Hippogriff mounted by a dwarf. Image by Eva Widermann
Hippogriffs are flying beings that mix a horse with a griffin.
The figure of the hippogriff has been known for many centuries. Virgil was the first to speak of such creatures, which he used to explain what an inconsistency is based on; that of the prey that is also part of the predator. Virgil thus imagined a being that was half griffin and half horse. At that time, the stories of griffins, considered majestic beings, and known for their voracious appetite for horse meat, were famous.
Centuries later, the idea is taken up by Ludovico Ariosto, who speaks of the hippogriff in one of his poems, describing it as a balanced and agile being, even more so than Pegasus himself.
A hippogriff is known to be one of the fastest and most agile flying mounts in existence, which is why it has been used for this purpose by both humans and humanoids. The equine part of the hippogriff makes it, perhaps, inferior to the griffin in terms of strength, but not in speed. And it is that hippogriffs are so fast in flight that they can plan and land at dizzying speeds and, moreover, with great mastery.
hippogriff. Image by Amanda Sharpe
Physically it is like a brown or brown horse, with eagle wings and orange plumage. Its hind legs are of a horse and its front legs of an eagle. It usually measures about 2 or 3 meters long.
They like to live in herds and in places with few mountains and lots of grass, since the hippogriff is an omnivorous being that can eat both game meat and meadow grass. The area inhabited by a pack’s hippogriffs is considered their territory and they defend it by watching and soaring from the skies.
Like griffins, hippogriffs often build a large nest of straw and branches in a tree or steep hillside. Hippogriff eggs are highly sought after as hippogriffs can be trained as mounts but only when they are young. Once they reach adulthood (3 years), they are more reluctant to be domesticated.
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