Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Merrows, Nagas, and unidentified creatures

The merrow can be mistaken for a mermaid or a water nymph, but the difference is disposition. Where both nymphs and mermaids think it amusing to drown humans, merrows have been known for centuries to be friendly toward all living things, and fishermen have been known to leave behind one of their catch as thanks to the merrow. Merrows are freshwater creatures, preferring rivers and large streams because of the territory conflict with water nymphs who prefer lakes and pools.




Nagas and lamiae are rather disputed cryptids today. Though it is true that they are carnivorous, they don't seem to harbour vampiric traits of sucking blood - an outdated myth born in ancient Greece. Very little is recorded about lamiae, and the eyewitness accounts are nearly all different. The one thing that all of them agree on is that they are human from the hip up, and giant serpent from the hip down. The lamia I have depicted here I was extremely fortunate to bump into as I was sketching the portrait of the friendly merrow. Apparently lamia are also fond of water and can swim extremely fast. I wonder if they are some distant kith to mermaid and merrows. She sunbathed for a few minutes in silence, and when I looked up to catch her eye, she shot off into the river. Clearly wary of humans as most fairies are, lamiae seem to be powerful creatures. Though the one I encountered was not intent on harming me, I would not try to anger one.



This is a bizarre nocturnal creature. I noticed a pair of them squabbling near my car as I arrived home very late one night, and it gave me quite a scare. They sounded like small monkeys, and close by. Sure enough when I looked in the direction of the noise, they stopped their screeching, and one of them disappeared into the trees. The one left standing on a branch seemed to be willing to see if I was going to try to hurt it because he didn't flee. He just stood there wringing his hands. I got a good look at him however, before he lost his nerve and followed his companion. He had enormous feet, and seemed to be primarily bipedal with a hobgoblinish stature. When he took flight, I noticed that there was a length of skin that attached from his arms to his hip not unlike a flying squirrel that helped him maneuver through the trees at great speed. I have yet to conclude that this was some member of the hobgoblin or goblin family.