COUNTER COVER 05

THE HIPPOCAMPUS

Mythological animals, which are often made up of the fusion of two or more different animals, as in the case of the Hippocampus, are very often represented in popular Serrano embroidery.

In Greek mythology, the Hippocampus was a horse with the lower part of its body taking the form of a sea monster. The hippocampus appeared in the Homeric poems as a symbol of Poseidon. Later poets and artists depicted Poseidon’s horses as a combination of a horse and a fish.

This Poseidon horse is part of the group of imaginary, fabulous, or mysterious creatures that appear in different cloths adorned with Serrano embroidery. These different beings can be found in the mythology of ancient civilisations, which are part of the popular culture tradition.

The appearance of these mythological animals in popular Serrano embroidery demonstrates their cultural influence first from Greek, Persian and Near Eastern mythologies, and later from Byzantine, Persian, Coptic Egyptian and early Hispanic art, undoubtedly enriched by the Mozarabic contribution.

Archaeological excavations prove that many legendary creatures were first imagined in the Mesopotamian valleys between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and the depictions spread into Eastern and Western cultures alike.