The Mechanics of Manticores

 

What is our creature of the day? Well, kids, today we are talking about the infamous manticore. The creature that has terrified believers of mythology for centuries. Are you scared yet? Well, you should be. The manticore is a legendary Eurasian creature, or hybrid, derived from Persia. It is actually quite similar to an Egyptian sphinx. The Persian origin name of the manticore was actually translated as “man-eater”. The name “manticore” comes from the Persian word “Martyaxwar.” “Martya” means “man” or “human”, “Xwar” means “to eat”.

          A manticore is described to have the body of a red lion, a normal human head with three rows of sharp teeth (Almost the same as a shark. You definitely don’t want to get bitten by either). In some tales and stories, manticores have bat wings, and a trumpet-like voice. Most other descriptions; characteristics and abilities, vary from story to story depending on which origin you are reading and the purpose of the tales. The modern Hollywood cinema or literary versions might romanticize a manticore for their intents and purposes or overrating a protagonists heroism much more than the original tales. In some stories, a manticore may be horned, winged, or even both. When the manticore is described to have a tail, it usually that of a dragon or a scorpion, and it may shoot poisonous filled spines or spikes to either paralyze or kill its victims. A manticore will completely engorge its prey whole and leaves no clothes, bones, or possessions of the prey behind. You would never know that a kill have taken place because it leaves behind no trace.

          Now, let us think about this for a moment. Let us think about how absolutely horrific it would be to encounter a manticore! A lion, bird, dragon, scorpion, human, shark hybrid?! The ancestry of this creature would be very intriguing to learn about (Especially how the human portion came into play… And how a creature as small as a scorpion reproduced with a dragon.. Like…what?)

          My biggest interest is, when this myth was created, did people honestly believe they had seen a manticore or was it completely based on someone’s imagination? Are all the different additions to the hybrid caused by different believed “sightings” of the creature?

 

          [1st century CE] (Natural History, Book 8, 30): Pliny quotes Ctesias as saying that the mantichora has the face and ears of a human being, grey eyes, a triple row of teeth that meet like the teeth of a comb, a lion's body of a blood-red color, and a voice like a pan-pipe blended with a trumpet. It stings with its tail like a scorpion. It is very fast and has a special appetite for human flesh.

Pliny the Elder   (http://bestiary.ca/prisources/psdetail529.htm )

 

[13th century CE] (De proprietatibus rerum, book 18): It is said, that in India is a beast wonderly shapen, and is like to the bear in body and in hair, and to a man in face. And hath a right red head, and a full great mouth, and an horrible, and in either jaw three rows of teeth distinguished atween. The outer limbs thereof be as it were the outer limbs of a lion, and his tail is like to a wild scorpion, with a sting, and smiteth with hard bristle pricks as a wild swine, and hath an horrible voice, as the voice of a trumpet, and he runneth full swiftly, and eateth men. And among all beasts of the earth is none found more cruel, nor more wonderly shape, as Avicenna saith. And this beast is called Baricos in Greek. ( Steele edition of 1905)

Bartholomaeus Anglicus     (http://bestiary.ca/prisources/psdetail1611.htm )