Seven legendary sea monsters. Monsters of the world. Mysterious places on the planet where monsters live Myths about sea monsters

12.06.2019

Legends of sea monsters - where is the truth, and where is fiction? Human activities are mainly related to land. That is why everything related to water raises many questions and assumptions. Water is a completely different world, sometimes incomprehensible and very often inaccessible. The creatures that live in the depths of the seas and oceans are so unlike those who live on land that they can cause not only surprise, but very often fear. In ancient times, people were convinced that water was fraught with danger. All these fears and conjectures are reflected in legends and myths. Despite the fact that man managed to descend into the Mariana Trench, which is considered the deepest place on the planet, nevertheless, he knows practically nothing about the terrible and terrible monsters that live at the bottom of the ocean. Sailors often in their stories mentioned sea monsters that dragged large ships under water. On old maps you can see images of giant octopuses, newts, snakes and whales. Myths that talk about sea monsters are found in almost all peoples who have dealt with water. And almost all descriptions indicate that the monsters had lion's mouths, huge tentacles and luminous eyes. With the beginning of the development of navigation, when people began to travel across the continents, gradually the fear of water disappeared, but stories about sea monsters still arose. Over time, such stories became less and less, but even in modern world, in the age of scientific progress, such stories are sometimes found. It should be noted that, as a rule, a wide variety of creatures were mentioned in ancient legends. But to answer the question of whether they really existed, scientists cannot. Some researchers are sure that most of these stories are memories of pterodactyls, dinosaurs and plesiosaurs, who managed to survive until the time of the appearance of man. Probably one of the most famous ancient sea monsters is Leviathan. This monster can be found in Old Testament. His description is a mixture of fear and delight. This is a beautiful, proud creature, which at the same time is associated with Satan and inspires fear. This image appeared in the book of Job, and turned out to be so vivid that the name Leviathan became a household name. There is a similar character breathing fire in many books, films and songs, and even in computer games. Scientists say that it cannot be ruled out that Leviathan actually existed, since such legends could not be born from scratch, something must have provoked the creators of the Bible to create such an image, some kind of prototype. On the other hand, everything that is written in Holy Scripture cannot be taken literally, because its authors preferred allegory. It was not at all necessary for the authors to meet such a monster in real life - it is quite possible that the image of this terrible monster was taken only as an illustration of a certain phenomenon. But the image appeared for a reason, so it could be preceded by meetings with large lizards. Could it be that the prehistoric monsters that lived in the seas and oceans managed to survive until the appearance of man on the planet and were noticed by him? Such a development of events cannot be ruled out at all. Scientists have not yet been able to establish the cause of the disappearance of the ancient giant lizards, therefore, it is impossible that some of them survived and bred offspring. It could also be sea monsters that, at great depths, could survive those cataclysms that, as a result, led to the death of ancient lizards. Science does not know what is happening in the depths of the world's oceans, so it cannot be ruled out that ancient lizards can exist even now. They may well occasionally appear on the surface, from time to time meeting with a person. It is also likely that mutants could appear in the depths of the sea, which are equally similar to ancient lizards and modern animals. This, at least, can explain the origin of the legends about creatures of enormous growth that emerge from the depths of the sea and which are called "sea monks." In medieval legends, there are stories of creatures resembling mermaids. They had a fish tail instead of legs and hands instead of fins. They are often seen on the northern European coasts. The German theologian Megenberg told the legend of the "sea monks" who went to Coast. These creatures danced, attracting the attention of people. The dance was so beautiful and mesmerizing that people lost their vigilance and came very close to these creatures. "Monks" grabbed the unwary and ate them in front of the rest. And in the last century on the territory of Denmark, even managed to find the corpse of the "sea monk". His height was 15 meters. The remains of the creature were sent to Copenhagen, where a sensational statement was made: this creature is an ordinary cuttlefish with ten tentacles. However, scientists do not exclude that during the Middle Ages, certain types of sharks or walrus representatives could be mistaken for “monks”. True, in this case it is not entirely clear how they could arrange dances on land. Cuttlefish do not have enough strength to drag an adult under water, sharks do not leave the water and react only to the smell of blood, and walruses do not attack people. Therefore, it is quite possible that the legends are about some animals unknown to modern science. Another variety of sea monsters became known in 1522, when the Dutch scientist Oddemansa spoke about gigantic snakes that lived deep under water. These monsters were rarely seen by people - in one place they were seen only once every ten years for three centuries. However, since the beginning of the nineteenth century, the number of reported cases has increased dramatically - in one year, this creature appeared to sailors as many as 28 times. Scientists cannot say what caused such activity, but at the same time they suggest that sea creatures simply did not like the presence of ships in the sea. Already in the last century, these monsters have become less active, although even now there are more than enough stories about giant snakes. The most interesting thing is that none of the eyewitnesses managed to take a picture mysterious creature. Therefore, you can leave an idea of \u200b\u200bhow giant snakes actually looked like only from the stories of sailors. At the same time, scientists say that in ocean waters in Triassic period there were Tanistofeus lizards, which had a short body and a very long neck. According to paleontologists, these creatures lived on land, but soon moved to the depths of the sea. This lizard can be mistaken for a snake of gigantic size, assuming that these creatures could survive to our time. In history, legends have been preserved about diving into the depths of the sea of Alexander the Great in a glass barrel. Allegedly, he saw a huge monster at the bottom, which swam around the barrel for three days and three nights. Of course, one can argue about the veracity and originality of this story. Moreover, there are quite a lot of similar legends in ancient texts. So, in particular, ancient texts contain a legend that the Assyrian king Sargan II saw a giant snake. A terrible monster attacked the Roman legionnaires, they used a catapult and killed the monster. It was later skinned and taken to Rome to be shown to the general public. The length of the trophy reached 20 steps. There are mentions of mysterious sea monsters in Chinese sources. So, in one of the manuscripts dating back to the twelfth century, you can find a story about the existence of a certain dragon. According to the author of the text, he saw the skeleton of this creature in the court pantry. The fins, limbs, torso and tail were completely intact, only the horns were cut off. Outwardly, the skeleton was very reminiscent of dragons, the images of which existed at that time. The Central African tribe of pygmies still have legends about the terrible monster "mokele-mbembe". According to eyewitnesses, this is a cross between a dragon and an elephant. On the territory of Zambia, according to legend, there lives a creature resembling a dinosaur, which the local population calls the "devourer of hippos." This creature has a neck and head like a giant lizard. BUT famous hunter Jordan even had to meet him. As the hunter notes, this creature has the body of a hippopotamus covered with bone scales, the head of a crocodile. Interestingly, Jordan's guides fully confirmed his story. But the head of one of the scientific expeditions, Marcellin Anyana, even managed to film a mysterious animal. It happened on Lake Tele. Three hundred meters from the shore in the water, the scientist saw a snake head on a massive neck. This creature "posed" for about 10 minutes, after which it disappeared into the water. According to Anyanya, this animal is very similar in appearance to the brontosaurus, a gigantic herbivore that became extinct about 70 million years ago. Relatively recently created in Germany, the deep-sea submersible "Hyfish" almost died after meeting with one of the sea monsters. The device sank in the area of the Mariana Trench to a depth of about 7 kilometers, but later it could not rise to the surface. Then the hydronauts turned on the thermal imager to see what was preventing the device and were shocked by what they saw: a monster resembling a lizard clung to the body of the device. Fortunately, such an opportunity was foreseen in advance: with the help of an electric gun with a large current charge, we managed to get rid of the monster. There are many such stories. To explain what kind of creatures they are, and where they came from, modern science cannot yet. From this it follows that in the ocean there are still many mysteries and mysteries that scientists have yet to unravel. Modern science strives for the stars, while the depths of the sea hold no less mysteries than outer space. Deep sea diving will be full of surprises for a very long time to come. But perhaps someday these mysteries will still be unraveled.

