A Supposed Mermaid off the Isle of Wight (1810)

Mermaid mural CC license

 Mr Editor -
I received a letter a few days ago from a friend in the country, mentioning his having seen (while taking the diversion of puffin shooting in the Isle of Wight) an animal, which, from its appearance, he conceives to have been a mermaid. He describes her as having a ruddy complexion, long hair, growing very thick, of a greenish cast, and flowing considerably below her shoulders. Immediately on perceiving her, he levelled his gun and fired, and he supposes he must have wounded her, as she immediately gave a piercing shriek and sunk under the water; every exertion was made to discover the body, but all proved fruitless.
G. R--ke.
*In The Morning Post, March 13th 1810.

Pembrokeshire mermaid, 1791.

Pen-y-holt and Linney Head. Crown copyright (via Edina Digimap), 1860s map.

A Story of a Mermaid.

The following curious story is related in a lively and agreeable work, entitled "A Tour to Milford Haven in the year 1791," written in a series of letters by a lady of the name of Morgan, and published in London by John Stockdale in the year 1795. Mrs Morgan [seems] to have been a lady of an elegant and cultivated mind, and to have mingled with the best society of Pembrokeshire during her sojourn in what was then almost a terra incognita to an Englishwoman. In her forty third letter, addressed to a lady, and dated Haverfordwest, Sept. 22, Mrs. Morgan says --

"If you delight in the marvellous, I shall now present you with a tale that is truly so; and yet, from the simple and circumstantial manner in which it was told by the person who believed he saw what is here related, one would almost be tempted to think there was some thing more than imagination in it. However, I will make no comments upon the matter, but give it you exactly as I copied it from a paper lent me by a young lady who was educated under the celebrated Mrs. Moore*, and who has acquired a taste for productions of the pen, and likewise for whatever may be deemed curious. [*Hannah More, J.P.P.]

Mr. M-- inquired of the gentleman who took down the relation from the man's own mouth, a physician of the first respectability, what credit might be given to it. He said the man was that integrity of character, and of such simplicity also that it seemed difficult to believe he should be either able or willing to fabricate this wonderful tale. Farther the doctor was silent, and so am I.

"Henry Reynolds, of Pennyhold, in the parish of Castlemartin, in the county of Pembroke, a simple farmer, and esteemed by all who knew him to be a truth-telling man, declares the following most extraordinary story to be an absolute fact, and is willing, in order to satisfy such as will not take his bare word for it, to swear to the truth of the same. He says he went one morning to the cliffs that bound his own lands, and form a bay near Linny Stack.

From the eastern end of the same he saw, as he thought, a person bathing very near the western end, but appearing, from almost the middle up, above water. He, knowing the water to be deep in that place, was much surprised at it, and went along the cliffs, quite to the western end, to see what it was. As he got towards it, it appeared to him like a person sitting in a tub. At last he got within ten or twelve yards of it, and found it then to be a creature much resembling a youth of sixteen or eighteen years of age, with a very white skin, sitting in an erect posture, having from somewhat about the middle of its body quite above the water; and directly under the water there was a large brown substance, on which it seemed to float. The wind being perfectly calm and the water quite clear he could see distinctly when the creature moved, that this substance was part of it.

-- From the bottom there went down a tail much resembling that of a large Conger Eel. Its tail in deep water was straight downwards, but in shallow water it would turn on one side. The tail was continually moving in a circular manner. The form of its body and arms was entirely human, but its arms and hands seemed rather thick and short in proportion to its body. The form of the head and all the features of the face were human also, but the nose rose high between its eyes, was pretty long, and seemed to terminate very sharp. Its head was white like its body, without hair; but from its forehead there arose a brownish substance, of three or four fingers' breadth, which turned up over its head, and went down over its back, and reached quite into the water. This substance did not at all resemble hair, but was thin, compact and flat, not much unlike a ribbon. It did not adhere to the back part of its head, or neck, or back; for the creature lifted it up from its neck, and washed under it.

-- It washed frequently under its arms and about its body; it swam about the bay, and particularly round a little rock which Reynolds was within ten or twelve yards of. He staid about an hour looking at it. It was so near him, that he could perceive its motion through the water was very rapid; and that, when it moved it turned, it put one hand into the water , and moved itself round very quickly. It never dipped under the water all the time he was looking at it. It looked attentively at him and the cliffs, and seemed to take great notice of the birds flying over its head. Its looks were wild and fierce; but it made no noise, nor did it grin, or in any way distort its face. When he left it, it was about a hundred yards from him; and when he returned with some others to look at it, it was gone.

This account was taken down by Doctor George P---, of Prickerston, from the man's own mouth in presence of many people, about the latter end of December, 1782."

The physician who took down the foregoing statement from the mouth of the eyewitness was George Phillips, M.D., of Haverfordwest, a gentleman of high social position. -- Notes and Queries.


