Griffin mythology does not come from dinosaur fossils

June 21. () –

A new study has called into question the widespread version that dinosaur fossils inspired the legend of the griffin, the mythological creature with the head of a bird of prey and wings with the body of a lion.

The specific link between dinosaur fossils and griffin mythology was proposed more than 30 years ago in a series of articles and books written by folklorist Adrienne Mayor. These began with the 1989 article in Cryptozoology titled “Paleocryptozoology: a call for collaborative between classicists and cryptozoologists,” and were consolidated in the influential 2000 book “The First Fossil Hunters.” “(The first fossil hunters). The idea became a staple of books, documentaries and museum exhibitions.

It suggests that an early horned dinosaur from Mongolia and China, Protoceratops, It was discovered by ancient nomads searching for gold in Central Asia. Tales of Protoceratops bones then traveled to the southwest on trade routes to inspire, or at least influence, griffin stories and art, Eureka Alert reports.

Griffins are one of the oldest mythological creatures. They first appeared in Egyptian and Middle Eastern art during the 4th millennium BC. C., before becoming popular in ancient Greece during the 8th century BC. c.

Protoceratops was a small dinosaur (about two meters long) that lived in Mongolia and northern China during the Cretaceous period (75 to 71 million years ago). They belong to the group of horned dinosaurs, which makes them relatives of the Triceratops, although they actually lack facial horns. Like griffins, Protoceratops stood on four legs, had beaks and frill-like extensions to their skulls that, it has been argued, could be interpreted as wings.

In the first detailed assessment of the claims, study authors Dr Mark Witton and Richard Hing, palaeontologists at the University of Portsmouth, reassessed the historical fossil record, the distribution and nature of Protoceratops fossils and classical sources. who link the griffin to Protoceratops, consulting historians and archaeologists to fully understand the conventional, non-fossil-based view of the griffin’s origins. Ultimately, they discovered that none of the arguments stood up to scrutiny.

Ideas that Protoceratops would be discovered by nomads searching for gold, for example, are unlikely when Protoceratops fossils are found hundreds of kilometers from ancient gold deposits. In the century since Protoceratops was discovered, no gold has been reported alongside them. It also seems doubtful that the nomads would have seen many Protoceratops skeletons, even If they looked for gold where their fossils are found.

“Dinosaur skeletons are supposed to be discovered half-exposed, lying around almost like the remains of recently dead animals,” Dr Witton said. “But generally speaking, only a fraction of an eroded dinosaur skeleton will be visible to the naked eye, unnoticed by everyone, except for sharp-eyed fossil hunters.

“This is almost certainly how ancient people wandering through Mongolia found Protoceratops. If they wanted to see more, as they would need to if they were forming myths about these animals, they would have to extract the fossil from the surrounding rock. That’s not a task. easy, even with modern tools, glues, protective packaging, and preparation techniques. It seems more likely that the Protoceratops remains generally went unnoticed. if the gold diggers were there to see them.”

Similarly, the geographical spread of griffin art throughout history does not align with the setting of griffin tradition beginning with fossils from Central Asia and then spreading westward. There are also no unequivocal references to Protoceratops fossils in ancient literature.

Protoceratops only resembles the griffin in that it is a four-limbed animal with a beak. There are no details in griffin art to suggest that their fossils were referenced, but, on the contrary, many griffins were clearly composed from characteristics of modern felines and birds.

Dr Witton added: “Everything about the origins of griffins is consistent with their traditional interpretation as imaginary beasts, just as their appearance is fully explained by them being chimaras of big cats and birds of prey. Invoking a role for dinosaurs in The griffin tradition, especially species from distant lands like Protoceratops, not only introduces unnecessary complexity and inconsistencies in their origins, but is also based on interpretations and proposals that do not stand up to scrutiny.

The authors are at pains to highlight that there is excellent evidence that fossils have been culturally important throughout human history, and countless cases of fossils inspiring folklore around the world, known as “geomyths”.

The study is published in Interdisciplinary Science Reviews.