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Mythological Creatures for Children
Mythological creatures aren’t always the frightening ones that want to hurt you, although they are the ones that people tend to remember quickest! Below are a few of our favourite, are they yours too? Vampire; Vampires are said to be pale creatures of the night who subsist by feeding on the blood of the living. Once turned into a Vampire you will live forever. There are ways to ward off these revenants (living corpse) such as garlic, holy water, crucifix it is said that a vampire cannot walk into your home unless you invite him in. The best was to cause Vampires harm is to stake them though the heart. Vampires are popular in books, film and TV shows; the latest begin the movie Twilight made from the book with the same name. Werewolves – lycanthropes; are mythological humans with the ability to shapeshift into wolves or wolf-like creatures, either purposely, by being bitten by another werewolf, or after being placed under a curse. This transformation is often associated with the appearance of the full moon. Werewolves are often granted extra-human strength and senses, far beyond those of both wolves and men. Werewolves are vulnerable to silver weapons and some people also believe mistletoe Elf; the elves were originally thought to be a race of minor gods of nature and fertility. Elves are often pictured as youthful-seeming men and women of great beauty living in forests and other natural places, underground, or in wells and springs. They are also thought to be long-lived or immortal. There are really tall elves like Legolas in The Lord of the Rings or really small elves like Rumpelstilksin. Griffin; the Griffin (above) is a legendary creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. 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-like ears jutting from its skull. Leprechaun; a leprechaun is a type of male faerie said to live in Ireland. They usually take the form of old men who enjoy partaking in mischief. Their trade is that of a cobbler or shoemaker. They are said to be very rich, having many treasure crocks buried during war-time. According to legend, if anyone keeps an eye fixed upon one, he cannot escape, but the moment the eye is withdrawn he vanishes. Another popular belief is that you may find a leprechaun and his pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. Phoenix; A phoenix is a mythical bird with a tail of beautiful gold and red with some purple and blue. They have a 500 to 1,000 year life-cycle, near the end of which it builds itself a nest of twigs that it then ignites; both nest and bird burn fiercely and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix or phoenix egg arises, reborn anew to live again. The new phoenix is destined to live as long as its old self. Dragon – Draco; usually represented as a huge, winged, fire-breathing reptile. There are people who believe Dragons were bad, fire-breathing serpents had huge wings, they hoard gold treasure in dens that they are fierce and always hungry. However, there are also some that believe that Dragons are kind and wise friends of human beings. Have you read about Dragons in any books? If so do think they were good or bad? The Hungarian Horntail in Harry Potter seems a little stressful whilst the White Dragon Ruth in Anne McCaffrey’s Pern series seems fun and playful. This is an original news article © The Kids Window
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