Meduza (Russian folklore)

Meduza (Russian: Медуза), Meluza (Russian: Мелуза, literally «small», «little») or Meluzina (Russian: Мелузина) is a mythical creature in Russian folklore. She was depicted in a Russian lubok of the XVII or XVIII century. She is described as half-woman, half-snake, or as the half-woman, half-fish creature[1][2]. She is also said to be the deity of deception[3].

Meduza. Russian lubok. XVII-XVIII century.

Appearance

She is represented as a sea monster with the head of a beautiful dark-haired maiden, having the body and belly of a striped beast, a dragon tail with a snake's mouth at the end and legs resembling the legs of an elephant and having the same snake mouths at the end. She also wears a crown.

According to belief, her snake mouths contained a deadly dragon poison. She was said to live in the «Ocean-Sea near the Ethiopian abyss», or in the West Ocean[1][4].

See also

References
  1. Belova 1999, p. 175.
  2. Belova, Petruhin 2008, p. 180—181.
  3. Bychkov Andrey Alexandrovich. Encyclopedia of Pagan gods. Myths of Early Slavs. Online books
  4. Damskiy 1801, p. 143—144.

Sources
  • Belova, Olga Vladislavovna (1999). Славянский бестиарий: словарь названий и символики [Slavic Bestiary: a dictionary of names and symbols] (in Russian). Indrik. ISBN 5-85759-100-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Belova, Olga Vladislavovna, Petruhin (2008). Фольклор и книжность: Миф и исторические реалии [Folklore and bookishness: Myth and historical realities] (in Russian). Science. p. 263. ISBN 978-5-02-036228-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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