Chimera

Origins and Lineage

The Chimera is one of the most famous and bizarre monsters in Greek mythology. Like many of the most terrifying creatures of antiquity—including the Lernaean Hydra, the Sphinx, the Nemean Lion, and the three-headed hound Cerberus—the Chimera was the monstrous offspring of Typhon, a gargantuan serpentine giant, and Echidna, the half-woman, half-snake “Mother of All Monsters.”

According to the poet Hesiod and the epic works of Homer, the Chimera was raised by Amisodarus, the King of Caria, and terrorized the ancient region of Lycia (modern-day southwestern Turkey). It ravaged the countryside, slaughtering herds of cattle and breathing unstoppable fire that burned villages to the ground.

Appearance and Attributes

The physical description of the Chimera is highly specific and truly bizarre, representing a horrific amalgamation of three distinct, dangerous animals.

• The Front: The creature possessed the massive, muscular body and the ferocious head of a lion.
• The Middle: Erupting directly from the center of the lion’s back was the head (and sometimes the entire torso) of a goat. In many ancient depictions, it is this goat’s head that actually breathes the deadly fire, rather than the lion.
• The Back: Instead of a normal tail, the Chimera’s body ended in the long, writhing body and head of a venomous serpent or dragon.

This combination made the beast a terrifying triple threat: a warrior attempting to fight it from the front faced the teeth and claws of a lion, attacking its flanks meant being roasted alive by the goat, and attacking from the rear resulted in a lethal snakebite.

The Myth of Bellerophon

Because of the beast’s devastation, King Iobates of Lycia commanded the young hero Bellerophon to slay the Chimera. The King secretly hoped the monster would kill the hero, as Iobates had been asked by his son-in-law to dispose of Bellerophon but did not want to violate the sacred laws of hospitality (xenia) by killing a guest himself.

Bellerophon realized that approaching the fire-breathing beast on the ground was suicide. Seeking divine help, he slept in the temple of Athena. The goddess visited him in a dream and gifted him a golden bridle, which he used to tame the magnificent winged horse, Pegasus.

Riding Pegasus, Bellerophon took to the sky, gaining a massive tactical advantage over the ground-bound Chimera. He peppered the beast with arrows from above, keeping safely out of range of its fiery breath.

To deliver the killing blow, Bellerophon attached a large block of solid lead to the tip of his spear. As he flew low, he thrust the spear directly into the fire-breathing maw of the beast. The intense heat of the Chimera’s own breath instantly melted the lead, which poured down its throat and solidified in its lungs and stomach, suffocating the monster from the inside out.

Cultural Legacy and Symbolism

The Chimera has left a massive, enduring mark on language, science, and popular culture.

• Language: The word “chimera” or “chimerical” has entered the English language to describe any wildly imaginative, implausible, or dazzling illusion, or an idea that is hoped for but is ultimately impossible to achieve.
• Science: In biology and genetics, a “chimera” refers to a single organism composed of cells with more than one distinct genotype (essentially, an animal containing the DNA of two different individuals).
• Pop Culture: Chimeras are staple enemies in fantasy role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons, World of Warcraft, and the Final Fantasy series, almost always depicted as a multi-headed lion-goat-dragon hybrid that breathes fire.