Rumors about mysterious monster, which attacks vacationers, crawled along the entire Black Sea coast of Crimea. They excited the holidaymakers. Marine researchers have heard about the presence of an unusual monster in the Crimea, but science does not confirm this. The mythical creature has been confusing vacationers and fishermen for a thousand years. It makes sudden visits, sinks boats and destroys dolphins. For a long biography, the monster has become the main character of horror stories around the fires. This monster looks like a huge black dragon. It is possible that sometime there was a mutation. All episodes of the program: "Earth - Territory of Mysteries" We present to your attention the documentary project "Earth. Territory of Mysteries", all episodes of which you can watch in this playlist. This program will primarily be of interest to all lovers of everything mysterious and inexplicable. How much do we know about our planet? What secrets is she hiding from us? We have been living on it for thousands of years, but we know almost nothing about it. In this program you will learn about the secret of the Great Sphinx, the secret of the valley of the Saka kings, the secrets of ancient medicine and the secrets of the pyramids Crimean peninsula. Each issue of the program "Earth. Territory of Mysteries" will take you to the world of the unknown. The authors of the program will tell you about the curse of stone idols, about the intrigues of Barabashka, about the secret of the Tunguska meteorite, about the secret "Area 51" and about civilization from the planet Phaeton. Watch right now the documentary program "Earth. Territory of Mysteries" all editions online and you will witness the unraveling of many mysteries of our planet called Earth.

