Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 13:29, 21 October 2013

You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in French. (December 2010) Click for important translation instructions. View a machine-translated version of the French article. Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Misplaced Pages. Consider adding a topic to this template: there are already 1,717 articles in the main category, and specifying|topic= will aid in categorization. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article. You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing French Misplaced Pages article at ]; see its history for attribution. You may also add the template {{Translated|fr|Hippogriffe}} to the talk page. For more guidance, see Misplaced Pages:Translation.

This article possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. (September 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

The hippogriff is a legendary creature which resembles a winged horse with the head and upper body of an eagle.

The first recorded mention of the hippogriff was made by the Latin poet Virgil in his Eclogues. Though sometimes depicted during the Classical Era and during the rule of the Merovingians, it was first named and defined by Ludovico Ariosto in his Orlando Furioso, at the beginning of the 16th century. Within the poem, the hippogriff is a steed born of a mare and a griffin - it is extremely fast and is presented as being able to fly around the world and to the moon. It is ridden by magicians and the wandering knight Roger, who, from the creature’s back, frees the beautiful Angelica.

Sometimes depicted on heraldic coats of arms, the Hippogriff became a subject of visual art in the 19th Century, when it was often drawn by Gustave Doré.

Etymology

The word Hippogriff, also spelled Hippogryph and Hippogryphe is an Anglicisation of the Italian ippogrifo, which was used by Ariosto in 1516. This name is derived from the Ancient Greek ἵππος /híppo, meaning “horse,” and the Italian grifo meaning “griffin” (from Latin gryp or gryphus), which denotes another mythical creature, with the head of an eagle and body of a lion, that is purported to be the father of the hippogriff. The word hippogriff was adopted into English shortly before 1615.

Early references

Ludovico Ariosto's poem, Orlando furioso (1516) contains an early description (canto IV):

XVIII

no fiction wrought 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 hippogriff is said to be an evil spirit resting and possessing its soul in that of a horse and griffon.

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". The hippogriff was therefore a symbol of impossibility and love. The hippogriff, in legends is said to be far faster, stronger and more intelligent than their fathers, the griffin, apparently traveling at the "speed of lightning". This was supposedly inspired by Virgil's Eclogues: ... mate Gryphons with mares, and in the coming age shy deer and hounds together come to drink...

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.

Beliefs and symbolism

According to Vidal, a Catalan historian, this creature was supposed to live near Céret, in the County of Roussillon of modern-day France, during the Middle Ages. Claw marks were found on a rock near Mas Carol. The belief in the existence of the hippogriff, such as Ariosto describes, is fiercely attacked in a scientific essay on religion in 1862, which argues that such an animal can neither be a divine creation, nor truly exist. The hippogriff is supposed to be a mixture of several animals and the author notes that in order to support its weight, the wings would be so heavy that flight would be impossible, which proves—without question—that it does not exist. According to the traditions, the hippogriff is said to be the symbol of love, as its parents, the mare and griffin, are natural enemies.

Modern impact

In a hoax perpetrated in 1904, tricksters used a fake “monster” with the head of a bird of prey, teeth, and two large horse ears, which could be controlled from below, in Lake George, New York State, which became known as “The Hippogriff”. The pranks and sightings faded until 1999 when several people staying at the Island Harbour House Hotel stated they had seen a sea monster at night. The old hoax was uncovered by the Daily News and the Lake George Historical Association Museum, which created a copy of the original wooden monster to display to the public in August 2002.

The fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons includes a version of the creature, which is described as having a horse's "ears, neck, mane, torso, and hind legs" and an eagle's "wings, forelegs, and face". According to the game's rules, the creatures are closely related to griffons and pegasi.

References

1. Template:Fr icon Complément du Dictionnaire de l'Académie française.
2. Sevestre & Rosier 1983, pp. 16–17 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFSevestreRosier1983 (help)
3. Wagner 2006, p. 124 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFWagner2006 (help)
4. "Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary".
5. Thomas Bulfinch, Legends of Charlemagne, 1863.
6. http://www.princeton.edu/~achaney/tmve/wiki100k/docs/Hippogriff.html
7. Template:Fr icon Bo i Montégut 1978, p. 219 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFBo_i_Montégut1978 (help)
8. Template:Fr icon Poulin, Paulin (1862). A. Lacroix, Verboeckhoven; et al. (eds.). Qu'est-ce que l'homme ? Qu'est-ce que Dieu ? Solution scientifique du problème religieux. p. 223. {{cite book}}: Explicit use of et al. in: |editor= (help)
9. Template:En icon Radford, Benjamin; Nickell, Joe (2006). Lake monster mysteries: investigating the world's most elusive creatures. University Press of Kentucky. pp. 101–109. ISBN 9780813123943.
10. –Monstrous Manual, p. 190, TSR, 1993

See also

• Pegasus

External links

• Media related to Hippogriff at Wikimedia Commons

Template:Link FA

• Fictional hybrid life forms
• Griffins
• Heraldic beasts
• Matter of France
• Mythological hybrids
• Mythological horses
• Mythological birds of prey