A painting of a griffin, a chimera of a predatory lion, together with the fossils of Protoceratops, a horned dinosaur. The latter are said to have informed the cognition and appearance of the former, but our study suggests that there is no conclusive link between dinosaurs and griffins. Credit: Dr. Mark Wheaton
A new study debunks the theory behind the gryphon myths Protoceratops dinosaur fossils, exposing inconsistencies in the geographic and historical evidence and advocating a return to traditional interpretations of these mythological creatures.
A new study challenges the popular and widely promoted claim that dinosaur fossils inspired the legend of the griffin, a mythological creature with the head and wings of a raptor and the body of a lion.
The specific link between dinosaur fossils and griffin mythology was suggested more than 30 years ago in a series of papers and books written by folklorist Adrienne Mayor. They started in 1989 Cryptozoology paper titled Paleocryptozoology: A Call for Collaboration Between Classicists and Cryptozoologists, and were cemented in the seminal 2000 book The First Fossil Hunters. The idea has become a staple of books, documentaries and museum exhibits.
This suggests that an early horned dinosaur from Mongolia and China, Protoceratops, was discovered by ancient nomads looking for gold in Central Asia. Tales of Protoceratops the bones then traveled southwest on trade routes to inspire, or at least influence, the stories and art of the griffin.
Griffins are one of the oldest mythological creatures, first appearing in Egyptian and Near Eastern art in the 4th millennium BC before becoming popular in ancient Greece in the 8th century BC.
Protoceratops was a small (about 2 meters long) dinosaur that lived in Mongolia and northern China during chalk period (75-71 million years ago). They belong to the horned dinosaur group, making it a relative of Triceratops, although they actually lack facial horns. Like griffons, Protoceratops they stood on all fours, had beaks, and had ruffle-like extensions on their skulls that, it has been argued, could be interpreted as wings.
A critical reappraisal by scholars
In the first detailed assessment of the claims, study authors Dr. Mark Wheaton and Richard Hing, paleontologists from University of Portsmouthhistoric fossil record re-evaluated, distribution and nature of Protoceratops fossil and classical sources linking the griffin to Protoceratops, consulting historians and archaeologists to fully understand the conventional, non-fossil-based view of the origins of griffins. Ultimately, they found that neither argument stood up to scrutiny.
Ideas that Protoceratops would have been discovered by nomads searching for gold, for example, it is unlikely when Protoceratops fossils are found hundreds of kilometers from ancient gold deposits. In the century since then Protoceratops was discovered, no gold was reported with them. It also seems doubtful that the nomads saw much Protoceratops skeletons, even if they searched for gold where their fossils are found.
Comparisons between the skeletons of Protoceratops and the ancient art of the griffins. All griffins are clearly based on large cats, from their musculature and long, flexible tails to their manes (indicated by curled “hair” on their necks), and birds, and differ from Protoceratops in almost all measures of proportion and shape. Image compiled from illustrations in Witton and Hing (2024). Credit: Dr. Mark Wheaton
“It has been suggested that dinosaur skeletons were found semi-exposed, lying almost like the remains of recently deceased animals,” said Dr Wheaton. “But generally speaking, only a portion of an eroded dinosaur skeleton will be visible to the naked eye, unnoticed by all but sharp-eyed fossil hunters.”
“This is almost certainly how the ancient peoples wandering around Mongolia encountered it Protoceratops. If they wanted to see more, as they needed to, if they were creating myths about these animals, they had to extract the fossils from the surrounding rock. This is no small task, even with modern tools, adhesives, protective packaging and preparation techniques. This seems more likely Protoceratops the wrecks generally went unnoticed—if prospectors were there to see them at all.
Alternative explanations for the Griffin images
Likewise, the geographic distribution of griffin art throughout history does not match the scenario of the griffin legend beginning with fossils from Central Asia and then spreading westward. There are also no unequivocal references to Protoceratops fossils in ancient literature.
Protoceratops it only resembles a griffin as it is a four-legged animal with a beak. There is no detail in the griffin art to suggest that their fossils are mentioned, but on the contrary, many griffins are clearly composed of features of living cats and birds.
Dr Wheaton added: ‘Everything about the origin of griffins is consistent with the traditional interpretation of them as imaginary beasts, just as their appearance is entirely explained by their being chimeras of large cats and birds of prey. Reference to the role of dinosaurs in the griffin legend, esp kinds from distant lands like Protoceratopsnot only introduces unnecessary complexity and inconsistencies into their origins, but also relies on interpretations and propositions that do not stand up to scrutiny.”
The authors want to emphasize that there is excellent evidence that fossils have been culturally important throughout human history and countless instances of folklore-inspiring fossils around the world called “geomyths.”
Richard Hing said: “It is important to distinguish between factually based fossil folklore – that is, links between fossils and myths proven by archaeological discoveries or convincing references in literature and artwork – and speculative links based on intuition.
“There is nothing wrong with the idea that ancient people found dinosaur bones and incorporated them into their mythology, but we need to root such suggestions in the realities of history, geography and paleontology. Otherwise, they are just speculation.”
Dr Wheaton added: ‘Not all mythological creatures require fossil explanations. Some of the most popular geomyths – Protoceratops and griffins, fossil elephants and cyclops, and dragons and dinosaurs – have no evidentiary basis and are entirely speculative. We promote these stories because they are exciting and seem intuitively plausible, but in doing so we ignore our growing knowledge of fossil geomyths based on fact and evidence. They are just as interesting as their putative counterparts, and probably deserve more attention than completely speculative geomythological scenarios.
Reference: “Did the horned dinosaur Protoceratops inspire the griffin?” by Mark P. Wheaton and Richard A. Hing, 19 June 2024, Interdisciplinary Scientific Reviews.
DOI: 10.1177/03080188241255543
