Sea Monk
First catalogued in the 1500s, the Sea Monk is similar to the Bishop Fish. Playing off the theory that A: every kind of person has acess to the Gospel, and B: There are people under the sea, it was thus assumed by many (seriously?) that fish had clergy, too. The Bishop Fish has a few catalogued appearances, including one legend where it made the sign of the cross at the Pope. But the Sea Monk is more clearly verified to the point where we know that those sailors certainly saw something. But what?
The predominant theories are that it could have been a squid - note the classic artwork, and squint a little, and you can see a squid's shape. It has also theorized to have been an angel shark, which looks kind of weird at first glance. Others imagine that it could be one of several types of seal, though those lack creedence.
Now, this figure, although clearly patterned after classic Sea Monk art, was actually labeled "Rahab: and named for a Mythical Jewish sea serpent that governed the Nile. Rahab appears a few times in the Bible as a poetic condemnation of Egypt or Pride (See, "The Lord crushed Rahab"), as well as being the name of the prostitute who harbored Israelite slaves in jericho. Rahab the woman and Rahab the monster are not related at all.
Sea Monk
First catalogued in the 1500s, the Sea Monk is similar to the Bishop Fish. Playing off the theory that A: every kind of person has acess to the Gospel, and B: There are people under the sea, it was thus assumed by many (seriously?) that fish had clergy, too. The Bishop Fish has a few catalogued appearances, including one legend where it made the sign of the cross at the Pope. But the Sea Monk is more clearly verified to the point where we know that those sailors certainly saw something. But what?
The predominant theories are that it could have been a squid - note the classic artwork, and squint a little, and you can see a squid's shape. It has also theorized to have been an angel shark, which looks kind of weird at first glance. Others imagine that it could be one of several types of seal, though those lack creedence.
Now, this figure, although clearly patterned after classic Sea Monk art, was actually labeled "Rahab: and named for a Mythical Jewish sea serpent that governed the Nile. Rahab appears a few times in the Bible as a poetic condemnation of Egypt or Pride (See, "The Lord crushed Rahab"), as well as being the name of the prostitute who harbored Israelite slaves in jericho. Rahab the woman and Rahab the monster are not related at all.