Izvorni znanstveni članak
The Monster from the Kaštela Bay - The Mediterranean Monk Seal
Krešimir Kužić
; Gredička 34, Zagreb
Sažetak
The present paper clarifies the appearance of the Mediterranean monk seal in the Kaštela Bay in 1438 and the reaction of the population to the extreme aggressiveness of this animal. Pero Tafur, a Spanish travel writer, recorded the incident in Split, but it was Poggio Bracciolini who strongly contributed to obtain further knowledge of this event since his records have been copied by numerous European naturalists, demonologists and others who were attracted by the bizarreness of the story. Some persistently used ancient authors in their descriptions of such creatures, while others based their conclusions on religious books. In this context, the views of Marko Marulić were mentioned. An important contribution in memorising the case was made by Albrecht Dürer, who, inspired by the story, created a copper engraving on this subject. The second part of the paper presents all the oldest records of Croatian authors in which the appearance of the monk seal is described at various locations in the Adriatic Sea, especially those near Šibenik. This marine mammal has become extremely rare on the Croatian coast already in the mid-19th century.
Ključne riječi
monster; bestiary; humanism; Adriatic Sea; Kaštela Bay; Mediterranean monk seal
Hrčak ID:
284785
URI
Datum izdavanja:
1.12.2021.
Posjeta: 731 *