Sometimes it seems that modern man nothing to be afraid of. We almost calmly watch even the most bloodthirsty horror films, read mystical novels, and sometimes various monsters of the world, both real earthly and fictional, are involved in computer games. All this no longer surprises anyone. Even teenagers and young children treat all these creatures with a touch of irony and skepticism.

And what will you answer to someone who will argue that monsters and monsters are also found in our world today? Will you smile? Twist your finger at your temple? Will you start proving otherwise? Do not hurry. Why? The thing is that from time to time unprecedented creatures still appear to people even now.

For example, having delved into your memory, you will surely remember that one of your relatives, friends or just acquaintances once, under various circumstances, met a terrible monster or some kind of inexplicable creature. Truth?

But what if this is not just a figment of an unhealthy imagination or a consequence sleepless night? What if the mythological ancient Greek monsters actually existed and continue to live somewhere in our world? To tell the truth, from such thoughts, even the most daring of us get goosebumps and begin to listen to the surrounding rustles and sounds.

All this will be discussed in this article. However, in addition to the story about where the monsters live, we will touch on other equally interesting topics. For example, we will dwell on epics and beliefs in more detail, and also introduce readers to modern beliefs and hypotheses.

Section 1. Mythical monsters from fairy tales and legends

Each spiritual culture and religion has its own myths and parables, and they are composed, as a rule, not only about goodness and love, but also about terrible and disgusting creatures. Let's not be unfounded and give some of the most typical examples.

So in Jewish folklore lives a certain dybbuki, the spirit of a deceased sinful person who can inhabit living people who have committed a serious offense and torment them. Only a very qualified rabbi can drive a dybbuk out of the body.

Islamic culture, in turn, as a mythical evil creature, offers jinn - an evil winged people created from smoke and fire, living in a parallel reality and serving the devil. By the way, according to the local religion, the devil was also once a genie under the name of Iblis.

In the religion of Western states, there are Rakshasas, that is, terrible demons that inhabit the bodies of living people and manipulate them, thereby forcing the victim to do all sorts of abominations.

Agree, such mythical monsters inspire fear, even if you just read their description, and you really wouldn’t want to meet them.

Section 2. What are people afraid of today?

Nowadays, people also believe in various otherworldly beings. For example, in Malay (Indonesian) folklore, there is a Pontianak, a female vampire with long hair. What makes it scary creature? Attacks pregnant women and eats all their insides.

Russian monsters are also not far behind in their bloodthirstiness and unpredictability. So, among the Slavs, the evil spirit is represented in the form of a water spirit, the embodiment of the dangerous and negative principle of the element of water. Creeping up unnoticed, he drags his victim to the bottom, and then preserves the souls of people in special vessels.

Let's try to imagine something. In this case, it is impossible not to mention one of the countries of South America. Probably, many have already heard that in Brazilian folklore there is an encantado, a snake or a river dolphin, which turns into a man, loves sex and has an ear for music. He steals the thoughts and desires of people, after which the person loses his mind and eventually dies.

Another belonging to the category "Monsters of the world" is the goblin. He has human species- very tall, shaggy with strong arms and luminous eyes. Lives in the forest, as a rule, in dense and hard-to-reach. Goblin rides on trees, constantly fooling around, and at the sight of a person they clap their hands and laugh. By the way, women are attracted to them.

Section 3. Lochness monster. Scotland

The lake with the same name and a depth of 230 m is the largest reservoir of water in the UK. It is believed that this reservoir, which, by the way, is the second largest in Scotland, was formed quite a long time ago, back in the last ice Age in Europe.

Rumor has it that a mysterious beast lives in the lake, which was first mentioned in writing back in 565. However, the Scots from ancient times mentioned water monsters in their folklore, calling them the collective name "kelpies".

The modern Loch Ness monster is called Nessie, and its history began almost 100 years ago. In 1933, one married couple, resting nearby, saw with their own eyes something unusual, which they reported in special service. However, despite the testimony of 3,000 witnesses who claim they saw the monster, scientists are still unraveling the mystery.

Today, many locals agree that a creature two meters wide and moving at a speed of 10 miles per hour lives in the lake. Modern eyewitnesses claim that Nessie looks like giant snail having a very long neck.

Section 4. Monsters from the Valley of the Headless

The secret of the so-called is that whoever goes to this area and no matter how armed he is, it is still worth saying goodbye to him in advance. Why? The thing is, no one has ever returned from there.

The phenomenon of the disappearance of people has not yet been solved. Whether all the monsters of the world gather there or people disappear due to some other circumstances, it is not known for certain.

Sometimes only human heads were found at the scene, and the Indians living in the area claim that this does it all. snowman living in the valley. Eyewitnesses of the events claim that they saw a creature in the valley that looked like a giant furry man.

