Many Russian cities have an interesting history. Each has its own legends. But one of them stands out for its uniqueness. At the end of the 16th century, crocodiles appeared on the banks of the Velikaya River. Sounds unusual, right? It would seem where we are and where are the crocodiles …
Data about this event can be found in all kinds of historical sources. They said that on the territory of the modern Republic of Belarus and the Baltic countries one could meet large reptiles.
Baron Sigismund von Herberstein, who visited the Russian lands in 1517 and 1526, noted in his notes that our area is replete with groves in which terrible things are happening. Local idolaters keep some kind of lizards with four short legs and a black body. They worship them. It is believed that if the lizard is poorly fed, there will be misfortunes.
Sigismund von Herberstein.
Here's another piece of evidence. In 1589, the Briton Jerome Horsey visited our country and left a record that he left Warsaw and, crossing the river, came across a dead crocodile. The locals ripped open the belly of the reptile, there was a terrible stench, from which the Englishman even got sick.
Jerome Horsey.
You will be surprised, but crocodiles are mentioned even in Russian chronicles. For example, in the Mazurin chronicler. It is known that the pagans who lived in the area of modern Pskov and Novgorod regions had a lizard cult.
However, let's return to Pskov. The chronicle informs about the invasion of the city of crocodiles with the following words: "In the summer of 7090 … the same summer the corcodiles of the lutia came out of the river and the way of the closure, many people eaten, and people are consumed by people and pray to God throughout the earth." The whole thing happened in 1582.
Promotional video:
The peasants of the village of Bezrodnoye are fighting off crocodiles who attacked livestock. Illustration from the book of 1768.
This evil lived until winter and died. It is clear that neither go fishing nor swim.
It remains a mystery where they came from. Someone suggests that the merchants brought them in, got tired of feeding them and sent them to free bread. Others believe that this is nothing more than a legend.
There are also such books.
What do scientists say about this? Biologists believe that crocodiles cannot live in Russia. The temperature is too cold for them. Even at +20 degrees, they are sad and do not want to eat. But historians nevertheless say that the Pskov story may well be true.
Merchants who traveled around Syria and Asia Minor could bring an exotic curiosity from there. You've probably heard that "Russia is the homeland of elephants." But crocodiles are still too much. This is not Africa.
Author: avel Romanutenko