10 Aterradores Monstruos de la Antigüedad que Pudieron Ser Reales

The 10 Most Terrifying Mythological Creatures Let's get to know imaginary, mysterious, and legendary creatures. These are the 10 most terrifying mythological creatures in history. Number 10 The Sirens, also known as the Muses of the Underworld, were sea maidens who deceived sailors with their great beauty and sweet singing. But their singing had the ability to hypnotize sailors They were originally depicted as hybrids of women and birds, but in modern times they became pea-like women with half their bodies represented by a scaly fishtail that they always hide in the sea. They were recounted in the poem The Odyssey, where Ulysses tells his crew to plug their ears with wax so that the Sirens' song would not overwhelm them and end their lives. Number 9 The Ogre The Ogre is a hideous and ugly humanoid creature from the mythology of many countries. It is also often mentioned in fairy tales. They usually feed on people, especially children. They can be represented with a large head, a lot of shaggy hair, usually a thick beard, a bulging belly and a stocky body. The term Ogre is sometimes used to refer to other people with a bad character with the term You are an Ogre. Number 8 The Harpies This word comes from ancient Greek meaning to sniff and plunder. They were initially beings with the appearance of beautiful women with wings whose main task was to enforce the punishment imposed by the god Zeus. In later traditions they were transformed into evil genies with the bodies of hideous birds of prey, the face of a woman, the ears of a bear and sharp claws who brought storms, plagues and misfortune with them. Number 7 The Sphinx In Greek mythology we see them as a demon of destruction and bad luck, who is represented with the face of a woman, the body of a lion and the wings of a bird. She had learned the art of formulating enigmas or riddles. The best known was the following, which is the one that is at the same time a biped, a triped and a quadruped? Whoever failed to answer this riddle ended up murdered by strangulation and for this reason many were her victims. The death of the Sphinx occurred when Oedipus, king of Thebes, answered the riddle correctly. He said to him, have you referred to the man who, when he crawls on the ground, is at first born from his mother's womb as a helpless quadruped? When he is old, he supports himself on his staff as a third foot, supporting his neck bent by old age. Number 6 The Minotaur He was a monster with the body of a man and the head of a bull. His name means bull of minnows. He was the son of Pasiphae and the Cretan bull. Because of his bad behavior and being a beast, he was locked up in a labyrinth on the island of Crete. This dark and practically dead-end labyrinth was designed by the craftsman Daedalus. For many years, seven men and seven other women were brought into the labyrinth as sacrifices to be eaten by the beast. The only one who could defeat the Minotaur was a hero named Theseus. Number 5 Cyclops The Cyclops were giants with a single eye in the middle of their forehead and a horrible temper. They were strong, headstrong, and had sudden emotions. In time, their names came to be synonymous with strength and power, and were used to refer to particularly well-crafted weapons. According to legend, they were closely related to the giants and a Phoenician tribe called the Phaeacai. Number 4 Chimera It was a hybrid monster that roamed the regions of Asia Minor. It terrorized populations, including animals and even entire herds. And there are many descriptions, from those who say it had the body of a goat, the rear of a snake, a dragon on its head, a snake, a dragon and the head of a lion, to others who claim that it had three heads, one of a lion, another of a heat goat and the last of a dragon, which grew from its tail. And yet all the descriptions agree that it spewed fire from one or more of its heads, although it was extremely fast and strong. Chimera was finally defeated by Bellerophon with the help of Pegasus. Number 3 The Gorgons The Gorgons To some it was a ruthless female and to others a protective deity. Its power was so great that anyone who tried to look at it would be shocked, petrified, so its image was placed in all sorts of places, from temples to wine craters. This was done to promote its protection. In later myths it was said that there were three Gorgons, Medusa, Steno and Euryale, but the only mortal of them was Medusa, who had poisonous snakes instead of hair. And this was a punishment by the goddess Athena and as is known, anyone who looked at her would be turned to stone. Number 2 Hydra of Lerna Descendant of Typhon, was an ancient and ruthless aquatic monster of the underworld. It had the form of a multi-headed serpent and very poisonous breath. The Hydra possessed the ability to regenerate two heads for each one that was lost or amputated. And its lair was Lake Arerna in the Gulf of Arboleda. A famous representation of Hydra is that of the Spanish painter Francisco de Cerverán. He painted a canvas where you can see Hercules killing the Hydra. Averna. If you are interested, you can see it at the Prado Museum. Number 1 Typhon Typhon was a colossal and terrifying monster whose height was such that he could reach the stars. He had wings, dragon heads as fingers and a large number of snakes as legs. He was considered the most feared mythological creature, since he could destroy anything that opposed him. With a powerful gaze of fire, he could expel lava from his mouth and create hurricanes and earthquakes by flapping his wings. The only one who was able to defeat Typhon was the god Zeus. After a difficult battle, once defeated, he was confined to Mount Etna. The Origin of Mythological Creatures in History Some of the mythological creatures may have originated in the collective memory due to some strange animal from prehistory or the exaggerated story of travelers about their encounter with some existing animal. It is also possible that dinosaur fossils appeared in ancient times that could be attributed to existing animals. We would have to see the impression they caused on some Greek traveler upon seeing a 6-meter-long Nile crocodile. Certain marine animals may have been mistaken for mermaids. Some primitive tribes of savages taller than average may have been exaggerated and considered giants. There are certainly giant squids and octopuses that in the imagination of those who saw them grew even larger to become legends of sea monsters. The mythological creatures of antiquity have starred in European myths and legends for centuries, some of them surviving in our imagination to this day. Some were based on real creatures, perceived as inconceivable monsters by travelers from other cultures, whose confusing stories, distorted by multiple first-hand accounts, ended up describing a new imaginary species in the texts of classical literature. Examples include Marco Polo's Book of Millions, Jan de Mandeville's Voyage Around the Earth, or the many medieval books with stories and illustrations of incredible bestiaries.