Perhaps the most fantastic version of the secret of the Valley of the Headless is that in this place there is an entrance to a certain parallel world.

Section 5. Who is the Yeti and why is he dangerous?

In 1921, on Mount Everest, whose height is more than 6 km, a footprint was discovered in the snow, left by a huge bare foot. It was discovered by an expedition led by Colonel Howard-Bury, a very famous and respected climber. Then the team reported that the print belongs to Bigfoot.

Previously, the mountains of Tibet and the Himalayas were considered places of residence for the Yeti. Scientists now believe that snow people can live in the Pamirs, Central Africa, in the lower reaches of the Ob, in some regions of Chukotka and Yakutia, and in the 70s of the twentieth century, Yeti was also met in America, as evidenced by numerous documentary evidence.

How they can be dangerous for a modern person remains a mystery to this day. There were known cases of the theft of food, sports equipment, but the people themselves of these creatures seem to be of little interest, so you should not be afraid of them, and even less afraid of panic.

Section 6. The monster of the seas. Sea serpent: myth or reality?

Many ancient myths and legends tell about and about the big sea serpent. Both sailors and scientists once believed in the existence of such a monster.

All opinions agreed that there are at least two large species unknown to science. Scientists suggest that a giant eel or an unknown type of cryptozoology acts as a sea monster.

In 1964, sea travelers crossing the Australian Stonehaven Bay on a yacht saw a huge black tadpole, about 25 m long, at a depth of two meters.

The monster had a huge snake head about 1.2 m wide and high, a thin flexible body about 60 cm in diameter and 20 m long, and a whip-like tail.

Section 7. Megalodon shark. Does it exist now?

In principle, according to several documents that have survived to this day, such a fish, which could easily be classified as the “Monsters of the World”, existed in antiquity and resembled a great white shark.

Megalodon was supposedly about 25 meters long, and it is this size that turns it into the most large predator ever existed on the planet.

Far from one fact proves the existence of megallodon in our time. For example, in 1918, when crayfish fishermen were working on great depths, they saw giant shark 92 m long. Most likely, it was this particular fish.

Modern scientists are also in no hurry to deny this assumption. They argue that such animals could easily survive in the unexplored ocean depths to this day.

Section 8. Do you believe in ghosts?

Myths about spirits have existed since pagan times. Christian faith also prevails with spirits, talking about the existence of special creatures, for example, angels who control the elements, and the so-called "unclean", which include the goblin, brownie, water, etc.

It just so happens that good and evil spirits constantly interact with the person. Christianity distinguishes even some companions of a person: a good guardian angel and an evil demon-tempter.

A ghost, in turn, is considered a vision, a ghost, a spirit, something invisible and intangible. These substances appear, as a rule, at night in sparsely populated places. There is no consensus on the nature of the appearance of ghosts, and the ghosts themselves are often radically different from each other.

Section 9. Giant cephalopods

From a scientific point of view, cephalopods are creatures without a spine, whose body was formed like a bag. They have a small head with a clearly defined physiognomy and one leg, which is a tentacle with suction cups. Impressive appearance, right? By the way, not everyone knows that these creatures have a fairly developed and highly organized brain and live at sea depths from 300 to 3000 m.

Very often all over the world it throws out on the shores of the oceans bodies of the dead cephalopods. The longest discarded cephalopod was over 18 m long and weighed 1 ton.

Scientists who explored the depths saw these animals more than 30 m long. But in general, it is believed that such monsters of the world can be more than 50 m long.

Section 10. Mysteries of bottomless lakes

In the Solnechnogorsk district of the Moscow region there is a lake called Bezdonnoye. Locals constantly tell legends about the connection of the lake with the ocean and about the wreckage of sunken ships thrown onto its sandy shores.

This body of water is considered a true natural phenomenon, with its small size, only 30 m in diameter, it has an immeasurable depth.

There is another one in the same area. strange object- which was formed more than half a million years ago at the site of the fall of a large meteorite. The pond has a diameter of about 100 m, but no one knows the size of its depth. There are almost no fish in it, and living creatures do not live on the shores. In summer, a large circulation is observed in the middle of the lake, resembling a large pool on the river, and in winter, when it freezes, the circulation forms a bizarre pattern on the ice. Not so long ago, local residents began to observe the following picture: on serene days, certain creatures began to crawl ashore to bask in the sun, according to the description, they resemble either a huge snail or a lizard.

Section 11. Beliefs of Buryatia

Another lake unknown depth- Sobolkho, in Buryatia. In the lake area, both people and animals constantly disappear. It is very interesting that the missing animals were later found in completely different lakes. Scientists suggest that the reservoir is connected with other underground channels, amateur divers in 1995 confirmed the existence of karst caves and tunnels in the lake, but local residents believe that without scary monsters here is hardly worth it.

