Stellion, Rochester Bestiary, c.1230

The stellĭo, a stellion or star lizard, named after its unique coloration, is a creature adorned with star-like spots that glimmer on its back. This creature carries a celestial pattern, as noted by Ovid: "Its name fits its colour; it is starred on the body with spots of various colours" (Metamprphoses, 5, 461). This lizard is so fiercely opposed to scorpions that it becomes paralysed and numb with fear at the mere sight of it.

The text delves into the nature of snakes, emphasising their natural coldness and behaviour. Snakes, it explains, do not strike unless warmed, making their cold venom more powerful during the day than at night. In the chill of winter, they become sluggish and coil up, only to become active again in the warmth of summer. The venom of a snake does not harm until it mingles with warm blood flowing through the veins, as echoed in the words of the Roman poet Lucan: "The poison of snakes is only deadly when mixed with the blood" (Pharsalia, 9, 614).

Snakes are also known for their exceptional sharpness of senses, surpassing all other creatures. Intriguingly, it is believed that snakes cannot harm a human unless their venom enters the bloodstream and they are said to shy away from touching a naked human. The serpent’s cunning nature is rooted in the biblical narrative from Genesis, where it is described as the most cunning of all the beasts of the earth, symbolising its sly and perceptive nature.

Stellio a colore inditum nomen habet. Est
enim in tergore pictus. lucentibus guttis in
modum stellarum. de quo ovidius. Aptumque co-
lori; nomen habet variis stellatus corpore
guttis. Hic autem scorpionibus adeo contrarius
dicitur. ut viso eo pavorem habeant et tor-
porem . Omnes serpentes naturaliter frigi-
de sunt. Non percutiunt; nisi quando calescunt.
Unde et venena eorum que naturaliter frigi-
da sunt; plus die quam nocte nocent. In hieme
in nodos torpent. in estate solvuntur. Nec vene-
num quod frigidum est. prius nocet; quam ad sangui-
nem qui calidus est et fugit venenum per venas

Stellĭo[1] is named after its coloration. It is marked on its back with shining spots resembling stars. As Ovid says: 'Its name fits its colour; it is starred on the body with spots of various colours'.[2] It is said to be so hostile to scorpions that, upon seeing them, they are paralysed with fear and become numb. All snakes are cold by nature. They do not strike unless their body is warm. Therefore, their venom, which is naturally cold, is more harmful by day than by night. In winter, they become sluggish and coil up but in summer, they are active. The venom, being cold, does not cause harm until it reaches the blood, which is warm and flows through the veins.

discurrens perveniat. Omne venenum naturali-
tur est. frigidum. Omnia animantia serpens vi-
vacitate quadam sensus superat. Ferunt autem
quod non potest hominem nocere; nisi venenum
tetigerit sanguinem euis. Unde lucanus. Noxia
serpentum est admixto sanguine pestis. Dicunt
quod serpens hominem nudum non audet atti-
gere. De vivacitate sensus eius legitur in genesi.
quod serpens erat sapientior omnibus pecoribus
terre.

All venom is naturally cold. Snakes surpass all animals in the sharpness of their senses. It is said that a snake cannot harm a human unless its venom touches a person’s blood. Lucan says thereof: 'The poison of snakes is only deadly when mixed with the blood'. It is believed that a snake does not dare to touch a naked human. About the sharpness of its senses, it is written in Genesis that the serpent was more cunning than all the beasts of the earth.

Further Reading

David Badke, The Bestiary Blog: Animals in the Middle Ages, Stellio, November 6 2023, https://bestiary.ca/beasts/beast906.htm

Josh Goldenberg (BA 2012) and Matt Shanahan (BA 2014, Logeion, November 2022, https://logeion.uchicago.edu/

Castiglioni, L. and Mariotti, S. (1996). Vocabolario della Lingua Latina: Latino-Italiano Italiano-Latino. Terza Edizione. Loescher Torino

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., Wikipedia: The Elephant, 28 November 2023, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant

Matthews, J. and Matthews C., (2010), The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures, HarperCollins UK, London

Curley, M. J., Physiologus: A Medieval Book of Nature Lore (University of Chicago edition 2009)

Rackham, H., M.A., Pliny Natural History Volume III, Libri VIII-XI (London: William Heinemann Ltd, 1949)

Collins, A. H., M.A., Symbolism of Animals and Birds (New York: McBride, Nast & Company, 1913)

Henderson, C., The Book of Barely Imagined Beings (London: University of Chicago Press, 2013)

White, T. H., The Bestiary: A Book of Beasts (New York: G.P Putnam’s Sons, 1960)

Barney, S. A., Lewis, W. J., Beach A., Berghof O., The Etymologies of Isidore of Seville (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006)

Endnotes

[1] This kind of lizard is most probably the Laudakia Stellio, a species of agamid lizard also known as the starred agama or the roughtail rock agama. Other names are stallion, star lizard, starred agama. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laudakia_stellio

[2] Ovid, Metamprphoses, 5, 461

[3] Lucan, Pharsalia, 9, 614

[4] Genesis NKJV 3:1: "Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made."