BASILISK, according to ancient and mediteval authors, a terrible creature, which, however, may be regarded as entirely fabulous—the fables concerning it being so many and so monstrous, that it is valmto seek for any foundation of truth, or to inquire if any of them originally had reference to any particular creature whatever. The ancients, as Dioscorides, Galen, and Pliny; describe it as a Serpent; •in the middle ages, it was gener-.
ally represented as more of a lizard appearance, but provided with eight instead of four feet. It appears to have been at last pretty completely identified with the cockatrice N•Ilich was believed to be generated in a very wonderful manner, being produced from an egg laid by an extremely old cock, and hatched by a toad; for which reason we Lind the B. sometimes figured with something like a cocks head. The B: was the king of dragons and serpents, all of which left their prey to it whenever it approached; whence its name, baslliseus (Gr.), diminutive of burdens, a king—sometimes exactly translated into Latin by regulus. It had some prominences on its head, which, when it was figured m books, assumed very exactly the appearance of a crown. It inhabited the deserts of
Africa, and, indeed, could only inhabit a desert, for its breath burned up all vegetation; the flesh fell from the bones Of any animal with which it came in contact, and its very look was fatal to life; but brave men could venture into cautious contest with it by the use of a tnirror, which reflected back its deadly glance upon itself.—These things are still necessary to be mentioned, were it only on account of the allusions to them by poets and other writers.—The blood of the B. was, of course, extremely valuable to magicians. It occupies an important place in some of the legends of the saints, and pope Leo IV. is said to have delivered Rome from a B. whose breath caused a deadly pestilence.
The word B., and its equivalent Nuttier; are sometimes used in the Latin Vulgate, where the authorized English version of the Old Testament sometimes has adder, and sometimes cockatrice; but no trace of any of the marvels concerning the B. is to be found there.