Caravaggio chose to place Medusa’s severed head upon a convex ceremonial shield.
Caravaggio’s Medusa on a Shield stands as one of the most arresting images of the late sixteenth century, a work that marries myth, virtuoso technique, courtly spectacle, and the artist’s distinctive psychological intensity. Commissioned around 1597–1598 by Cardinal Francesco Maria del Monte as a diplomatic gift for
A creature born in the lumber camps of Wisconsin during the late nineteenth century.
The hodag occupies one of the more colorful corners of North American folklore, a creature born in the lumber camps of Wisconsin during the late nineteenth century and nurtured by an atmosphere of tall tales, rough humor, and the need for stories that could ease the strain of hard physical labor.
A creature whose very name reflects the blend of mythology and biology.
The axolotl occupies an unusual place in both scientific understanding and popular imagination, a creature whose very name reflects the blend of mythology and biology that has long surrounded it. The term derives from Classical Nahuatl and is commonly translated as “water dog” or “water monster,” a reference that connects the animal to the deity Xolotl,
One of the most enduring figures in European mythology.
The Woodwose, sometimes referred to as the “wild man of the woods,” is one of the most enduring figures in European mythology, an emblem of untamed nature existing on the border between man and beast. The term “Woodwose” derives from the Old English wudu-wāsa, meaning “wood-being” or “forest dweller,” and similar linguistic roots appear in other European traditions, such as the Old High German schrat or scrato.
