Griffin
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The Griffin (Greek γρυψ, Persian شیردال shirdal "lion-eagle")[1] or Gryphon is a legendary creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. As the lion was considered the "King of the Beasts" and the eagle the "King of the Air", the griffin was thought to be an especially powerful and majestic creature. The griffin is generally represented with four legs, wings and a beak, with eagle-like talons in place of a lion's forelegs and feathered, equine ears jutting from its skull. Some writers describe the tail as a serpent, in the manner of a chimera. See the entry Saint George and the Dragon for a nineteenth-century painting showing a dragon very like a classically-conceived griffin.
Classical and heraldic griffins are male and female. Some medieval heraldic traditions say that only female griffins have wings. A "male" griffin, called a keythong in a single fifteenth-century English heraldic manuscript, is an anomaly that belongs strictly to a late phase of English heraldry: see below.
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[edit] Nature of Griffin
In archaic Greek art bronze cauldrons fitted with apotropaic bronze griffon heads ("protomes") with gaping beaks, prominent upstanding ears and often a finial knop on the skull appear with such regularity that they are considered a genre, the Griefenkessel, by specialists. The "griffin cauldrons" are discussed by Ulf Jantzen, Griechische Griefenkessel (Berlin) 1955. Based on Anatolian prototypes for bronze cauldrons with animal heads, Jantzen concluded that the griffon cauldron was a Greek invention of ca 700 BCE, the earliest examples hammered over moulds rather than cast. Such griffon cauldrons were developed simulataneously in Samos and in Etruscan territories from the earliest seventh through the sixth centuries BCE. The earliest Etruscan example is the famous griffon protomes from the Barberini Tomb[2]
In Greek literature, Scythian mythology is reflected by Hellenic writers' tales of griffins and the Arimaspi of distant Scythia near the cave of Boreas, the North Wind (Geskleithron), such as were elaborated in the lost archaic poem of Aristeas of Proconnesus, Arimaspea, and eagerly reported by Herodotus and in Pliny's Natural History. The griffin was said to build a nest, like an eagle: instead of eggs, it lays agates, and thus griffins are supposed to be female. The animal was supposed to watch over gold mines and hidden treasures, and to be the enemy of the horse. The incredibly rare offspring of griffin and horse would be called hippogriff. The Griffin was named after a great man.
Griffins were consecrated to the Sun; and ancient painters[citation needed] represented the chariot of the Sun as drawn by griffins. The griffin was a common feature of "animal style" Scythian gold; it was said to inhabit the Scythia steppes that reached from the modern Ukraine to central Asia; there gold and precious stones were abundant; and when strangers approached to gather the stones, the creatures would leap on them and tear them to pieces. The Scythians used giant . petrified bones found in this area as proof of the existence of griffins and to keep outsiders away from the gold and precious stones. It has recently been suggested[3] that these "griffin bones" were actually dinosaur fossils, which are common in this part of the world.
Adrienne Mayor, a classical folklorist, has made tentative connections, in Fossil Hunters: Paleontology in Greek and Roman Times, between the rich fossil beds around the Mediterranean and across the steppes to the Gobi Desert and the myths of griffins, centaurs and archaic giants originating in the classical world. Mayor draws upon similarities that exist between the Protoceratops (b.c.e. millions of years) skulls of the steppes leading to the Gobi Desert, and the legends of the gold-hoarding griffin told by nomadic Scythians of the region (less ancient).
In Ancient Egypt, the griffin was depicted with a slender, feline body and the head of a falcon. Early statuary depicts them with wings that are horizontal and parallel along the back of the body. During the New Kingdom, depictions of griffins included hunting scenes. Divine figures in Egyptian mythology, depicted as griffins, include Sefer, Sefert, and Axex.
Griffins were widely depicted throughout Greece in antiquity, mostly as apotropaic paintings or sculptures and on coinage. The earliest such depictions come from Minoan Crete, where griffins are usually shown as royal animals and guardians of throne rooms.
Ancient Elamites used griffin symbol extensively in their architecture. In Elam legends, a Griffin was presented to Elamite Gods. In Persian mythology, in particular during the Achaemenid dynasty, griffins called Homa were used widely as statues and symbols in palaces. Homa also had a special place in Persian literature as guardians of light.
