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Unknown Mythological Creature - Please HELP

 
 
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 10:53 am
So, I found this interesting sculpture on one of the buildings in my home town. I was wondering what the creature could be. I looked into the history of the building to find that it was built by a rich merchant who had travelled the world so this could be anything.

More info:
-Built in XVIII Century (Germany)
-Human head, fish/scaly body and tail (curved tail), and paws of a dog or lion, and two small wings.
-Here it is:
(It was renovated recently so it does not look very old)
http://imgur.com/so4XYS7


Please help, thank you.
Hans
 
Blickers
 
  3  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 01:13 pm
@HansSchteppke39,
Couldn't find anything on Google images. Just for the heck of it, I made a pic with a link of just the stone carving itself.

http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah279/LeviStubbs/German%20man%20fish%20sculture_zpssbeifwyt.jpg

And the direct link: http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah279/LeviStubbs/German%20man%20fish%20sculture_zpssbeifwyt.jpg

My best guess is to get in touch with the historical society of the building locality and see what they come up with. If they are not listed, just call up the town hall of the town or city in which the building is located and ask for the phone number, address or Email.

Finally, I think there has to be some society devoted to the study of German or European stone carvings, see if you can make connections there. Good luck.

PS: For what it's worth, with the wings and scaly body, it kind of looks to me like a dragon. So maybe some kind of herald signal for a family name? What was the name of the man who had the building built? Check out his family herald sign here: German herald signs by first letter
rosborne979
 
  2  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 01:30 pm
@HansSchteppke39,
Maybe it's just a bad/ugly mermaid?
0 Replies
 
rosborne979
 
  1  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 01:56 pm
@HansSchteppke39,
The closest thing I can find from mythology is a "Sea Monk", which may have been a blurry eyed sighting of a Monk Seal.
0 Replies
 
McGentrix
 
  1  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 01:59 pm
It's a type of sphinx.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphinx

30 years of D&D wins again.
rosborne979
 
  2  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 02:18 pm
@HansSchteppke39,
HansSchteppke39 wrote:
So, I found this interesting sculpture on one of the buildings in my home town.

What type of building is it on? Church? Library? Town Offices? Might help to figure out why they chose a particular creature.
HansSchteppke39
 
  2  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 03:25 pm
@rosborne979,
Its a family home built by a rich merchant who had travelled the world so this could be anything.
0 Replies
 
HansSchteppke39
 
  0  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 03:30 pm
@McGentrix,
Can you please be more specific, I need this for a chronicle
0 Replies
 
HansSchteppke39
 
  2  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 03:33 pm
@Blickers,
Thank you so much. The issue with asking a local council / town hall is that A. since 1945 the area is under Polish control while the hosue was built much earlier.
B. I am researching this with my father who is the local historian and knows more about the town than anyone else. You know it's a hard one when the Historian doesn't know.

We looked through an old chronicle to find it being described as a Sphinx - however, we both agreed it did not look like a sphinx. After further searches we were more confused than before so i came here.
ossobucotemp
 
  2  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 03:38 pm
@HansSchteppke39,
Well, now you have a lot of us interested, even myself.
0 Replies
 
DrewDad
 
  3  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 03:51 pm
@Blickers,
Looks to me like a human-headed dragon.

http://www.thinkaboutitdocs.com/1746-human-headed-dragon-over-culloden-scotland/

http://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-human-head-body-of-a-dragon-flower-pot-stand-59622153.html

0 Replies
 
Blickers
 
  3  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 04:26 pm
@HansSchteppke39,
Got it!!!

It's Geryon from Dante's Inferno. There was a previous man-animal named Geryon in Homer, but Dante's Geryon is quite different.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/31/Geryon.jpg

Quote:
The Geryon of Dante's 14th century epic poem Inferno bears no resemblance to any previous writings. Here, Geryon has become the Monster of Fraud, a beast with enormous dragon-like wings with, the paws of a lion, the body of a wyvern, and a scorpion's poisonous sting at the tip of his tail, but with the face of an "honest man". He dwells somewhere in the shadowed depths below the cliff between the seventh and eighth circles of Hell (the circles of violence and simple fraud, respectively); Geryon rises from the pit at Virgil's call and to Dante's horror Virgil requests a ride on the creature's back. They then board him, and Geryon slowly glides in descending circles around the waterfall of the river Phlegethon down to the great depths to the Circle of Fraud.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geryon
0 Replies
 
djjd62
 
  3  
Reply Fri 17 Feb, 2017 04:36 pm
@Blickers,
http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah279/LeviStubbs/German%20man%20fish%20sculture_zpssbeifwyt.jpg

it's the love child of Putin and Trump, looks just like Putin and it's got Trump's scaly hide
0 Replies
 
izzythepush
 
  1  
Reply Sat 18 Feb, 2017 05:56 am
@HansSchteppke39,
As it's from Germany it could be a Lorelei

Quote:
Lorelei is a germanic river spirit/ goddess from the river Rhine in germany. The name "Lorelei" refers also to the rock at which is her court. She is a powerful river spirit that has worldwide worshippers. Lorelei and many of her court are similar to nymphs, but are actually an unusual form of elf. She presides at her court on Lorelei and is the queen of a Seelie court of the Rhine. She is powerful and benevolent and controls the powers of the river. She is known by some locals as "the maiden of the Rhine", and many know her as a fairy queen or mermaid.


http://www.mythicalcreaturesguide.com/page/Lorelei

Or it could be a Mara or a Marnie.
0 Replies
 
saab
 
  2  
Reply Sat 18 Feb, 2017 08:05 am
Could it be one of the ancient gods of Semi Fish - Semi People
http://earthbeforeflood.com/images/dagon1.jpg
Dagon, Dagan - the most ancient gods of the Middle East and Mesopotamia
Dagon was West Semitic deity and he was honoured as a god - protector of farming (agriculture) and fisheries. According to the most widespread point of view, Dagon is Hebrew or Canaanitish (I millenary BC) form of the name of Dagan mentioned in Akkadian (Assirian-Babylonian) texts (III-I millenaries BC) and in the texts of Mari, Ebla and Ugarit, and also in personal names of Akkadian tsars (Iddin-Dagan, Ishme-Dagan, Sargon of Akkadian).

0 Replies
 
McGentrix
 
  1  
Reply Sat 18 Feb, 2017 11:20 am
http://odditiesbizarre.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/A_harpy_with_two_tails_horns_fangs_winged_ears_and_long_Wellcome_V0023077-1024x769.jpg

Eh, close but no cigar.
0 Replies
 
majoj
 
  1  
Reply Fri 24 Feb, 2017 06:14 pm
@HansSchteppke39,
It might be a Siren.
Sirens were considered sometimes as half-bird half-human, sometimes half-fish half-human, so this could be a mix of both. I wouldn't care much about the "paws" as this particular sculpture is not very sophisticated, thus these can be hands as well Wink

It might also be a merman/mermaid with wings.

Or Melusine - the folklore water spirit.

Or Typhon (much simplified version).
0 Replies
 
 

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