Hippocamp
The hippocamp (also: hippocampe, hippokamp, or hippocampus, pl: hippocampi or hippokampoi) is a sea monster in Greek mythology. The creature has a horse's body and a fish's tail. It was not commonly pictured in Classical Greek art but when it is, it is sometimes ridden by the sea god Nereus or sea nymphs. The hippocamp plays no part in any known mythological tale.[1] The ancients believed it was the adult form of the seahorse. It draws the chariot of Poseidon and other sea divinities in the works of ancient writers and artists.[2]
Hippocamp Media
Winged hippocamp in an Art Deco fountain, Kansas City, Missouri, (1937)
Hippocampus in Roman mosaic in the thermae at Aquae Sulis (Bath)
The "sea-horse" in medieval heraldry was a legendary creature that was part horse and part fish, not to be confused with the later heraldic hippocampus, which was a natural seahorse.
Tritons and winged hippocampi in the Trevi Fountain, Rome
References
- ↑ Terracotta bell-krater (mixing bowl) with lid, Metropolitan Museum of Art, retrieved July 29, 2012
- ↑ Hippokampoi, Theoi Project, retrieved July 30, 2012