From time immemorial, people have been fascinated by the beauty and power of the ocean. The bottomless waters of the seas have always kept some secret and danger. Stories and legends speak of monsters living in the depths of the sea.

Do you believe in them? Let's talk about the most famous of them.

Loch Ness monster

The most famous sea monster, which, by and large, is freshwater and not marine, but it is possible that it can live in salt water.

He is also often referred to as Nessie.

This unknown creature was first discovered in 1933, and there is still no clear evidence that it existed or exists.

Photos of him appear in the press from time to time, but scientific communities of all countries doubt their authenticity.

However, it remains one of the most popular legendary creatures, and many researchers are still trying to find evidence of its existence.

Although most scientists do not believe in Nessie, they admit that if it exists, it is a descendant of a “dinosaur” with long neck and webbed feet.

They say that the animal is completely harmless and prefers to eat only fish.

The name Iku-Turso is translated as "thousand-horned" or "having a thousand tentacles." In modern Finnish, his name can be translated as "octopus"

In Finnish mythology, there is a mention of the malevolent Iku-Turso, who is also called the eternal Turso.

Lives in the Atlantic Ocean, wreaking havoc wherever it appears.

Its appearance is quite interesting. He is depicted as a horned and bearded monster, which, judging by his appearance, obviously does not feed on fish.

They say that he used to be very dangerous, but the Finnish epic "Kalevala" says that one day Iku-Turso was captured and gave his word in exchange for the freedom to behave well.

Now he lives only in the ocean, and does not appear on land.

In Japanese folk tales, there is a character named Umibozu.

It is said that when the priest drowned, his spirit was filled with the power of the ocean and turned into a huge dark-headed creature that looked like a man.

However, Umibozu is not only the soul of a drowned priest.

This word is now called any restless souls of the dead.

Attempts to communicate with them cause a storm, and the ships sink.

Sometimes Umibozu asks the sailors to give him a barrel, but if you do, he will immediately grab you and drown you in the same barrel.

Hydra protects lakes and oceans, it can live in both salty and fresh water.

The Hydra is huge and almost impossible to kill.

If one head is cut off, two new ones will grow in its place.

The Greek hero Hercules, who for some reason is often called Hercules, ultimately defeated her.

He was helped in this by his nephew, who noticed that if one head is cut off and cauterized by fire, new heads will not appear.

So, Hydra was defeated by two brave Greeks, but the fact that even Hercules, known for his incredible strength, needed help to fight her, speaks of how powerful she is.

Any huge one is called Leviathan, but did you know that it is also mentioned in the Bible?

The Book of Job tells about him and describes him as a powerful fire-breathing creature of incredible size.

They say that it was impossible to kill him, and the monster died by itself from old age.

Most illustrations of the monster show it as a snake or whale with a long, thick body.

The powerful body, huge teeth and the evil nature of the Leviathan terrify all sailors who are forced to surf the oceans.

The sea monster lives in ocean waters off the coast of Norway and Greenland.

He is depicted as giant squid or a man who has squid tentacles instead of arms.

The only thing that is constant about his appearance is his size. The Kraken is huge! Even the legendary gods and heroes are lost against its background.

Anyone who cares about life will beware of him if by sea move to Norway. This villain hates people and will do everything possible to destroy them.

Beware of it! However, he is not the most terrible. Scarier, bigger and more powerful than him...

Jörmungandr is a character in Norse mythology, also called Jörmungandr, Midgardsorm, the Midgard Serpent or the World Serpent.

Jörmungandr is so huge that it can easily embrace the entire Earth.

Have you heard of the Scandinavian god Thor, the incredibly powerful lord of lightning? So Jörmungandr will poison him to death during the end of the world, or Ragnarök.

Imagine, Jörmungandr also has poison! It would seem that its size alone is enough to easily deal with anyone.

Jörmungandr is the most dangerous and huge sea monster, which has no equal.

It turns out that sharks in the ocean are not the worst thing. There is a whole bunch of sea monsters, in comparison with which, even a large White shark seems like a harmless bastard.

The sea leaves no one indifferent. Some admire the great and formidable element, others are mortally afraid of it. Sometimes these conflicting feelings get along together. The changing nature of the ocean, its immense size, the incomprehensibility of the depths involuntarily envelop it with mystical mystery. Even today, the most experienced sailors, when it comes to the sea, become a little superstitious. What to say in this case about the people of the ancient world! The sea seemed to them full of secrets, inhabited not only by fish, but also by many sea monsters, ready at any moment to drown a fragile ship and swallow unfortunate sailors. It is not for nothing that all the peoples inhabiting the sea coast have many myths about the mysterious inhabitants of the sea depths. Many of these legends live on to this day. From time to time, one of the ancient legends suddenly receives new confirmation. Sometimes sailors witness dramatic events in the open ocean - they see giant sea snakes and dragons, either devouring each other, or causing the death of either a person or an entire ship. Sensational reports about this bypass all the newspapers of the world, occasionally they are illustrated with photographs. But the mysterious creatures apparently don't like to be taken - photos always come out blurry and hazy. Such writings have been much better illustrated in the past. To see this, just look at the map. northern seas, compiled in 1572 by Antoine Lafrérie. The myths give very colorful descriptions of sea monsters.

