CURIOUS CREATURES. 85 



deadly convulsions. It is bred in Hesperia and 

 Lybia. 



" The Poets have a fiction that the Gorgones were the 

 Daughters of Medusa and Phorcynis, and are called 

 Steingo, and by Hesiodus, Stheno, and Eyryale inhabiting 

 the Gorgadion Hands in the dEthiopick Ocean, over against 

 the gardens of Hesperia. Medusa is said to have the 

 haires of his head to be living Serpentes, against whom 

 Perseus fought, and cut off his hed, for which cause he 

 was placed in heaven on the North side of the Zodiacke 

 above the Waggon, and on the left hand holding the 

 Gorgons head. The truth is that there were certaine 

 Amazonian women in Affricke divers from the Scythians, 

 against whom Perseus made warre, and the captaine of 

 those women was called Medusa, whom Perseus over- 

 threw, and cut off her head, and from thence came 

 the Poet's fiction describing Snakes growing out of it 

 as is aforesaid. These Gorgons are bred in that 

 countrey, and have such haire about their heads, as not 

 onely exceedeth all other beastes, but also poysoneth, 

 when he standeth upright. Pliny calleth this beast 

 Catablepon, 1 because it continually looketh downwards, 

 and saith all the parts of it are but smal excepting the 

 head, which is very heavy, and exceedeth the proportion 

 of his body, which is never lifted up, but all living 

 creatures die that see his eies. 



" By which there ariseth a question whether the poison 

 which he sendeth foorth, proceede from his breath, or 

 from his eyes. Whereupon it is more probable, that 

 like the Cockatrice, he killeth by seeing, than by the 

 breath of his mouth, which is not competible to any 

 other beasts in the world. Besides, when the Souldiers 



1 From /cara/SX^TTw, " to look downwards," 