A 9th century Irish writer by the name of Stephen Scotus asserted that griffins were highly monogamous. Not only did they mate for life, but if one partner died, the other would continue throughout the rest of its life alone, never to search for a new mate. The griffin was thus made an emblem of the Church's views on remarriage. Being in part both a flying and a land-bound animal, it was seen in Christianity to be a symbol of Jesus Christ (who was both human and divine).
The egg-laying habits of the female were first clearly described by St. Hildegard of Bingen, a German nun author of the 12th century. She outlined how the expectant mother would search out a cave with a very narrow entrance but plenty of room inside, sheltered from the elements. Here she would lay her 3 eggs (about the size of Ostrich eggs), and stand guard over them.
In architectural decoration the griffin is usually represented as a four-footed beast with wings and the head of a leopard or tiger with horns, or with the head and beak of an eagle. The griffin is the symbol of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and you can see bronze castings of them perched on each corner of the museum's roof, protecting its collection.
A griffin (spelled "gryphon") is featured in Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland in which the Queen of Hearts' orders the gryphon to take Alice to see the Mock Turtle and hear its story. The original illustrations by Sir John Tenniel depict the gryphon in an unusually naturalistic style (pictured to the left).
Some large species of Old World vultures are called gryphons, including the griffon vulture (Gyps fulvus), as are some breeds of dog (griffons).
The scientific species name for the Andean Condor is Vultur gryphus; Latin for "griffin-vulture".
[edit] Hippogriffs
Griffins are traditionally regarded as having an antipathy for horses. Therefore the hippogriff, being the offspring of a horse and a griffin, was a doubly impossible being. Nevertheless, some tales depicted their existence.
[edit] Heraldic Griffins
The griffin is often seen as a charge in heraldry. A heraldic griffin (or gryphon) has the hind parts (including legs and tail) of a lion, the upper parts (including feathered neck, wings, claws, and head with beak) of an eagle and also ears. It is the ears which distinguish the griffin's head from an eagle's head in heraldry, which is important because, as well as the full griffin, the griffin's head is also often found in heraldry and would otherwise be identical to the head of the eagle.
According to the Tractatus de armis of John de Bado Aureo (late fourteenth century) “A griffin borne in arms signifies that the first to bear it was a strong pugnacious man in whom were found two distinct natures and qualities, those of the eagle and the lion”. Since the lion and the eagle were both important charges in heraldry, it is perhaps not surprising that their hybrid, the griffin, was also a frequent choice. The symbolism of the lion-eagle combination was also the subject of a quotation attributed to Chassaneus by Alexander Nisbet in his System of Heraldry (1722; p 343 of Vol I of the 1816 edn): "Gryphus significat sapientiam jungendam fortitudini, sed sapientiam debere praeire, fortitudinem sequi.". This translates as: “The griffin represents wisdom joined to fortitude, but wisdom should lead, and fortitude follow". There are alternate translations.
Heraldic griffins are usually shown rearing up, facing left, and standing on one hind leg with the other leg and the claws raised: this posture is described in the Norman-French language of heraldry as "segreant", a word uniquely applied to griffins, and which is the exact equivalent of the description of lions and other creatures in heraldry as "rampant".
A heraldic griffin was included as one of the ten Queen's Beasts sculpted for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 (following the model of the King’s Beasts at Hampton Court) and this is now on display at Kew Gardens.
The City of London adopted what are usually described as griffins as supporters for its coat of arms, and it marks its boundaries with statues of a single "griffin" carrying the City coat of arms at each road leading into the City of London. However, the City of London griffins are, in fact, heraldic dragons, with scaly bodies and wings, no feathers, and no eagle's beak.