Here is how the ancient Roman poet Virgil in his Aeneid sang of the giant sea serpents that killed the Trojan priest Laocoon and his sons:

... two snakes lying on the waters,

Nearby swim and slowly stretch to our shore.

Breasts rose from the waves, bloody crests above the waters

On end; leaving a deep radiant trail behind you,

Tails are beating; unbending, bending, heaving back.

Foaming, the moisture beneath them rustles: they crawl ashore;

Eyes brightly bloodshot and glowing and shining;

With a whistle, nimble stingers lick their open mouths.

(Translated by V. Zhukovsky)

Every visitor to the Hermitage can see images of these giant snakes based on a copy of a sculptural group from the 1st century BC.

Apparently, huge sea snakes were found not only in ancient times. The French researcher M. Geer cites the following curious fact: “In July 1897, the gunboat Avalanche met two snakes 20 m long and 2-3 m thick in Along Bay. A cannon shot from a distance of 600 m forced them to hide under water. On February 15, 1898, the same ship and in the same place again met the snakes; a shot followed from a distance of 300 m, and the ship went forward at full speed, trying to overtake the animals. At the moment when the ship was already quite close to them, one of the monsters dived under the gunboat and emerged behind it. One can imagine the confusion the crew was in at that moment. Nine days later, off the same coast, Avalanche again met two such animals. The hunt lasted 35 minutes, but its only result was the coincidence of all observations.

There are many things that are not clear in this story. Firstly, why each time only the crew of a single gunboat saw snakes, and the crews of other ships were not shown snakes? Secondly, it is difficult to explain the monsters' commitment to a permanent place. Finally, thirdly, their invulnerability is absolutely amazing. A warship at a minimum distance fires artillery at a target, but there are no results.

Finding no explanation for the facts, M. Geer points out that "the story of this incident was regarded in the highest instance as a collective hallucination", although he himself, apparently, does not quite agree with the opinion of the high naval authorities. After all, the case with "Avalanche" is not the only one. So, the crew of the ship "Polina" in 1875 twice witnessed the battle of a sea snake with a sperm whale, about which the corresponding entries were made in the ship's log on July 8 and 13. There are other known cases of encounters with giant sea snakes.

The Dutch scientist Oddemansa collected all the information about giant sea snakes. According to him, the first documented meeting of sailors with a huge sea serpent took place in 1522. Over the next three centuries, sailors caught sight of snakes on average once every ten years - by 1802, 28 cases were recorded. But in the 19th century, encounters with sea monsters increased dramatically: between 1802 and 1890, they were seen 134 times. They caught my eye in this century. Despite frequent encounters with sea snakes, so far no one has been able to photograph them. Mysterious sea monsters are equally successful in escaping from artillery fire and from the lens directed at them.

Since the monsters refuse to pose, one has to describe their appearance from passing observations, often on the basis of information not received from the observer himself. In 1926, a monster was seen at night off the coast of Madagascar. He reports this in his book fishing in Madagascar" French scientist Dr. J. Petit. The animal shone with a bright, but fickle light, which flashed on and off. It seemed that this light, which could be compared with a sea searchlight, was emitted by a body rotating around its axis. According to the natives, this animal appears very rarely. Its length is 2025 meters, the body is wide and flat (which means that in this case we are not talking about a snake), it is covered with a hard lamellar shell. He has a tail like a shrimp, his mouth is on his belly. The head glows and emits flames as the monster rises to the surface of the sea. Regarding the structure of the monster local residents there was no consensus. Some claimed that the “master of the sea” was legless, while others believed that he had limbs similar to whale flippers.

It is extremely rare that a person manages to touch a mysterious creature, or rather, its remains. So, in 1883, one resident of Annam not only saw, but also touched the decomposed remains of a sea monster resembling a giant centipede on the shore of Along Bay. In April 1977, a sensational message about the discovery of Japanese fishermen went around the world. When fishing for mackerel on the trawler "Tsuyo Maru" near New Zealand, the net brought a half-decayed corpse of an unknown animal. The thirteen-meter carcass weighing about two tons spread a stench. The fishermen discerned a shapeless body with four limbs (either fins or flippers), a long tail and a small head on a thin neck. The prey was measured, photographed, and then had to be thrown overboard. Previously, a part of the best-preserved limb was separated from the body and placed in a freezer.

