harpy, centaur, griffin, hippocampus, Talos, and Pegasus.

The motif of the winged man appears in the Assyrian winged genie, and is taken up in the Biblical seraphim and Chayot, Etruscan Vanth, Hellenistic Eros-Cupid, and ultimately the Christian iconography of angels.

The motif of otherwise human figures sporting horns may derive from partly goat hybrids (as in Pan in Greek mythology and the Devil in Christian iconography) or as partly bull hybrids (Minotaur). The Gundestrup cauldron and the Pashupati figure have stag's antlers (see also Horned God, horned helmet). The Christian representation of Moses with horns, however, is due to a mistranslation of the Hebrew text of Exodus 34:29–35 by Jerome.

Hinduism

[edit]
Street festivities in Hyderabad, India, during the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi.

The most prominent hybrid in Hindu iconography is elephant-headed Ganesha, god of wisdom, knowledge and new beginnings.

Both Nāga and Garuda are non-hybrid mythical animals (snake and bird, respectively) in their early attestations, but become partly human hybrids in later iconography.

The god Vishnu is believed to have taken his first four incarnations in human-animal form, namely: Matsya (human form with fish's body below waist), Kurma (human form with turtle's body below waist), Varaha (human form with a boar's head), and Narasimha (human form with lion's head).

Kamadhenu, the mythical cow which is considered to be the mother of all other cattle, is often portrayed as a cow with human head, peacock tail and bird wings.

Known mythological hybrids

[edit]
Main article: List of hybrid creatures in folklore

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Geggel, Laura (July 21, 2015). "Horse-Cows? Bizarre 'Hybrid' Animals Found in Ancient Burials in England". LiveScience.
  2. ^ Steiger, B. (1999). The Werewolf Book: The Encyclopedia of Shape-Shifting Beings. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink. ISBN 978-1-57859-078-0.
  3. ^ Eliade, Mircea (1965). Rites and Symbols of Initiation: the mysteries of birth and rebirth. Harper & Row.
  4. ^ Black, Jeremy A. and Anthony Green (1992). Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia. University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-70794-8.
  5. ^ Wiggermann, F. A. M. (1992). Mesopotamian Protective Spirits: The Ritual Texts. Styx. ISBN 978-90-72371-52-2.

Sources

[edit]
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mythological hybrids.
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