The Basilisk and the Cockatrice - What is the difference?

the basilisk is a creature that we've seen appear in many beasty areas and works of fantasy but how many of you have heard of the cockatrice a creature that was once often confused with the basilisk because of its many similarities the fastest way to distinguish between the two is through their physical appearance there are depictions of the cockatrice where it appears as a dragon with the head of a cockerel but it's much more common to see the cockatrice in the form of a bird in recent depictions the basilisk appears as a large serpent like creature with older images showing it to be an eight-legged reptilian monster if you were wondering how the two creatures were born well this is the part where it gets a little bit weird and confusing the cockatrice is hatched from the egg of a cockerel that's been incubated by a snake and the basilisk is hatched by the egg of a snake that's been incubated by a cockerel I know weird the cockatrice is considered to be a type of Chimera and in 14th century medieval England the cockatrice appeared as a bird-like reptile who was able to turn people into stone with its gaze much like the Chimera the cockatrice was able to breathe fire and take flight in its earliest appearances the cockatrice was believed to be no bigger than a few inches so essentially you had a fire-breathing chicken that could fit in the palm of your hand not exactly the most terrifying creature but its size did increase in later depictions there are several ways to kill a cockatrice if it was to see its own reflection in a mirror it's likely that it will turn itself into stone according to legend the cockatrice would immediately die upon hearing the crow of a rooster the only animal that was believed to be immune to the glance of the cockatrice was the weasel despite sharing its appearance of a serpent the movement of the basilisk was unlike any other snake it does not slither with its belly on the ground it crawls forward with the front of its body towering above the earth unlike the cockatrice which was known to be a rather small creature serpent like basilisks are known to grow to gigantic proportions similar to the cockatrice the gaze of the basilisk is believed to be able to turn anyone into stone the breath of a basilisk is believed to be so putrid that it can wither plants and even incapacitate grown men there are some tales where the basilisk is able to breathe fire but these tales are few and far the venom of a basilisk is so toxic that it can kill a person from meters away without making any contact the two creatures do share many of the same weaknesses those who were attempting to slay a basilisk would often throw a weasel or a rooster into the beasts den hoping that the sound of the roosters crow would turn the monster into ashes there is no doubt that the basilisk in a cockatrice are very similar creatures the basilisk has become a staple in works of fantasy whereas the cockatrice has been relegated to nothing more than a medieval legend it's not hard to imagine why there's been this evolution from the cockatrice to the basilisk in modern depictions it's a lot harder to install fear into an audience if the creature attempted to kill them resembles a barnyard animal I mean how good would the chamber of secrets really been if Harry was being chased through Hogwarts by a tiny fire-breathing chicken it would have been hilarious but hopefully you understand the point I'm trying to make i feel the basilisk presents a more sinister and terrifying figure if you've enjoyed this video then please consider leaving a thumbs up as it helps promote the video and allows the channel to grow if there's anything you'd like to discuss or have any ideas for future videos then please let me know in the comment section as always I've been your host mythology and fiction explained

Channel: Mythology & Fiction Explained

Views: 237,824

Keywords: cockatrice, What is a Cockatrice?, Bestiary: Basilisk, Basilisk, what is a basilisk?, The Beastiary - Basilisk: The Myth and Reality, basilisk explained, the basilisk explained, the cockatrice explained, Basilisk mythology, the basilisk harry potter, basilisk myth, 5 Interesting Facts About The Basilisk, Harry Potter: Basilisk, What is the difference between a cockatrice and a basilisk?, Is a basilisk real, How do you make a basilisk, Medieval Bestiary : Basilisk

Id: pYLyu2Oioc0

Length: 4min 1sec (241 seconds)

Published: Thu Nov 09 2017