A Griffin is the badge of Gray's Inn, one of the 4 Inns of Court
[edit] The "Keythong"
The heraldic beast called a "keythong" much enjoyed among members of the Society for Creative Anachronism is claimed to appear in a single English manuscript of the reign of Edward IV, a heraldic solipsism. J.R. Planche's Pursuivant of Arms (London 1859) notes, under the badge of the Earl of Ormonde (first creation) as recorded in a College of Arms manuscript under Edward IV, the single contemporary reference: "A pair of keythongs." Planche's footnote: "The word is certainly so written, and I have never seen it elsewhere. The figure resembles the Male Griffin, which has no wings, but rays or spikes of gold proceeding from several parts of his body, and sometimes with two long straight horns. Vade Parker's Glossary, under Griffin." (Society of Creative Anachronism website). At the end of the 20th century the "keythong" began to be taken up enthusiastically among adherents of heraldry.
[edit] The Griffin Surname
The surname "Griffin" has two primary Gaelic sources in Ireland, which pertain to the towns of Ballygriffey in Co. Clare, and Ballygriffin in Co. Kerry. The spelling "Ó Gríobhtha" is associated with the Co. Clare family, whose surname was also anglicised as "O'Griffey" or "Griffey". "Ó Gríobhtha" translates to English as "decedent of the Griffin-like". The "Ó Griffín" spelling belongs to the Kerry family. In Ireland, the name can also be associated with the Norman surname "Griffith", but to a much lesser degree. (O'Laughin 1997)
The surname "Griffin" in Wales is also, generally speaking, a variant of the surname "Griffith", or other similar Welsh names.
The surname "Griffin" originally appeared in Gaelic as "O Gríobhtha". This was derived from the word "gríobhtha" which in Gaelic means "Griffin-Like". Most cases of this name were in Ireland; the name can be traced back to the 12th-century when the Anglo-Norman invasion of Strongbow occurred. Because of this, the Griffin surname is derived from the Welsh names, Griffin, Griffith, or Gruffin.
The first time this name was recorded was in the county Clare; the family held seat in the government during ancient times. The Griffin coat of arms first appeared in Ilk and Freuchie, Scotland in 1811.
In Sweden, the griffin Coat-of-Arms gave one actually used surname, Grip, and belonged to three somewhat distinct medieval noble families, to which each a such surname is retrospectively dubbed: The family of so-called griphuvud who are known to have been nearly-hereditary justiciars of Westrogothia (no surname was contemporaneously used of them and they went extinct in 14th century, but later historiography has dubbed "griphuvud", head of griffin, as sort of name to them); the family of Aspenäs whose Arms is called "lejonörn" (lion-eagle) and who may have descended from early justiciars of Westrogothia (no surname was contemporaneously used of this family which went extinct in 15th century); and thirdly, the family of Grip av Vinäs, "Griffin of Vinaes", who are attested to have been related in some (not specifically) way at least with the first (Griphuvud) family (no surname was used of the Grip av Vinäs in Middle Ages, but this family and its Arms continued until 17th century, admittedly through one female heiress but the Arms were retained by her issue; and at least one generation before their male-line end this, to baronial rank elevated family certainly was called with the surname Grip, "Griffin".) All these may have represented different branchs of a clan descended from legendary Geatish local chieftains. This historical noble name (or word) "Grip" has then, in later centuries, been used as surname of some other Swedish families.
[edit] Griffins in Literature
- Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (see reference in summary above)
- In Patricia McKillip's adult fairytale "Song for the Basilisk" the Griffin plays a central roll as both a character and a symbol of the ruling house.
- In Neil Gaiman's Sandman comic book series, a griffin is one of three guardians of Morpheus' palace in The Dreaming
- Griffin is the Invisible Man in H.G. Wells'. novel The Invisible Man.
- The Griffin is Monster in My Pocket #5.
- The Crossroads series by Nick O'Donohoe, including The Magic and the Healing, Under the Healing Sign, and Healing of Crossroads. Griffins play a significant role in this series about veterinary students called upon to help mythological creatures.
- Three varieties of griffins, with different spellings and very different dispositions, appear in the popular children's novel David and the Phoenix by Edward Ormondroyd.
- Griffins are among the magical creatures that exist in the Harry Potter series. Harry Potter's house (i.e., grouping of pupils) at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is called Gryffindor, after its founder Godric Gryffindor. "Gryffindor" may come from the French "gryffon d'or" or "golden griffin", but, oddly, its emblem is a lion and not a griffin. (Which represents the fact that a true Gryffindor is supposed to be very courageous.) The gargoyle guarding the Hogwarts headmaster's office is depicted in the Harry Potter movies as a half-phoenix, half-lion griffin. Additionally, the door-knocker on the headmaster's office door is a griffin.
