But this small-time second-century writer, who was born in south-west Turkey and who lived at least until 137 AD, is a minor cult figure for Beachcombing because Phlegon liked recording strange facts. Among these a description of a centaur, which he had seen with his own eyes, in the Emperor Hadrian’s storehouse (34-35).

A centaur was discovered in Saune, a city of Arabia, on a high mountain that is full of deadly poisons. The drug has the same name as the city and as a killing substance it is fast-working and effective.

The centaur was taken alive by the king [of the place?] who sent it to Egypt with other gifts for the Emperor Claudius. It ate meat. But it did not like the change of air and died and so the prefect of Egypt had it embalmed and sent on to Rome.

At first it was shown in the palace. Its face was more savage than a human face, its arms and its fingers were hairy and its ribs were joined to its front legs and its stomach. It had strong hooves of a horse and its mane was tawny. However, because of the embalming process its mane and its skin had become dark. In terms of its size it was not as usually shown, but it was not much smaller either.

It is said that there were other centaurs in the aforementioned city of Saune.

As to the one sent to Rome, the sceptic can go and examine it for himself, for, as I noted above, it has been embalmed and it is kept in the Emperor’s storehouse.

It’s enough to give you goose-bumps isn’t it? Certainly, it got Beachcombing running up and down the stairs.

In the Emperor Tiberius’s time (AD 14-37) it had been announced to the world – through the unlikely medium of a Greek sea captain – that the god Pan had died. Then a generation later a few of Pan’s knights are spotted cavorting among the poison ivy in deepest Arabia.

However… Continue reading, beachcombing.wordpress.com