FREE! Click here to Join FunTrivia. Thousands of games, quizzes, and lots more!
Quiz about Imaginary Creatures
Quiz about Imaginary Creatures

Imaginary Creatures Trivia Quiz


Since the beginning of time, man has been dreaming up imaginary creatures - from the Yeti of the Himalayas to the Bunyip of Australia. This quiz is about some of those creatures. Good luck.

A multiple-choice quiz by wenray. Estimated time: 3 mins.
  1. Home
  2. »
  3. Quizzes
  4. »
  5. Humanities Trivia
  6. »
  7. Mythology Mixture
  8. »
  9. Beasts of Myth

Author
wenray
Time
3 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
345,944
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Easy
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
1368
Awards
Top 20% Quiz
Last 3 plays: Guest 98 (7/10), Iva9Brain (10/10), Guest 109 (9/10).
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. If you saw this imaginary creature with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion, what would you be looking at? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. According to Homer's "Iliad", this imaginary creature is "a thing of immortal make, not human lion-fronted and a snake behind, a goat in the middle, and snorting out the breath of the terrible flame of bright fire". What is this imaginary creature? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. We have all heard of that beautiful imaginary creature, the Unicorn, that resembles a beautiful white horse with a spiralling, pointed horn coming out of its forehead, and sometimes with a goat-like beard. According to legend, what is the best way to catch a unicorn? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. This next imaginary creature had the head, chest and arms of a man and the legs and rest of the body of a horse. What is this creature that was very prominent in Greek mythology? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. What is the imaginary creature, the Hydra? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. This next imaginary creature is a very large sea monster with many arms that attacked ships and ate the crew. What is the name of this legendary creature? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. This next imaginary creature, the Basilisk, has been mentioned many times in legend and writings of many famous people through the ages. They have been described as very large and also small, but there is one ability they all have in common. Do you know what it is? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Medusa is the next imaginary creature. Do you know how she, and her two sisters, were referred to? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. The next imaginary creature is the Minotaur. Do you know what this creature looked like? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. What is the name of this last imaginary creature who always rose from ashes? Hint



(Optional) Create a Free FunTrivia ID to save the points you are about to earn:

arrow Select a User ID:
arrow Choose a Password:
arrow Your Email:




Most Recent Scores
Mar 26 2024 : Guest 98: 7/10
Mar 10 2024 : Iva9Brain: 10/10
Mar 07 2024 : Guest 109: 9/10
Feb 20 2024 : SlyWolf: 10/10
Feb 17 2024 : Guest 100: 9/10
Feb 17 2024 : MikeyGee: 10/10

Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. If you saw this imaginary creature with the head and wings of an eagle and the body of a lion, what would you be looking at?

Answer: Griffin

Sometimes the Griffin is thought of as king of imaginary creatures, as the lion is considered king of beasts, and the eagle king of birds. Griffins appeared over 3,300 years BC in Ancient Egyptian art. There are frescoes in the Throne Room of the Bronze Age Palace of Knossos depicting Griffins, which go back 1,500 years BC. There is a large bronze sculpture known as "The Pisa Griffin" in Pisa, Italy, that has been there since the Middle Ages.

According to legend, a feather from a Griffin could restore a blind person's sight and its claw contained medicinal properties. The Griffin is also used in Heraldry and is the sign of being strong, bold and courageous.
2. According to Homer's "Iliad", this imaginary creature is "a thing of immortal make, not human lion-fronted and a snake behind, a goat in the middle, and snorting out the breath of the terrible flame of bright fire". What is this imaginary creature?

Answer: Chimera

In legend, the Chimera was a very large fire-breathing female creature made up from parts of other animals. It had the body of a lioness with the head of a goat rising from the centre of her spine and her tail ended in a snake's head.
3. We have all heard of that beautiful imaginary creature, the Unicorn, that resembles a beautiful white horse with a spiralling, pointed horn coming out of its forehead, and sometimes with a goat-like beard. According to legend, what is the best way to catch a unicorn?

Answer: Lure it with a virgin

It seems it is impossible to use force to catch a unicorn. The best way it could be done was to seat a virgin in the vicinity where the unicorn was last seen and the unicorn would run to the maid and put its head in her lap and so was easily captured.
4. This next imaginary creature had the head, chest and arms of a man and the legs and rest of the body of a horse. What is this creature that was very prominent in Greek mythology?