Controversy erupted around the find. Based on several bad photographs and a description made by fishermen, Professor Yoshinuri Imaitsumi, head of the zoology department at the Japan National Science Museum, recognized the fish as a plesiosaur, a member of a long-extinct group of marine reptiles. Plesiosaurs are well known from fossils. mesozoic era. 100-200 million years ago, they, like modern seals, inhabited coastal areas of the sea and could crawl out onto sandbanks, where they rested after hunting. Plesiosaurs, like most other reptiles, had a powerful, well-developed skeleton. Judging by the descriptions of the fishermen from the Tsuyo Maru and from the photographs, the mysterious animal had no bones.

Parisian paleontologist L. Ginzburg believes that Japanese fishermen retrieved from the sea the remains of a giant seal, also extinct, but relatively recently - "only" 20 million years ago. The French scientist came to this conviction on the basis of the shape of the head and the structural features of the vertebrae. The latter, however, neither L. Ginzburg himself, nor anyone else saw, because the find was thrown overboard entirely. With such a shaky argument, one must have a lot of courage to insist that the find belongs to plesiosaurs or extinct giant seals. Moreover, there are many skeptical scientists who believe that Japanese fishermen have recovered from the sea a half-decomposed corpse of a shark or a small whale. But there is still an opportunity to judge the find by the structure of that part of the limb that was delivered in the freezer. Having studied its structure, experts can easily say whether it belongs to a fish, a reptile or a mammal. A scientific dispute would be settled simply, quickly, and definitively. However, on this occasion, the owners of the fin or flipper remain stubbornly silent.

Why don't they publish the results of the study? The answer to this may be given by the story of another sensational discovery. Here we have a small newspaper article dated 1964: "Unknown animal."

“Santiago, June 18 (TASS). In the province of Magallanes (Chile), an unknown animal was found washed ashore by the waters Pacific Ocean. According to the Chilean newspaper Golpe, it weighs about two tons, is six meters long and two meters wide. The two front fins of the animal, the newspaper points out, are very similar to human hands with five fingers and nails, the two back fins have no fingers. The animal's head is elongated, with a mouth with three large fangs. The animal will be examined by Chilean scientists."

The reader has the right to expect that now the veil of mystery will fall off and the world will finally be told all the details about the monster with human hands and three huge teeth in its mouth. It wasn't there. As soon as a Chilean, New Zealand or any other similar maritime miracle falls into the hands of scientists, there is no trace of the myth. In fact, the "plesiosaurs" turn out to be either a part of the body of a dead whale, or a shark, or an accumulation of luminous planktonic organisms, or simply a figment of fantasy and optical illusion. No wonder sea monsters do not leave a trace on the film and calmly move away from shells and bullets.

Despite the large number of people who really want to believe that individual representatives of long-extinct reptiles are still living their lives in the ocean, not a single reliable information about this has yet been recorded. Even the statistics of Oddemansa (over 150 encounters with giant sea snakes) are not supported by any material evidence of the reality of the observations. This is the factual side of the question of modern sea monsters.

The theory also does not give any reason to hope for the reality of their existence today. No species of animal or plant can exist in a single copy or in a small number of individuals. As soon as the population of a species falls below the critical level, it is doomed to extinction. What is this critical value?

For different animals, of course, it is different. Thus, according to the International Red Book, orangutan monkeys are on the verge of extinction, although at present their number is 5 thousand individuals. Specialists in whales and whaling believe that with 2 thousand individuals blue whale it is still possible to maintain and even restore this species. giant monitor lizard survived on the island of Komodo in the amount of about 300 specimens, and its number, despite the conservation measures taken, has not increased in recent years. Science knows only one case of an increase in the number of a species after only about 45 individuals remained. It's about about teeth. But this required energetic measures and large expenditures of funds. All 45 animals were placed in nurseries and zoos. Only under these conditions was it possible to increase the herd of bison and release some of the animals back into the protected forests.

Nobody guards the sea monsters. Therefore, their number must be equal to at least several thousand individuals of each species. Whether they are snakes, plesiosaurs or other reptiles, or giant seals, they need to periodically rise to the surface to breathe. Why are they so rarely seen? Where do their bodies go after death? Why hasn't the sea thrown out a single bone of these monsters so far?

The answer to this, to the chagrin of lovers of everything unusual, can only be unambiguous. There are no giant sea creatures, except those known to science, in the ocean. They do not exist, just as Bigfoot does not exist. Marine plesiosaurs are as unreal as the famous Loch Ness miracle.

