Reptile & Amphibian Forums

being that there are so many pretty hots out there, and the mythical basilisk was a hot im just wondering what ya'll think would be the closest hot look-a-like, or even non hot

ashley
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Just A Thought
Ashley
;P

I always pictured the basilisk as more of a chicken... But at any rate Atheris hispida may come close.
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Peter: It's OK, I'll handle it. I read a book about something like this.
Brian: Are you sure it was a book? Are you sure it wasn't NOTHING?

lizard. Basilisk snake? Huh? I'm totally lost in what you're asking about.

Main Entry: bas·i·lisk
Pronunciation: 'ba-s&-"lisk, 'ba-z&-
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin basiliscus, from Greek basiliskos, from diminutive of basileus
Date: 14th century
1 : a legendary reptile with fatal breath and glance
2 : any of several crested tropical American lizards (genus Basiliscus) related to the iguanas and noted for their ability to run on their hind legs
Merriam-Webster Online

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Peter: It's OK, I'll handle it. I read a book about something like this.
Brian: Are you sure it was a book? Are you sure it wasn't NOTHING?

Main Entry: cock·a·trice
Pronunciation: 'kä-k&-tr&s, -"trIs
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English cocatrice, from Middle French cocatris ichneumon, cockatrice, from Medieval Latin cocatric-, cocatrix ichneumon
Date: 14th century
: a legendary serpent that is hatched by a reptile from a cock's egg and that has a deadly glance
Merriam-Webster Online

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Peter: It's OK, I'll handle it. I read a book about something like this.
Brian: Are you sure it was a book? Are you sure it wasn't NOTHING?

I wasn't aware of the other, mythical meaning. So basically Dragon is looking for the modern day serpent which most closely resembles a dragon? Hmmmmm. None that I can think of. Might be a pretty long search too.

The Basilisk is often tied to the Cockatrice. There is a woodcut from Nuremburg (in the year 1510) That shows a Basilisk as having the head and legs of a Rooster, antlers (as well as a crest), Bat wings, and a Serpent's body and tail. Me thinks the discription might be regionally varied as I seem to recall Dutch legends that described it as a "Hideous Dragon" though most often it is refered to as a "serpent".
Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

interesting...The last Basilisk hunt took place in Warsaw in 1587 after two girls were found dead in a cellar. A condemned man was sent (with a mirror into the cellar and emerged with a Snake that was judged to be a Basilisk. By the way...Basiliks hatched from the egg of an old Rooster that was incubated by a toad...
Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

Basiliks hatched from the egg of an old Rooster that was incubated by a toad...

Roosters dont lay eggs. :0)
FS
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"It's only funny until someone gets hurt....then it's hilarious"

The word serpent didn't always mean snake. It could mean anything reptilian, mythical or not. Hebrew, Greek and Latin had words with similar meanings.
My favorite, of course, will always be the Tatzelwurm.
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Peter: It's OK, I'll handle it. I read a book about something like this.
Brian: Are you sure it was a book? Are you sure it wasn't NOTHING?

Never heard of that (will have to research it).Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

tatzelworm was pretty cool
its a cryptid is itnot?

ashley
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Just A Thought
Ashley
;P

>>Main Entry: bas·i·lisk
>>Pronunciation: 'ba-s&-"lisk, 'ba-z&-
>>Function: noun
>>Etymology: Middle English, from Latin basiliscus, from Greek basiliskos, from diminutive of basileus
>>Date: 14th century
>>1 : a legendary reptile with fatal breath and glance

Given that this term goes back to Greek/Roman times, that the Romans had plenty of colonies in N. Africa, and the reference to fatal breath, my stab at the origin of the legend would be that a legionnaire bumped into a spitting cobra while on duty in Egypt...

Justa thought...

Cheers,

WW
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WW Home

Entirely possible, although I bet the fellow was Greek. Rome didn't conquer Egypt until something like 70 BC. They were all trading partners, though, so stories got passed around. In fact, Herodotus, a Greek historian, visted Egypt and came back with stories about flying migratory snakes. The Romans were definately aware of large African pythons, although their size got heavily distorted. I happened to read a legend about a 'Boa' eating a child in the city of Rome in the first few centuries A.D. Boa was a very generic term back then, but I still see images of a little Eryx jaculus (the only European boa) trying to choke down someone's ankle.

I've been trying to import a Persian tatzelwurm. However, I might be allergic to the long fur so I might settle for an amphibaena instead. The only trouble is no one can tell me which end to feed!
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Peter: It's OK, I'll handle it. I read a book about something like this.
Brian: Are you sure it was a book? Are you sure it wasn't NOTHING?

the basilisk in the legens was first thought as a snake then it evolved into the lizard, it also evolved to a cockatrise, its all by how the legend was passed on oraly
i think the bassy and the cockatrise where different creatures.
i see it more as the snake, but what hot would fit it best is the q of the day

^_^

ashley
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Just A Thought
Ashley
;P

wow i was surprised at all the helpfull insite

thanx guys
-(^_^)-

ashley
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Just A Thought
Ashley
;P