Griffin, Griffon or Gryphon? Mythology Explained

the griffon a legendary creature known for its recent depictions in medieval folklore however its origins stretch as far back as ancient Greece Persia and Egypt the Griffin has the head and wings of an eagle with the body tail and hind legs of a lion the Eagle considered the king of the birds and the lion the king of the beasts combining the most powerful elements of land and sky the Griffin was considered an extremely powerful and majestic creature Griffin's were thought to be very wise and were often shown God in the gold and treasure of Kings some legends believe that Griffin was more of a trickster much like the sphinx who would challenge people to solve its riddles the winners would be allowed to keep the treasure and their lives the losers would not this Fink's is similar to the Griffin in appearance with the body of a lion but the head of a human there are several different ways to spell the word Griffin all of them indeed refer back to the mythical creature this variation was used in medieval heraldry and is a term used to identify a Griffin that was painted on a shield a crest or a piece of armor the other variations identify the creature directly there are historians who believe that the idea of the Griffin came from dinosaur remains found from the Cretaceous period the pentaceratops was a four-legged Beast with a beaked face whose remains were found near gold veins anyone digging for gold in those areas could have found the bones of the pentaceratops and imagine a creature very much like the Griffin digging and holding gold the Griffin was commonly shown to represent wisdom and power the creature was often painted on the armor and shields of knights throughout the ages to embolden them and strike fear in their enemies even the Gryffindor House in Harry Potter was named after a Gryphon with a lion on its crest in Greek mythology the Gryphon was said to have pulled the chariot of Apollo the god of the Sun Apolo would have to travel from the Sun to the earth meaning he needed a creature that could fly making the Griffon the perfect choice he was also considered a very wise god an attribute shared by the Griffon during the Persian Empire the Griffon was thought to be a protector of evil and witchcraft what I find most intriguing is the fact that Griffon appears to be used more now than ever the Griffon has become an iconic character in the fantasy genre we often see Griffin's and writings of fiction and movies it's almost impossible to play a fantasy based game without finding a Griffon in there somewhere despite the Griffins popularity they are rarely mentioned by name the Griffins lack of mention in traditional literature means we don't know much about them they have become more of a symbolic creature commonly used in legends and folklore this allows the Griffon to be very easily identified but also retains a level of respect and mystery if you've enjoyed this video then please go ahead and leave it a like consider subscribing if folklore mythology is something that interests you if you have anything you'd like to discuss or have any ideas for future videos then please go ahead and let me know in the comments below as always I've been your host mythology and folklore explained

Channel: Mythology & Fiction Explained

Views: 273,444

Keywords: Griffin, griffon, gryphon, Gryphon mythology, girffon mythology, griffin mythology, gryphon explained, the gryphon explained, mythology explained, greek mythology, gryphon greek mythology, mythology & folklore explained, Legendary Creatures: Gryphon, Legendary Creatures, 25 Most Legendary Creatures From Greek Mythology, The Griffin in Greek mythology, hybrid creatures, gryffindor

Id: 8QpHgk9OUEA

Length: 3min 30sec (210 seconds)

Published: Sun Oct 01 2017