But you don't have to be completely disappointed. The ocean holds many secrets. It is inhabited by unknown and little known animals, more amazing than any fantastic monster or extinct reptile. We still have to talk about them, and now let's talk about real marine animals.

The main human activity takes place on earth, therefore water world is not fully explored. In ancient times, people were sure that many monsters live in the seas and oceans, and there is a lot of evidence describing encounters with such creatures.

Sea monsters and monsters of the deep oceans

Studies of water depths are still being carried out, for example, Mariana Trench(most deep place on the planet), but the most terrible sea monsters described in ancient scriptures have not been discovered. Almost all peoples have ideas about the monsters that attacked the sailors. Until now, from time to time there are reports that people saw huge snakes, octopuses and other creatures unknown to science.

hairy snake

According to historical chronicles, these monsters were discovered in the depths of the sea around the 13th century. So far, scientists have not been able to confirm that giant sea snakes are real.

A description of the appearance of these monsters can be found in the work of O. the Great "History northern peoples". The serpent is about 200 feet long and 20 feet wide. It lives in caves near Bergen. The body is covered with black scales, there are hanging hairs on the neck, and his eyes are red. He attacks cattle and ships.
The last evidence of a meeting of a sea monster was about 150 years ago. The crew of the British ship, which followed the island of St. Helena, saw a huge reptile with a mane.
The only known animal that fits the description is a thong fish that lives in tropical seas. The length of the caught specimen is approximately 11 m. Its rays dorsal fin long and form a “sultan” above the head, which from afar can be mistaken for hair.

hairy snake

sea monster kraken

mythical sea creature, which looks like cephalopod is called the kraken. It was first described by Icelandic sailors, who claimed that it looked like an ordinary floating island. Descriptions of this monster of the deep sea are common and confirmed.

A Norwegian ship in 1810 noticed in the water a huge creature similar to a jellyfish, whose diameter was about 70 m. There was a record of this meeting in the ship's log.
The fact that giant sea monsters krakens exist was officially confirmed by science in the 19th century, since giant mollusks (something between an octopus and a squid) were found on the shore, similar in description to a kraken.
The sailors announced a hunt for these creatures and specimens 8 and 20 meters long were caught. Some encounters with the kraken ended in a shipwreck and the death of the crew.
There are several types of krakens, so it is believed that the monsters are 30-40 m long, and they have large suckers on their tentacles. They do not have awns, but have a brain, developed sensory organs and a circulatory system. To protect themselves, they are able to release poison.

Grendel

In the English epic, the demons of darkness are called Grendel, and he is a giant troll who lived in Denmark. Describing the largest sea monsters, it is often included in the list, and it lives in underwater caves.

He hated people and sowed panic among the people. His image combines different hypostases of evil.
In Germanic mythology, a sea monster with a huge mouth was considered a creature that was rejected by people. Grendel was a person who committed a crime and was expelled from society.
Movies and cartoons were made about this monster.

Grendel

Sea monster Leviathan

One of the most famous monsters described in the Old Testament and other Christian sources. The Lord created each creature in pairs, but there were animals in a single kind and these are different sea monsters, which they refer to.

The creature is huge and has two jaws. His body is covered in scales. He has the ability to breathe fire and thereby evaporate the seas.
In later sources, some mythical sea monsters were justified, so Leviathan began to be presented as a symbol of the unlimited power of the Lord.
There is a mention of this creature in stories different peoples. Scientists are sure that Leviathan was simply confused with different sea animals.

Leviathan

Monster Scylla

In Greek mythology, Scylla is considered a unique creature that lived not far from another monster, Charybdis. They were considered very dangerous and voracious. According to existing versions Scylla was the object of love of many gods.

The sea monster is a snake with six heads that retained the upper part of the female body. Under the water were tentacles ending in the heads of dogs.
With her beauty, she attracted sailors and could bite a galley in half with her head.
According to myths, she lived in the Strait of Messina. Odysseus survived the meeting with her.

sea serpent

The most famous monster that had a snake body is Ermungand, a mythical Scandinavian creature. He is considered the middle son of Loki and Angrboda. The serpent was of enormous size, and he was able to encircle the Earth and cling to his own tail, for which he was called the "World Serpent". There are three myths about sea monsters that describe the meeting of Thor and Jermungandr.

The first time Thor met a snake in the form of a giant cat, and he was given the task of lifting it. He only managed to get the animal to raise one paw.
Another myth describes how Thor went fishing with the giant Gimir and caught the bull Yermungand on his head. It is believed that he managed to crush his head with his hammer, but did not kill him.
It is believed that their last meeting will happen on the day when the world will end and all sea monsters will come to the surface. Yermungandr will poison the sky, for which Thor will cut off his head, but the stream of poison will kill him.