Answer: Centaur

According to Greek mythology, Centaurs lived in Thessaly and were the offspring of Ixion, the son of Ares, and a cloud. They also made their way into Roman mythology. A female centaur is called a Kentaurides. Authors CS Lewis and JK Rowling, among others, have used centaurs in their books and they were prominently featured in the Walt Disney production "Fantasia".
5. What is the imaginary creature, the Hydra?

Answer: A serpent with several heads

The Hydra reputedly lived in a swamp and had the body of a large serpent with about nine heads. One of its heads could never be harmed by any weapon and if one of its other heads was chopped off, another one would grow in its place. The Hydra's breath was so bad that it could kill a man or an animal.

However, the Hydra was eventually killed by Heracles who chopped off its heads one by one and cauterised the wounds with fire, thus preventing them from regrowing. When only the last head remained, although it could not be harmed by any weapon, Heracles lifted his huge club, bringing it down upon the Hydra's remaining head and crushed it. With his bare hands he tore the head from the body and buried it in the ground, placing a large rock on top.
6. This next imaginary creature is a very large sea monster with many arms that attacked ships and ate the crew. What is the name of this legendary creature?

Answer: The Kraken

Stories of the Kraken go back to the twelfth century, and tell of a huge sea monster that lived off the coasts of Iceland and Norway. Legend had it that the Kraken was so large, it looked like a small island and its long arms could reach to the top of a tall ship's mast.

In later stories the Kraken was much smaller and was then referred to as a giant octopus or squid and was part of the plot of Jules Verne's "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea". The Kraken also appeared in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" motion pictures.
7. This next imaginary creature, the Basilisk, has been mentioned many times in legend and writings of many famous people through the ages. They have been described as very large and also small, but there is one ability they all have in common. Do you know what it is?

Answer: The ability to cause death with one glance

In legend, the basilisk is sometimes small and sometimes large, but always has a killing glance. Some writers, such as Pliny the Elder, describe a basilisk as "being not more than twelve fingers in length" and he says that it is very venomous. Legend says that it is believed to be the king of serpents because of the crest it has that is shaped like a crown or a mitre.

A basilisk is also mentioned in writings by Geoffrey Chaucer, William Shakespeare, Shelley, Leonardo da Vinci, and Charles Dickens, among others. JK Rowling loosely based the creature that lived in "The Chamber of Secrets" on a Basilisk.
8. Medusa is the next imaginary creature. Do you know how she, and her two sisters, were referred to?

Answer: Gorgons

Medusa's two sisters were named Stheno and Euryale and they were immortal. Greek versions of Medusa described her as being ugly, but later Roman versions, described her as being beautiful. Medusa was caught by Athena with Poseidon, and Athena was so angry she turned Medusa's hair into snakes and if somebody looked at her face the merest sight of it would turn the onlooker to stone.

However, Medusa, not being immortal like her two sisters, was beheaded by Perseus who looked at her reflection in his shield so was not turned to stone. Medusa was pregnant by Poseidon and upon her death, the winged horse, Pegasus, sprang from her body.
9. The next imaginary creature is the Minotaur. Do you know what this creature looked like?

Answer: The head of a bull on the body of a man

In Greek legend The Minotaur was a devourer of man and as such was kept in the centre of a labyrinth and every so often young men and women were sent into the labyrinth to be devoured by the Minotaur. The hero Theseus volunteered to kill the beast. Ariadne, who was in love with Theseus, gave him a ball of string to find his way out of the labyrinth.

Theseus slew the Minotaur and freed the people who had been last sent to the Minotaur as food.
10. What is the name of this last imaginary creature who always rose from ashes?

Answer: Phoenix

According to legend, the Phoenix has a life-cycle of from 500 to 1000 years. The tail plumage, according to differing legends, can be sometimes red and gold or sometimes green, blue and purple. At the end of its life-cycle the Phoenix built a nest of twigs that ignited and both the bird and the nest burned to ashes. Out of these ashes a new Phoenix emerged, thus recommencing the life-cycle.

The Phoenix was renowned for its beautiful song. As well as appearing in Greek mythology, birds very similar to the Phoenix appear in Persian, Lebanese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Russia mythology.

The Phoenix is quite often used as a symbol of rebirth, immortality and renewal.
Source: Author wenray

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor looney_tunes before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.
3/28/2024, Copyright 2024 FunTrivia, Inc. - Report an Error / Contact Us