Reprinted in the Armagh Guardian, 18th May 1860.

Pen-y-Holt Stack. Image CC David Lewis

I have to say, I do like this a lot. It smacks a lot of a genuine experience because of the nature of some of the things reported ('it seemed to take great notice of the birds flying over its head..'). Also why would you want to make yourself look like a gullible idiot in front of the local Gentlemen of High Social Position? He saw something - you might or might not think it was a bona fide mermaid - but for me this is the best kind of mermaid story. Or should we say merman story.

Morecambe Mermaid

Morecambe Bay at low tide. Photo by Eiffel.

Are there really mermaids? Shakespeare has said that there are more things in earth and heaven than our philosophy has dreamed of. Rumours have reached us that a mermaid has actually been seen at a certain spot lower down the coast. If a mermaid has really been seen, then Shakespeare was right.

Now, if a mermaid were to come swimming into Morecambe Bay and start combing her tresses within sight of the promenade, there would be some possibility of finding out whether it was really a mermaid. This mermaid, who is said to have been seen, is apparently a coy wench, and she shirks the popular places on the coast, seeming to prefer to choose a spot on the long lonely stretches of sand, where she can bask in the sunshine, uninterrupted by curious holiday makers.

Still, despite her desire for seclusion, the story is told of how a young man and a young woman walking along the sands one morning saw a mermaid sitting on a boulder near the edge of the tide. The shimmering sheen of her tail and her long flowing hair attracted attention, and they eagerly went closer. The mermaid, however, saw them approaching and, so it is said, darted into the water and made off. A polite young mermaid she is, however, supposed to be, because when she got some way out, she waved her tail as a good-bye signal.

The young man and woman went back to the village where they were staying and started talking about what they had seen. Everbody, of course, thought they were "pitching a yarn," but a few days later a young fisherman came in with a story that he had seen the mermaid, but when he gave chase she swam so fast that he could not catch up with her. A local journalist heard about these stories and interviewed the young couple and the fisherman. As he was making his way to the telegraph office to send off the story of the discovery to his newspaper, the Chairman of the Parish Council met him and said, "I say, are you going to send that story of the mermaid away?"
"I was," said the reported.
"Look her, young man," said the chairman, "don't you do it. It's probably all bosh, but just imagine what will happen if you send away the news that a mermaid has been found here. The place will be absoluted raided by sightseers and you know quite well that there are not enough hotels or houses in the village to put the people up if they come. It will simply mean chaos, and if the mermaid is really about, the confusion will frighten her away."
"There is a lot in what you say," agreed the reporter.

"Look here, then; I've often done you a good turn in the past, do me one now. Send your story about the mermaid being seen but don't say where it is. Explain to your Editors that the Parish Council ask for the name of the place to be suppressed so as to avoid the place being overwhelmed with curious sight-seers. For our part, the Parish Council will do all that is possible to catch the mermaid, if there is one, and you shall be the first to interview her."

Realising that the chairman was quite correct that the village would be worst than Morecambe on a Bank Holiday if the name of the place got out, the reporter agreed. Probably the bait of the first interview with the mermaid if she was caught decided him. Knowing this correspondent, we are inclined to think there may be something in the story, and we hope that the Parish Council, or soemone else, will catch her. Oh, if only she had come, or would come to Morecambe. We should not worry about the crowds.

Morecambe Guardian, 18th July 1930.

Mermaid on St Kilda

Cliffs off St Kilda. CC image by Mike Pennington.

 A poor Welch seaman, who was last summer cast away in a squall on the island of St Kilda, applied to a gentleman in Ayr last week for pecuniary aid to help him on to Carnarvon. He stated in consequence of the little intercourse which exists between the island and the mainland, he had been detained there till lately, and related a variety of circumstances as to the habits and opinions of the St Kildians, which removed all doubt as to the authenticity of his story.

A belief in the existence of mermaids, it seems, is universal among this little known people, and although the Welchman at first was extremely sceptical on the subject, he was finally converted by the convincing evidence of ocular demonstration.

To secure to himself the means of a precarious subsistence he was obliged to participate in the dangerous labours of the islanders, and one day while he hung suspended over one of those dreadful precipices, from which "The crows and choughs that wing the midway air Show scarce so large as beetles" in search of feathers and birds' eggs, the staple produce of the island, his attention was drawn to the unruffled sea beneath by a strange unearthly sound, as if some monster of the deep were raising its voice in song, in mockery to the human race. At the same moment a native similarly engaged on the rocks near him, exclaimed, "The mermaid, the mermaid!" and the astonished Welchman descried on the surface of the magnificent waters a being resembling humanity; but yet so curious withal, as to start a doubt in his mind as to the reality of the vision.