- The Griffin and the Minor Canon by Frank R. Stockton, illustrated by Maurice Sendak (1968)
- Collinsfort Village by Joe Ekaitis, illustrated by Nick Greenwood, features a gentlemanly griffin living near an imaginary Colorado suburb.
- Gryphons are among the creatures in Aslan's army in The Chronicles of Narnia.
- The Mage Wars Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon. A gryphon known as Skandranon is one of the lead characters. Titles are The Black Gryphon, The White Gryphon and The Silver Gryphon.
- The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri. A griffin pulls the chariot which brings Beatrice to Dante in Canto XXIX of the Purgatory.
- Revenge of the Shadow King by Derek Benz and J.S. Lewis
- A human baby turns into a griffin in Wilanne Schneider Belden's Frankie!
- Griffins play a part in the Dragonlance novels, under the command of Elves.
A griffon saves Casandra from the trolls in "Voyage of the Basset" by James C. Christianson
Griffolyon in Beyblade is an example of a Griffin
[edit] Griffins in Other Media
- In the Eberron campaign setting for Dungeons & Dragons, the griffon is the heraldic beast of the dragonmarked House Jorasco.
- In The Once and Future King by T. H. White, young Arthur and his step-brother Kay battle a fierce griffin with aid from Robin Hood soon after freeing captives of Morgan le Fay.
- In Baldur's Gate 2, the gnome NPC Jan Janssen's family (according to him) has had a number of encounters with griffins, mostly as a food source. One spoken line from the character is a panicked "What? Is there a griffin about?"
- There is a griffin-like English gargoyle in the animated series Gargoyles, named Griff.
- In the Warcraft Universe, griffins serve as flying mounts to dwarves and other races of the Alliance.
- In The Spiderwick Chronicles, the character Simon Grace rescues a wounded griffin from goblins, then nurses it back to health.
- A gryphon is the agent of a sorcerous coup in the Sci-Fi Pictures original movie Gryphon (2007).
- Griffins exist in the Quest for Glory universe, though not prominently so. A mounted Griffin trophy is displayed in the Guild Hall in Quest for Glory I: So You Want To Be A Hero, while a harmless Griffin nests on the cliffs of Shapeir in Quest for Glory II: Trial by Fire.
- Griffin's are common enemies in the flight levels of God of War II.
- In an episode of Family Guy, Peter was making up a name from his surroundings. He stated "Pea" and "Tear", which sounded his first name, and said "Griffin" as a small griffin randomly flew across the room"
[edit] Griffin Mascots
[edit] Spelling Variants
Griffin has been spelled various ways:
- The most common English variant is gryphon, which has gained increasingly popular use, especially in fantasy media (notably films, books, and RP games).
- Other, far less common, English variants include griffen and griffon.
- Spanish speakers refer to the creature as el grifón.
- Most other alternates include griffoun, griffun, griffyn, grifo, grifon, grifyn, grefyne, gríobhán, griphin, griphon, gryffen, gryffin, gryffon, gryfon, gryphen, and gryphin.
- Shortenings of the term vary widely, as well. These include griff, gryph, gryf, and grifo.
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- O'Laughin, M. C. (1997). "The Book of Irish Families Great & Small". Irish Genealogical Foundation.
[edit] See also
- Griffin (surname)
- Simurgh
- Homa
- JAS-39 Gripen, a fighter aircraft built by Saab
[edit] External links
- The Gryphon Pages, a repository of griffin lore and information
- Griffins in Art and on the Web, an "art history through griffins"
- Greek Mythology Link Bestiary: Griffin, quoting Herodotus, Pausanias, Strabo
- A Mycenaean throne room griffin, shown with a leopard
- Gray's Inn Badge
- Fossil Hunters: Paleontology in Greek and Roman Times
- Lady Gryphon's Mythical Realm: Griffin Aerie
- Gryphons on GryphonWiki
