
The paper analyzes a history of transmutations — not so much of the word cockatrice itself as of the perceptions of the creature behind it. In modern mass culture, cockatrice is a monster, a sort of a cockerel-lizard-flittermouse hybrid. A background search, however, shows a history of changes in both the image and the status of cockatrice which was seen to represent not only various types of mythical creatures but also actually existing beasts. The paper details the various faces of cockatrice ascribed to it over a span of centuries.
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