The description which he gave our informant of its form and features, varied little from the accounts of other historians of veracity, who have had the luck to behold these ominous creatures. Under a very short forehead were two small round eyes, separated by a flat nose, and the cheeks, which were exceedingly broad, were split across by a mouth which nearly reached from ear to ear. The chin and neck were short, and altogether it presented that dumpy appearance which has been often assigned to the rustic maidens of the Welch mountains -- Ayr paper.

Caledonian Mercury, 19th December, 1825.

Falklands mermaid

Seal skeleton by H Zel (CC)

A South Sea Mermaid. - The following strange circumstance is mentioned in Weddell's interesting voyage towards the South Pole. If true, it supports the popular belief of the existence of mermaids:-

A sailor had been left on one side of Hall Island, one of the Falklands, to take care of some produce, while the rest of the crew were engaged on the other side. "The sailor," says Mr Weddell, "had gone to bed, and about 10 o'clock he heard a noise resembling human cries, and as daylight in these latitudes never disappears at this season, he rose and looked around, but on seeing no person he returned to bed; presently he heard the noise again, and rose a second time, but still saw nothing. Conceiving, however, the possibility of a boat being upset, and that some of the crew might be clinging to some detached rocks, he walked along the beach a few steps, and heard the voice more distinctly, but in a musical strain. On searching around, he saw an object lying on a rock, a dozen yards from the shore, at which he was somewhat frightened. The face and shoulders appeared of human form, and of a reddish colour; over the shoulders hung long green hair; the tail resembled that of a seal, but the extremities of the arms he could not see distinctly.

The creature continued to make a musical noise, while he gazed about two minutes, and on perceiving him, it disappeared in an instant. Immediately when the man saw his officer, he told this wild tale, the truth of which was, of course, doubted; but to add weight to his testimony, (being a Catholic), he made a cross on the sand, which he kissed in form of making oath to his statement. When the story was told me, I ridiculed it; but, by way of diversion, I sent for the sailor who saw this non-descript into the cabin, and questioned him respecting it. He told me the story as I have related it, and in so clear and positive a manner, making oath as to the truth, that I concluded he must have seen the animal he described, or that it must have been the effect of a disturbed imagination."

Caledonian Mercury, 24th October 1825.

.....

One day we were camping near the edge of the water separating Lindisfarne island from the mainland. It was getting dark and this eerie (ever so eerie) soft wailing, of many voices, sprang up across the water. To begin with we thought it must be a natural noise of the wind or sea. But eventually we twigged it was a colony of seals out on a sand bank somewhere. 

I'm not dismissing the tale. I mean our seals did not have long green hair. But it is true that seals can make a strange noise, at least in Northumbria. Perhaps seals make strange noises down on the Falklands. 

It's notable that James Weddell has a seal named after him, one which he saw in the Antarctic. So he did have an interest in seals. But here he doesn't seem to suggest it Definitely was one? Perhaps I should find the work from which this is extracted.

R

French Mermaid

A fisherman at St. Valery sur Somme, (France,) a few days since, caught in his net, a fish exactly resembling the description given of Mermaid [sic]. The head and breast are of the human form, and when half the body is out of water, it has the appearance of a woman. It was sent by the Perfect of the Department to Paris, where it was hoped it would arive alive -- French Paper.

 Wexford Conservative, 2nd August 1834.

painting by Charles Landelle

Mermaid at Rossbeigh, Kerry

A Mermaid -- We have it from authority, so respectable as to admit of no doubt, that so rare and extraordinary a phenomenon as a Mermaid has, during the present summer, frequently made its appearance at Rossbeigh in Castlemain Bay. It often rests on a rock, distant about 300 yards from the shore, and has been distinctly seen by thousands of people. The face, neck, breast, and hands, strongly resemble those of a human being; but, in its movements in the water, it has been clearly perceived the body ends in the tail of a fish. It is a solitary creature, unaccompanied by any of its own species, and from the appearance of the breasts, and lower part of the body, it is supposed, by all who have seen it, to be feminine. It was seen to use its hands in washing and rubbing its face. -- Kerry Post.

In the Clonmel Herald, 31st August 1836.



Cynical, possibly slightly racist version: 

A "Rare" Mermaid. --  A Kerry paper assures us that "the rare and extraordinary phenomenon" - a real Mermaid - has recently been exhibiting itself (in a state of nudity) at Rossbeighs, in Castlemain Bay. "It often rests," adds the writer, "on a rock distant three hundred yards from the shore, and has been distinctly seen by thousands of people. The face, neck, breasts, and hands, strongly resemble those of a human being" or no doubt a whale! Our readers are not not to place the most implicit faith in the stories of Kerry people, for they have the rare power of seeing that which is invisible to every body else. It is firmly believed in that enlightened district that a lad named Dick Fitzgerald but a few years since actually contracted with a female "phenomenon" of the same character.

