#sybaris

Sybaris, also called Lamia, is a man-eating monster from Greek mythology. Though there is no consensus as to her physical appearance, she is most often described as a dragon, and is sometimes seen as a parallel to Python.

Sybaris lived in a cave in Mount Cirphis, in the Gulf of Corinth. She plagued the land, devouring men and livestock, until she was thrown from the mountainside by the hero Eurybatus. A fountain sprung at the point where she landed.

Image source.

Monster master list.

TyrantisTerror Prompt: Lesser Drake

You’ve heard of Smaugust, now get ready for… Smovember. Smauvember. Starting on the 31st of October. 

All right, bull-shit aside here’s the deal: Sword and Shield is coming out in 16 days exactly, and I need to distract myself from the leaks, if/when they happen.  To keep my mind free of distraction, I’ve decided to do an abridged version of Tyrant Is Terror’s 31-Day Dragon Prompts. But, I’ll only be doing the first 16 days, firstly because that’s the time-frame for Sword and Shield’s release, and also because prompts 17-31 deal with creatures based around either abstract elements or different popular culture stuff. But, because I am me, nothing is going to be what it seems. Many of the prompts listed give a little description, using the specific names of these creatures to mean a body-plan. Instead, I’ll do my usually thing of diving way too deep into the etymology and history of that creature. Most of these are going to be simpler drawings, in a similar vein to the previous wisps collage, because school. 

The first of these is the Drake. Though listed as a four-legged, wingless dragon, the word drake is ultimately derived from the Greek drakon, which means both dragon and serpent. Both their serpentine bodies and their piercing eyes were considered their defining traits, and through the Romans the word was spread across Europe, appearing even in the Old English Beowulf, where the dragon is referred to as a “draca”. But, because I’ve drawn a lot of drakones, here is a drakaina, or dracaena. Literally the word is the feminine form of drakon, but can also be used to described monstrous goddesses with the bodies of serpents, like Keto and Ekhidna. These seem to be the exception though, as the more common drakaina are more like their male relatives; monstrous and animal-like in their behavior. The drakaina pictured here is Sybaris, a mountainous dragon whose territory included Mount Cirphis. She caused significant damage to the surrounding countryside, until the hero Eurybarus killed her, tossing her from her mountain perch onto the rocks below, making a spring. Dragons are often prone to causing shifts in the environment, as befitting creatures descended directly from the primordial creators of the world. 

June 10th, 2019

What an AMAZING day! I went for a free massage at Mario tricoci in the morning because of a gift card I had. Later I worked for a few hours and then met my best friend Kari who lives 6 hours away for a spa night.