Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Aristotle, Pliny, Nicander, Aelian. The standard lore of the salamander as a creature enduring fire and extinguishing it was known by the Ancient Greeks, as far back as the 4th century BCE, by his Aristotle (384–322 BCE) and his successor Theophrastus (c. 371–c. 287 BCE) [3] who gave such description of the σαλαμάνδρα (salamandra).
The legendary salamander is often depicted as a typical salamander in shape, with a lizard-like form, but is usually ascribed an affinity with fire, sometimes specifically elemental fire. [2] [3] In the Renaissance, the salamander was supposed to be able to withstand any heat and even to put out fire. [4]
The Paracelsian concept of elementals draws from several much older traditions in mythology and religion. Common threads can be found in folklore, animism, and anthropomorphism. Examples of creatures such as the Pygmy were taken from Greek mythology. The elements of earth, water, air, and fire, were classed as the fundamental building blocks of ...
A Book on Nymphs, Sylphs, Pygmies, and Salamanders, and on the Other Spirits was written by Paracelsus (1493/1494 – 1541) late in his life, but it is not known what exact year it is from. [1] The descriptions of elemental beings are based on various ancient and traditional sources, which the author adapted and reinterpreted. [2]
La Sylphide Bourbon, A.M. Bininger & Co. Bourbon advertising label in the shape of a glass showing a man pursuing three sylphs. The Swiss German physician and alchemist Paracelsus first coined the term sylph in the 16th century to describe an air spirit in his overarching scheme of elemental spirits associated with the four Classical elements.
The word salamander comes from Old French salamandre from Latin salamandra from Greek σαλαμάνδρα : salamándra, of uncertain, possibly, pre-Greek origin. [6] The Greek word is used for the fire salamander. [7]
Pyrausta or pyrallis (πυραλλίς) (also called in Greek pyrigonos) is a mythological insect from Cyprus. It is a four-legged insect with filmy wings. It lived in the fire like a salamander and died if it went away from the fire. Janssens identifies it with the Melanophila acuminata.
A host of legendary creatures, animals, and mythic humanoids occur in ancient Greek mythology.Anything related to mythology is mythological. A mythological creature (also mythical or fictional entity) is a type of fictional entity, typically a hybrid, that has not been proven and that is described in folklore (including myths and legends), but may be featured in historical accounts before ...