CHAPTER III.
Comparatively Small Number of Mythical Bird-Forms—The Martlet—The Bird of Paradise—The Humma—The Huppe—The Ibis—The Roc—The Hameh Bird—Reptiles, Fish, &c.—The Sea-Serpent—The Adissechen of Hindu Mythology—The Iormungandur of Scandinavian Mythology—The Egg Talisman—Fire-Drake—Aspis—Amphisbena—Kraken—Cetus—Leviathan—Behemoth—Nautilus—Dolphin—The Acipenser—The Remora—The Fish Nun—The Chilon—The Dies—Sea-Bishops and Sea-Monks—Davy Jones and his Locker—Ojibiway Legend of the Great Serpent—Fabledom in the Vegetable Kingdom—The Barnacle Tree—The Kalpa-Tarou—The Lote Tree—The Tree of Life—Lotus-Eating—Amaranth—Lotus Wreaths at Kew from the Egyptian Tombs—Asphodel—Mediæval Herbals—Ambrosia—The Upas Tree—The Umdhlebi Tree of Zululand—The Kerzereh Flower—The Mandrake—“Miracles of Art and Nature”—Travellers’ Tales—The Dead Sea Apple—Alimos—The Meto—The Herb Viva—Cockeram on Herb-Lore—The Pseudodoxia of Dr. Browne—Herb Basil—The “Eikon Basilike”—Fitzherbert’s “Boke of Husbandry.”
WHILE we find numerous extraordinary beliefs clustering round the so-called natural history of various birds, such as the legend of the pelican nourishing its young with its own blood, or the eagle teaching its offspring to gaze on the brightness of the mid-day sun, it is curious to note how little of absolute myth-creation has been developed in the direction of strange forms of bird life. On the other hand, many of the weird creations of fancy, such as the dragon or the phoca, have their terrors greatly enhanced by the gift to them of the essential bird characteristic, the power of soaring in mid-air, and thus gaining a great additional power for evil over their victims. We have already referred, in our first chapter, to the phœnix, and it now only remains to mention some few other mythical bird-forms, less widely known, before we pass to other creations of fancy. Even in heraldry, the home of much that is marvellous and unnatural, the bird forms depart but little from natural types, and the only instance to the contrary that occurs to us is the well-known Martlet, used not only as “a charge” in blazonry, but also as a mark of cadency to distinguish the arms of contemporary brothers in the same family or to identify different branches of the same family connection.[28]
The martlet is very similar in form to a swallow, but is always represented as without feet, while the French heralds also deprive it of beak. A good early example of its use may be seen in the arms of William de Valence, emblazoned on his shield at Westminster, and dating from the year 1296; later instances of its employment are so common that it is hardly worth while to particularise any special illustration. The martlet, according to Gwillim, in his elaborate treatise on heraldry, “hath leggs exceeding short, that they can by no means go: and therefore it seemeth the Grecians do call them Apodes, quasi sine pedibus; not because they do want feet, but because they have not such use of their feet as other birds have. And if perchance they fall upon the ground, they cannot raise themselves upon their feet as others do, and so prepare themselves to flight. For this cause they are accustomed to make their Nests upon Rocks or other high Places, from whence they may easily take their flight, by means of the support of the Air. Hereupon it came that this Bird is painted in Arms without feet: and for this cause it is also given as a difference of younger Brethren, to put them in mind to trust to their wings of vertue and merit to raise themselves, and not to their leggs, having little Land to set their foot on.”