Mermaids: Between Desire and Danger

There are many half-man and half-fish creatures from different cultures of all continents. Since ancient times, mermaids attracted sailors with their melodic singing, making the boats veer off course. Later on, in Occidental imaginary, mermaids are represented as beautiful women with well-endowed forms, long wavy hair and a fish’s tail, or sometimes as giants with hideous faces. It is rumored that mermaids could bring on storms, bad catches, or even death... For the sailors, mermaids, as the sea they inhabited, symbolized both the unknown and danger, but also beauty and temptation.

In the Middle Ages, the half woman and half fish mermaid became a symbol of sin, lust, and carnal desire. Her fish tail symbolized a kind of snake, and made a true female devil of her. Mermaids are sometimes adorned with objects of seduction: the comb and the mirror.

The Little Mermaid’s story published by the Danish author, Hans Christian Andersen, improved the image of the seductive and wicked mermaid.

Under his pen, this one became fragile and virtuous. In 1989, Walt Disney Studios adopted Anderson’s tale. The movie was very successful, and even won an Oscar.

Mermaids were a part of traveling shows in which children suffering from deformities (leg fusion) were presented. In the popular Cabinets of Curiosities, one could see naturalized marine mammals that evoked mermaid silhouettes, or even dried rays cleverly shaped as scary creatures.

This display of unusual objects and skillful trickeries sustained the myth surrounding mermaids and sea monsters.

BARNUM MERMAID

In 1842, the P. T. Barnum Circus aroused the crowd’s curiosity while showing a strange creature. The hoax was quickly snuffed out. In fact, the Barnum’s mermaid was a young monkey’s torso stitched to a fish tail, and covered in papier mâché.

From far-off glimpses of the water, pinnipeds have been confused with ... sea monsters!

The seals, with their heads raised above the water’s surface, are somewhat curious and playful. How can we mistake them for any other creature? With their dark and shiny skin, and their human-like silhouette when in the water, any conclusion is possible...

Dugongs

This postcard shows the capture of two dugongs off Aden, Yemen. Manatees and dugongs, from the sirenian family, are behind the mermaid legend. Their smooth and spindle-shaped bodies would have been often confused with the silhouette of the fishtail woman.

Humans are frightened by walruses, which when in danger or injured, may become aggressive and can capsize a rowboat by leaning on the edge of it. They can even destroy kayaks by using their tusks!

The Pacific walrus, can reach up to 4 meters (13 ft) in length and two tons in weight, and can be seen all the way to the Yukon. The smaller Atlantic walrus (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus) [up to 3.2 m (10.7 ft) in length and 1.4 tons in weight] is found in the Northeast coastal regions of Canada and in the cold Arctic waters.

Although they are clumsy and oafish on land, walruses are formidable in the water. Therefore, hunters prefer to kill them on dry land or on the ice.

Sea Bishop

This monster in a bishop’s costume is an imaginary animal, as illustrated in the Guillaume Rondelet’s book in the 16^th century. Some thought it was inspired by a hooded seal, or a giant squid. Others believed it shows an elongated snout of a red bishop, a common fish in Norway’s waters. This fanciful creature represented the highest ranking members of the clergy, with a touch of sarcasm.

In the Middle Ages, legend states each land animal has a "corresponding creature" in the sea. The name of Sea Lion had been given to several species of seals, because the adult males—like lions— have a mane over their rounded neck and torso.

A sea lion may show aggressive behavior. These animals live in colonies, sometimes very large, and actively defend their territory. There are very few attacks on swimmers and boats reported from the Pacific Coast. Most often, these attacks occurred because some foolhardy humans tried to get too close to this pinniped...

The Steller’s sea cow was a marine mammal that reached nearly 8 meters in length and weighed anywhere from 5 to 11 tons. It was toothless, but had horned plates enabling them to crush seaweed. FFossil remains attest that this sirenian would have lived on the coasts of British Columbia during the Prehistoric Era.

The Steller’s sea cow was made completely extinct by humans in the 18^th century. However, the discovery of this species has been quickly spread among seafarers. The Steller’s Sea Cows could provide several kilos of meat, sought-after leather, and milk renowned to be delicious. Besides that, they were easy to hunt. The entire population, estimated at 1500 to 5000, was annihilated in 1768.