Onocentaur
Encyclopedia
Onocentaur is an animal from Medieval bestiaries
, similar to the centaur
, but part human
, part donkey
. As with many liminal being
s, the onocentaur's nature is one of conflict between its human and animal components.
The first mention by Pythagoras
was in the time of rule of Ptolemy II Philadelphus
, as quoted by Claudius Aelianus
in De Natura Animalium. Aelian as well uses term onokentaura for description of the female form. He interpreted the onocentaur as: "its body resembles that of an ass, its colour is ashen but inclines to white beneath the flanks. It has a human chest with teats and a human face surrounded by thick hair. It may use its arms to seize and hold things but also to run. It has a violent temper and does not endure capture."
Bestiary
A bestiary, or Bestiarum vocabulum is a compendium of beasts. Bestiaries were made popular in the Middle Ages in illustrated volumes that described various animals, birds and even rocks. The natural history and illustration of each beast was usually accompanied by a moral lesson...
, similar to the centaur
Centaur
In Greek mythology, a centaur or hippocentaur is a member of a composite race of creatures, part human and part horse...
, but part human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
, part donkey
Donkey
The donkey or ass, Equus africanus asinus, is a domesticated member of the Equidae or horse family. The wild ancestor of the donkey is the African Wild Ass, E...
. As with many liminal being
Liminal being
Liminality has been defined as 'a semi-autonomous zone of social reality'. Liminal beings are associated with that intermediate status: 'Turner argues that the liminal personae are "necessarily ambiguous, since this condition and these persons elude or slip through the network of classifications...
s, the onocentaur's nature is one of conflict between its human and animal components.
The first mention by Pythagoras
Pythagoras
Pythagoras of Samos was an Ionian Greek philosopher, mathematician, and founder of the religious movement called Pythagoreanism. Most of the information about Pythagoras was written down centuries after he lived, so very little reliable information is known about him...
was in the time of rule of Ptolemy II Philadelphus
Ptolemy II Philadelphus
Ptolemy II Philadelphus was the king of Ptolemaic Egypt from 283 BCE to 246 BCE. He was the son of the founder of the Ptolemaic kingdom Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice, and was educated by Philitas of Cos...
, as quoted by Claudius Aelianus
Claudius Aelianus
Claudius Aelianus , often seen as just Aelian, born at Praeneste, was a Roman author and teacher of rhetoric who flourished under Septimius Severus and probably outlived Elagabalus, who died in 222...
in De Natura Animalium. Aelian as well uses term onokentaura for description of the female form. He interpreted the onocentaur as: "its body resembles that of an ass, its colour is ashen but inclines to white beneath the flanks. It has a human chest with teats and a human face surrounded by thick hair. It may use its arms to seize and hold things but also to run. It has a violent temper and does not endure capture."