The Scotsman, 14th September 1836.

Rossbeigh. looks alright. CC image Goatoo

Mermaids near Padstow, Cornwall

Mermaids on the Coast of Cornwall.
From The Plymouth Journal. -- The following is an extract of a letter received on Sunday last from our Correspondent at St. Columb:-- "Within these last two or three days there have been several mermaids seen on the rocks at Trenance, in the parish of Mawgan. I will state the particulars at length, as I have been enabled to collect them, and which are from undoubted authority, and you can make what extracts you think proper. One evening this week, a young man who lives adjoining the beach at Mawgan Porth, had made an appointment to meet another person on the beach to catch sprats with him. He went out about ten o'clock at night, and coming near a point which runs into the sea, he heard a screeching noise proceeding from a large cavern which is left by the tide at low water, but which has some deep pools in it, and communicates with the sea by another outlet. He thought it was the person he had appointed to meet, and called out to him, but his astonishment is not to be described when on going up he saw something in the shape of a human figure staring on him, with long hair hanging about it. He then ran away, thinking, as he says, that he had seen the devil.

The next day, some men being on the cliffs near this place, saw three creatures of the same description. the following day five were seen. The persons who saw the last five describe them in this manner:
The mermaids were about forty feet below the men (who stood on the cliff), and were lying on a rock, separated from the land some yards by deep water; two of them were large, about four feet and a half to five feet long, and these appeared to be sleeping on the rock; the other small ones were swimming about, and went off once to sea and then came back again. The men looked at them for more than an hour, and flung stones at them, but they would not move off. The large ones seemed to be lying on their faces; their upper parts were like those of human beings, and black or dark coloured, with very long hair hanging  around them; their lower parts were of a bluish colour, and terminating in a fin, like fish. The sea would sometimes wash over them and then leave them dry again. Their movements seemed to be slow. the hair of these mermaids extended a distance of nine or ten foot.

In The Dublin Evening Mail, 9th July 1827.



The Mermaids.
We have received a letter from St. Coulumb, stating, that the persons on whose authority the appearance of the mermaids near Padstow has been asserted, continue to declare that the account in the Plymouth Journal which we copied last week, and respecting which we felt some hesitation, is perfectly correct, except that the colour of the bodies of these animals is "exactly like that of a Christian;" that one of the men did not observe that the animals had arms, but that another saw short ones, resembling fins, and that all saw the long flowing hair, &c. &c. --West Briton.

In The Globe, 16th July 1827.

Mawgan Porth. CC image Nilfanion

Mermaid in the Red Sea

From the Morning Post, 6th October 1819.

MERMAIDS. To the Editors.

SIR-- Having read in the Papers an account respecting the existence of the Mermaid copied from The Galway Advertiser, I take the liberty to submit to you the following fact, which, if you should consider it worth insertion, you may publish whenever you like:--

In the month of August, 1805, I was on board of a brig, on my voyage through the Red Sea, in latitude between 14 and 15 degrees, North, quite becalmed, in the centre of a gulf. On a morning, about eleven o'clock, I saw a whale at a little distance from us; and a short time after, I saw something about the size and shape of a coffin jumping just by our side, out of the water as high as nearly to the maintop, when, on its dropping down, I observed the lower part was like a dolphin, and the upper part, to my astonishment, was exactly of the form of a female's bust, composed of a head with long hair, dropping backwards, a fine and correct profile, and an elegantly prominent bosom; but I do not remember that I saw any arms or hands.

My anxiety and curiosity were of course warmly excited, till, to my full satisfaction, I saw her jumping again four or five times, on which opportunities I had the gratification to make ample observations. I considered her jumping out of the water to be occasioned by her being pursued by the whale I saw before. Now, Mr. Editor, I am very glad to find that this animal, the existence of which was doubted, has been found in this quarter of the globe, because when I related my story several times, my hearers were rather doubtful of the fact.

I have the honour to be, your humble Servant,
A.Salame.
Sept. 27, 1819.

From a book by Sabine Baring-Gould

Mermaid in Wexford

Marvellous mermaid by Erin Perry

From the Dublin Courier, 13th July 1761.

The following extraordinary account we have received from a person of unquestionable veracity in the county of Wexford. -- As a company of gentlemen, seven in number, were lately taking an evening's walk by the sea side in that county, they perceived, at the distance of forty yards, a living creature erect above the water, representing from its breasts the female human species, having a pleasing aspect, of a tawny complexion, long black hair waving on her shoulders agreeable to the motion of the water: and at a small distance further, another creature of like form, supposed to be its consort was observed in the same attitude. The spectators, struck with admiration, were at a loss to determine what these new objects could be except they were Mermaids, whose description by the ancients exactly corresponded with their appearance in every particular. While the gentlemen continued walking for two miles along the shore, these strange beings kept peace [sic] with them.
Pub. Gazetteer.

