| Greek Name |
Transliteration |
Latin Spelling |
Translation |
Sfinx AiqiopikoV
SfinxeV Aiqiopikoi |
Sphinx Aithiopikos
Sphinxes Aithiopikoi |
Sphinxes Aethiopici |
Ethiopian Sphinxes |
THE SPHINXES AITHIOPIKOI were a breed of half-lion, half-woman animals native to Aithiopia (Sub-Saharan Africa).
They probably derived from travellers' accounts of a species of African baboon. Compare with the Onokentaura (a description of the chimpanzee).
Pliny the Elder, Natural History 8. 72 (trans. Rackham) (Roman encyclopedia C1st A.D.) :
"Aethiopia produces Lynxes in great numbers, and Sphinxes with brown hair and a pair of udders on the breast, and many other monstrosities."
Sources:
- Pliny the Elder, Natural History - Latin Natural History C1st A.D.
|
