Post by celebaelin on Jul 7, 2024 11:13:00 GMT
A Prister (Physeter, Physeterus, Physalus, Pistris, Pistrix, Pristes, Pristis etc.) is a mostrous sea creature of the North Atlantic the existence of which, after a mention by Pliny the Elder in his 77 AD Naturalis Historia (Natural History) seems to have been of interest only to Olaus Magnus (1490-1557).
Born in Sweden Olof Månsson was the younger brother of Sweden's last Roman Catholic archbishop and spent his life prior to the reformation in Sweden (began 1527) as a diplomatic envoy of Gustav I in Rome negotiating for the appointment of Olof's elder brother Johannes as archbishop of Uppsala and arranging trade agreements with other european nations. After the confiscation of his Swedish posessions as a result of the reformation he settled in Rome in 1537 and acted as secretary to his brother. On his brother's death in 1544 Olof succeeded him under Pope Paul III in the now defunct position of Catholic archbishop of Uppsala.
In 1539 he published "A Marine map and Description of the Northern Lands and of their Marvels, most carefully drawn up at Venice in the year 1539 through the generous assistance of the Most Honourable Lord and Patriarch Hieronymo Quirino" - usually referred to by the first two words of its Latin title 'Carta marina' on which is depicted the aforementioned Prister.
In his 1555 book of Swedish folklore and history Historia de Gentibus Septentrionalibus (A Description of the Northern Peoples) Olof elaborates on the deadly aspects of the Prister which were apparently unknown to Pliny.
"THE Whirlpool, or Prister, is of the kind of Whales, two hundred Cubits long, and is very cruel. For to the danger of Sea-men, he will sometimes raise himself beyond the Sail-yards, and casts such floods of Waters above his head, which he had sucked in, that with a Cloud of them, he will often sink the strongest ships, or expose the Marriners to extream danger. This Beast hath also a long and large round mouth, like a Lamprey, whereby he sucks in his meat or water, and by his weight cast upon the Fore or Hinder-Deck, he sinks and drowns a ship. Sometimes, not content to do hurt by water onely, as I said, he will cruelly overthrow the ship like any small Vessel, striking it with his back, or tail."
The Prister, like all attempts to represent whale-like creatures on Carta marina, is shown as having two spouts - one on either side of the head - through which they discharge their deadly jets of water.