Angolan mermaid illustrations

From the Scots Magazine, 6th November 1758.

 A description of the Miscellaneous Plate.

Fig 1. and 3. are two views of the real Mermaid, frequent, as Mr Barbot, in his voyage to Congo river, says, in the lakes of Angola, in the province of Massingan. The Portuguese, in whose settlements these creatures abound, call them peixe mother or woman-fish; and the French, syrene. They are found both male and female, of various sizes; the largest about eight feet long, with short arms and hands, but long fingers, which they cannot close, because they are webbed.

They feed upon grass on the sides of lakes and rivers, and only hold their heads out of the water. Their heads and eyes are oval, the forehead high, the nose flat, and the mouth wide, without any chin or ears. The males have genitals like horses, and the females two prominent breasts; but in the water there is no distinguishing the one from the other, both being of a dark grey colour.

Fig. 1. represents the mermaid when laid upon her back. Fig. 3. shews her as she swims in the water. There are several medical virtues attributed by the natives of Angola to different bones in this animal; some of the cheek-bones they beat to powder, and take in wine for the gravel and stone; of the ribs, especially those near the heart, they make bracelets, and wear them to prevent haemorrhages, or to stop immodiate bleeding, when they happen to be seized with it. Merolla says, the river Zair abounds with these monstrous fishes, resembling a woman upwards, but the lower part like a fish, and ending in a fish's tail. The natives eat their flesh, which tastes much like pork, and are very fond of it.

But, after all, this does not seem quite to agree with the sea-monsters described by voyagers under that name. Capt. Whitbourne, in a voyage he made to Newfoundland, says, that in the river St John, a surprising creature, resembling a woman by the face, nose, mouth, chin, ears, neck and forehead, and as beautiful, came very swifly swimming towards him; that being afraid of its leaping upon him, he stept back, and then the creature dived, by which he had an opportunity of seeing its back down to the middle; which he affirms to be as square, white, and smooth, as the back of a man; the breasts he did not see.

He adds, that about its head, it had many blue streaks, that looked like hair, but was certainly not hair; and that afterwards it attempted to get into a boat, but the men being frightened, one of them struck it a blow on the head, which made it quit its hold. This, perhaps, is the most authentic account of the sea-mermaid that has been yet given.

In the history of Denmark, indeed, there is an account of creatures seen about Greenland, which the natives call hastramb, or man-fish, having the eyes, nose, head, shoulders, and arms, of a man; but without hands, and transparent as ice. The females they call marrugweg, or woman-fish. These have large breasts, long hair, arms and fingers webbed, with which they catch fish. The Danes superstitiously fancy, that when these creatures appear, they presage storms; and that if they are seen with their backs to the ship, it will inevitably perish, but if with their faces, it will certainly escape.

Navarre, in his Voyages, speaks of such a fish in India and about Manilla, and takes notice of the great virtue in its bones; and others speak of their being caught on the coast of Africa. In 1671 a man-fish was seen near the island of Martinico; and there are so many attestations of the reality of such monsters, that it were an unpardonable incredulity not to believe it.

Mermaid on the River Deveron, Aberdeenshire

From the Ipswich Journal, 7th February 1746.

[...] We hear from the North, that some Days ago a Sea-Creature, known by the Name of Mermaid, which has the Shape of a human Body from the Trunk, but below is wholly Fish, was carried some Miles up the Water of Devron.

The Little Mermaid. CC image by Avda-Berlin.

Hideous merman at Leghorn, 1717

Livorno, Italy. CC image Luca Aless.

Stamford Mercury, 5th September 1717.


The Letters from Leghorn of the 15th say, that there has been seen in those Seas a terrible Mermaid, or rather Merman; that it shews it self 13 or 14 Foot high above the Water; but if any Boat or Vessel makes towards it, then it makes a frightful Noise, and plunges into the Sea. Several that have seen it, represent it as the most hideous Monster that has been ever seen in the World.

The Orford Wild Man, or Merman

Wellcome library

Now, this is supposed to be a 'well known story', but could I find a translation of its original source, Ralph of Coggeshall's 'Chronicum Anglicanum'? I could not. So here is the Latin, and what I can make of it. Which is extremely poor, I accept. Sorry to my Latin teachers. It went in one ear and out the other. I'd be very glad of a more erudite version.

De quodam homine silvestri in mari capto.
About a certain wild man captured from the sea.

Temporibus Henrici regis secundi cum Bartholomeus de Glanvilla custodiret castellum de Oreford, contigit ut piscatores ibidem in mari piscantes, hominem silvestrem intra retia sua comprehenderent; qui castellano praedicto traditus prae admiratione, ex omni parte nudus erat, ac speciem humanam in omnibus membris praetendebat.


In the time of King Henry the Second, with Bartholomew de Glanville taking care of the castle at Orford, it happened that some fishermen were fishing there in the sea, and they took a wild man in their nets. They handed him over to the aforementioned castle. He was completely naked and a human being in every respect.

 Capillos autem habebat, sed in superficie quasi divulsi et demoliti videbantur, barba vero prolixa erat et pineata, circa pectus nimium pilosus et hispidus. Praedictus vero miles fecit eum custodiri diutius diebus ac noctibus, ne mare posset adire.

Except, he had hair, that made his surface appear torn and rent, a truly lengthy conical beard, and a breast rather hairy and bristly. The aforementioned soldier (de Glanville?) kept him in custody for days and nights, and he couldn't visit the sea.

 Quae ei apponebantur avide comedebat. Pisces vero tam crudos quam coctos sumebat, sed crudos inter manus fortiter comprimebat donec omnis aquositas consumeretur, et sic eos edebat. Loquelam autem nullam edere voluit, vel potius non potuit, etiam per pedes suspensus et saepe dirissime tortus.

What they served up he ate greedily. He preferred raw fish over cooked, and powerfully compressed the raw ones between his hands until all the water was consumed, and thus he ate them. He didn't produce any speech, or perhaps he couldn't, as he didn't even when suspended by his feet and cruelly tortured.

Ad ecclesiam quanquam adductus, nulla omnino venerationis vel alicujus credulitatis signa monstrabat, aut in genuum flexione, sive in capitis inclinatione, quotiens aliqua sacrata cerneret.


He was brought to the church, but he didn't show any sign of worship or belief at all, neither bending his knee, or bending his head whenever any sacred thing required it.

Cubile suum semper in occasu solis festinanter petebat, usque ad exortum solis in eo recubans. Contigit quoque ut eum ad portum maris semel adducerent, atque eum in mari dimitterent, locatis ante eum fortissimis retibus triplici ordine.


He always quickly sought his bed at sunset, and lay there until the sun reappeared. One day it happened that they brought him to the sea port, and sent him away into the sea, but they put before him a very strong net made of three layers.

Qui mox maris ima petens, atque retia omnia pertransiens, iterum atque iterum de profundo maris se emergebat, et spectantes super ripam maris diutius spectabat, saepius se mergens, et post pusillum emergens, et quasi spectantibus insultans quod eorum retia evasisset.

Desperate to get at the sea, he got through all the nets, and again and again he surfaced from the depths of the sea, and they saw him watching them from beyond the sea shore, frequently sinking down, and after a quick reemergence, they watched him attack their nets and escape.

Cumque diu in mari ita lusisset, et jam omnis spes reversionis ejus sublata fuisset, venit iterum sponte usque ad eos in maris fluctibus natans, mansitque cum eis iterum per duos menses. Sed cum postmodum negligentius custodiretur et jam fastidio haberetur, clam aufugit ad mare, et nusqam postea comparuit.

For a long while he played in the sea, and now every hope of his being recaptured had been destroyed,  he came again willingly up to those in the sea who were floating on the waves, and he stayed with them again over two months. But after the careless guarding incident they now disdained him, and he quietly vanished off into the waves, and was never seen again.

 Si autem hic mortalis homo exstiterit, sive aliquis piscis humanam praetendens speciem, sive aliquis malignus spiritus fuerit in aliquo corpore submersi hominis latitans, sicut de quodam legitur in vita beati Audoeni, non facile diffiniri potest, maxime quia tam multa miranda a tam multis de hujusmodi eventibus narrentur.

Supposing that mortal man exists, but on the other hand some fish-human sight is presented, if some wicked spirit was lurking somewhere within a man's body, like about a certain person in the life of St Ouen, it is not easy to lay down a rule, particularly because so much is to be marvelled at from so many of these kind of reported events. 

Ok so the last bit went particularly skewiff. But I've tried. There's a translation here 
which is the only one I've found (after my effort!) which suggests the last bit is wondering about what sort of a thing he was.


The paragraph that follows in the Chronicum is about the puero and puella de terra emergentibus... ah yes the famous green Woolpit children. But that Herculean effort will have to be for another day.  

Orford Castle (by Ashley Dace)

 I feel like I've been to Orford Castle, a long time ago. Though I don't remember being aware of the story. I'll have to go back. The castle was built in 1165 and Ralph of Coggeshall was writing between 1187 and 1224.

Merman near Monmouth

A Merman. --

A letter from Monmouth, dated the 13th inst. says--

"About eight o'clock yesterday morning, two fishermen going down the river, in their truckles, fishing for salmon, found their net much heavier than usual; and which, on coming to shore, they found contained a huge monster, the upper part bearing exact resemblance to a man, the middle to a beast, spotted like the leopard, and a tail like a fish, the hair on his head green - he had red eyes, and tusks five inches and a half in length, and he measures, from head to tail, thirteen feet and three quarters. He is now deposited in the Town Hall, for the inspection of the curious."

From the Lancaster Gazetter,  November 24th, 1810.
The Town Hall???

Wikimedia commons

Merman near Vigo, Spain

They write from Vigo in Spain, that some Fishermen lately took on that Coast a Sort of Monster, or Merman, 5 Feet and a Half from its Foot to its Head, which is like that of a Goat. It has a long Beard and Mustachoes; a back Skin, somewhat hair; a very long Neck, short Arms, and Hands longer and bigger than they ought to be in Proportion to the rest of the Body; long Fingers, like those of a Man, with Nail-like Claws; very long Toes join'd like the Feet of a Duck, and the Heels furnished with Fins resembling the winged Feet with which the Painters represent Mercury. It has also a Fin at the lower End of its Back, which is 12 Inches long and 15 or 16 broad.

From Universal Spectator and Weekly Journal, May 5th, 1739.

Wikimedia commons

Merman near Brest, France

Some particular Advices from Brest, in France, say, That on that Coast has lately appear'd a strange sort of Sea Monster, in the form of a Man, eight Foot high, call'd a Merman; his Teeth are white as Ivory, he hath black curl'd Hair, flat Nose, and in other Members proportionable to his Stature without Deformity.

From Dublin Journal, October 12th, 1725.


LONDON, Dec. 11.

The Reader may remember an Account of a Merman or Sea Monster seen off at Brest lately, and inserted in the Foreign and Domestick Papers about two Months ago. The Authors of the Memoirs de Trevoux have publish'd a more satisfactory Description of it than any that has been given, in an Article from Brest, attested by the Captain and Pilot of the very Ship which the Monster encounter'd. We find the said Article translated to our Hands in the New Memoirs of Literature; (viz. that just published for November;) whose Author not only gives an Account of the best Books as they come out both at Home and Abroad, but likewise entertains the Publick sometimes with such Articles of Foreign News as are not to be met with in the common Gazettes.

"The Wind being Easterly, we had thirty Fathoms of Water, when at Ten a Clock in the Morning a Sea-Monster like a Man appear'd near our Ship; first on the Larboard where the Mate was, whose Name is William Lomone, who took a Grappling-Iron to pull him up: But our Captain, named Oliver Morin, hindred him, being afraid that the Monster would drag him away into the Sea. The said Lomone struck him only on the Back, to make him turn about, that he might view him the better.

The Monster being struck, showed his Face, having his two Hands closed, as if he had expressed some Anger. Afterwards he wen round the Ship: When he was at the Stern, he took hold of the Helm with both Hands; and we were obliged to make it fast, lest he should damage it. From thence he proceeded to the Starboard, swimming still as Men do.

When he came to the Forepart of the Ship, he viewed for some time the Figure that was in our Prow, which represented a beautiful Woman; and then he rose out of the Water, as if he had been willing to catch that Figure. All this happened in Sight of the whole Crew.

Afterwards he came again to the Larboard, where they presented to him a Codfish hanging down with a Rope: He handled it without spoiling it, and then removed the Length of a Cable, and came again to the Stern, where he took Hold of the Helm a second Time. At that very moment, Captain Morin got a HArping Iron ready, and took it himself to strike him with it; but the Cordage being entangled he missed his Aim, and the Harping-Iron touched only the Monster, who turned about, showing his Face, as he had done before.

Afterwards he came again to the Fore-part, and viewed again the Figure in our Prow. The Mate called for the Harping-Iron; but he was frighted, fancying that this Monster was one La Commune, who had killed himself in the Ship the Year before, and had been thrown into the Sea in the same Passage. He was contented to push his Back with the Harping-Iron; and then the Monster showed his FAce, as he had done at other Times. Afterwards he came along the Board, so that one might have given him the Hand. He had the Boldness to take a Rope held up by John Mazier and John Dessiete, who being willing to pluck it out of his Hands, drew him to our Board; but he fell into the Water, and then removed at the Distance of a Gun's Shot.

He came again immediately near our Board, and rising out of the Water to the Navel, we observed that his Breast was as large as that of a Woman of the best Plight. He turned upon his Back, and appeared to be a Male. Afterwards he swam again round the Ship, and then went away; we have never seen him since.

I believe that from 10 a-Clock till 12 that this Monster was along our Board, if the Crew had not been frighted, he might have been taken many Times with the Hand, being only two Feet distant. The Monster is about eight Foot long: His Skin is brown and tawny, without any Scales: All his Motions are like those of Men; the Eyes of a proportionable Size, a little Mouth, a large and flat Nose, very white Teeth, black Hair, the Chin covered with a mossy Beard, a sort of Whiskers under the Nose, the Ears like those of Men, Fins between the Fingers and Toes of his Hands and Feet, like those of Ducks. In a Word, he is like a well shap'd Man. Which is certify'd to be true by Captain Oliver Morin, and John Martin, Pilot, and by the whole Crew, consisting of two and thirty Men.


From Weekly Journal or British Gazetteer,  December 11th, 1725.

Romanesque merman, by Helena

Merman near Leghorn (Livorno), Italy

Letters from Leghorn of the 15th, tell us, that there has been seen in those Seas a terrible Mermaid, or rather Merman; that it shews it self at least 13 or 14 Foot high above the Water; but if any Boat or Vessel makes towards it, then it makes a strange frightful Noise, and plunges into the Sea. Several have seen it, represent it as the most hideous Monster that has ever been seen in the World.

From Weekly Journal or Saturday's Post, August 31st, 1717.

Image of 2nd century mosaic,  by Ken and Nyetta

Renvyle, Galway (1937)

THE HUNGRY MERMAN OF CONNEMARA.
A HARVEST ENCOUNTER REPEATED.
The Irish Times prints the following from its correspondent at Clifden:-
The Renvyle, Connemara, merman has reappeared. Where he spent the winter no one knows, but one thing is certain and that is that he is very hungry. On Friday evening he suddenly broke the surface a few yards astern of a curragh near Fraughbaun Island,  in the mouth of Ballinakill Bay, sniffed the air in a businesslike fashion, and made straight for the boat, using his favourite breast stroke.
The occupants of the curragh, Messrs. Thomas O'Toole and Michael Warde, said that when they first saw him coming towards them they thought he intended to climb aboard, and perhaps hurl them into the sea, so they picked up their oars and took flight. The merman continued to pursue them, but the curragh easily outdistanced him. Encouraged by their superior skill, the men waited until the merman was seen within a few yards of the stern, when Warde picked up a mackerel from the bottom of the boat and threw it to him. The merman snatched the fish eagerly with both hands and disappeared beneath the surface. When he reappeared a few moments later there was no trace of the mackerel. This time, however, he came up alongside the curragh, and O'Toole, fearing that he would catch the side and upset the craft, struck him with an oar, and the merman whined in pain and dived again, while the men lost no time in making for the shore.
The men's description of the monstrosity agrees with that of the two Renvyle fishermen who first encountered him near the same place last harvest. He had the same strawlike shaggy hair and beard, with very red lips and bushy eyebrows. He swam head and shoulders over the surface. He looked like a man of about 50 years of age. His skin seemed fair in front and blue on the back. The men believe that he was hungry, and having scented the fish in the curragh followed them for some.

From The Times, August 26th, 1937.

Renvyle, Connemara by Magnus Manske.

Merman at Portrush, Antrim (1874)

A MERMAN OR A HOAX.

According to a correspondent of the Coleraine Chronicle, the inhabitants of Portrush have been thrown into a state of alarm during the past few weeks by the report than a curious and previous unheard of species of sea monster had been observed in the neighbourhood of the "Blue Pool." It seems that Dr. Shaggleton, a scientific and highly gifted naturalist, and a writer of some repute, was taking a pull in a boat, accompanied by two ladies, when his attention was drawn to this singular and extraordinary creature. Dr. Snaggleton thus describes him: "In form and colour he has much the appearance of an ordinary man; the skin was perfectly white, with the exception of the lower part of the body which appeared to be striped, and of a blue and white colour; there was a great quantity of black hair underneath the chin, and the nose appeared to be prominent and well developed. When I observed him he was standing composedly on the top of a small cliff, with the arms pressed close down to the sides; and suddenly, to my astonishment, he took a sort of side leap into the sea, within 20 feet of our boat. Fearing for the safety of the occupants of our small craft, I quickly pulled out into the open sea, and saw nothing more of him." Dr. Snaggleton believes the creature to belong to a species termed "Submergis Japanarius, or Japanese sea diver," a very common animal on the northern shores of Japan, and is borne out in this opinion by Professor Dobbs, F.R.S., who says that "these extraordinary creatures have been frequently mistaken for human beings, and are usually seen in small shoals near Yokohama; and, from the fact that a few of them have lately been seen proceeding in the direction of the Skerries, we are inclined to believe that there interesting specimens belong to the tribe mentioned by the learned professor; but how or by what means they have wandered to our shores is a problem we are not able to delve. We [???] Dr. Snaggleton intends if possible to procure a [?] and place it in the Belfast Museum.

From the Western Mail, September 12th, 1874.

Comes complete with a Doctor's recommendation and a latin name, no less. But I feel very confused.

The Blue Pool, Portrush (by Anne Burgess)