About the Greek Mythological Monster Echidna

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Echidna, along with her consort Typhon, is the source of many monsters found within the stories of Greek mythology. She is a hybrid monster and a combination of a regular woman and a snake. She found true love with a monstrous, serpentine giant named Typhoon, who was often referred to as one of the most dangerous creatures in Greek mythology.

Although both Echidna and Typhon were fearsome, they also had plenty of children, and each were monsters in their own right. There are multiple stories that involve their offspring, and people grew to fear both the parents and their children. Here’s more information about this monster of Greek Mythology:

What Echidna Looks Like

Echidna is characterized as a hybrid of gorgeous nymph up to one half and fearsome, deadly snake on the other half, with a taste for raw meat and whom was without worry of death or aging (in some accounts). Aristophanes’ account of her looks mentions that Echidna had 100 heads, likely to complement the 100 heads of Typhon. She was known for her hybrid appearance of being half woman and have snake. The upper portion of her appearance is said to resemble that of a woman’s and the lower is said to resemble a snake.

Children of Echidna and Typhon

Echidna and Typhon were quite an amorous couple and produced somewhere between nine to 11 different monsters, depending on the source one goes by. This list of monstrous offspring includes the following, listed from oldest to youngest.

• Orthrus. This monster was a two-headed dog tasked with guarding the giant Geryon’s cattle.
• Cerberus. He is a three-headed dog with a snake for a tail tasked with guarding the gates to the Underworld.
• The Hydra. Its lair was a lake found near a gate to the Underworld.
• Chimera. The fire-breathing amalgam of lion, goat and snake existed solely to caus chaos in Lycia.
• The Sphinx. This hybrid creature guarded the city of Thebes, posing riddles that demanded a correct answer or death at the Sphinx’s jaws.
• The Nemean Lion. This lion had an impervious hide.
• The Caucasian Eagle. This creature would eat at Prometheus’ regenerating flesh each day while he was bound to the Caucasus Mountains.
• Ladon. A serpentine dragon tasked with guarding the golden apples within the Garden of Hesperides.
• The Crommyonian Sow. A monstrous sow that tormented the villagers of Crommyon.
• Gorgon. A snake-woman who later birthed Medusa.
• The Colchian Dragon. A dragon that guarded the golden fleece without needing to ever sleep.
• Scylla. A sea-monster and counterpart to the monstrous whirlpool Charybdis.

Echidna was a frightful hybrid of an entity with an even more frightful family tree. Typhon and she produced nearly a dozen monsters, many of whom were slain by the heroes of myth. This snake-nymph hybrid loved her monstrous serpent of a mate, the monstrous children they made together and the taste of raw flesh.

Categorized in: Greek Mythology

This post was written by Greek Boston