Illustrated Architecture Dictionary
Illustrated Architecture Dictionary
Chimera
kie MERE a
CAPITALIZED: a fire-breathing she-monster in Greek mythology having a lion's head, a goat's body, and a serpent's tail
Chimeras are creatures that are mixes of different types of animal body parts to create a new creature. Some of the more notable chimeras are griffins, centaurs, harpies, and mermaids.
In Greek mythology, the Chimera was a fearsome, fire-breathing monster with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a dragon's tail. She terrorized the people of Lycia until their king, Iobates, asked the hero Bellerophon to slay her. ... Bellerophon called in Pegasus, the winged horse, and brought the Chimera down from above.
The beast lived on in people's imaginations, and English speakers adopted her name for any similarly grotesque monster, or, later, for anything fanciful.
- Merriam-Webster: Chimera (online December 2018)
Etymology: Latin chimaera, from Greek chimaira she-goat, chimera; akin to Old Norse gymbr yearling ewe, Greek cheimōn winter
Examples from Buffalo and other architecture:
