Nexus - 1704 - New Times Magazine-pages

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This morning {15 June 1608] one of our companie, looking overboord, saw a mermaid, and calling up some the companie to see her, one more came up and by that time shee was come close to the ship's side, looking earnestly on the men. A little after a sea came and overturned her. From the navill upward her backe and breasts were like a woman's, as they say that saw her, but her body as big as one of us. Her skin very white, and long haire hanging downe behinde of colour blacke. In her going downe they saw her tayle, which was like the tayle of a porposse, and speckled like a macrell... administrative district of Amboina. They were swimming side by side, which made him presume that one was male, the other female. Six weeks after, they reappeared in the same spot, and were of a greenish grey colour, having precisely the shape of human beings from the head to the waist, with arms and hands, but their bodies tapered away. Louis Renard, a publisher in Amsterdam, compiled the book Poissons, Ecrevisses et Crabes... ("Fish, Crayfish and Crabs...", Amsterdam, 1718), which includes a picture by Samuel Fallours of a mermaid with the following caption (translated from French): A monster resembling a siren caught off the coast of Borneo in the administrative district of Amboina. It was 5 [foot] 9 inches long and in proportion as an eel. It lived on land for four days and seven hours in a barrel filled lard with water. From time to time it uttered ton also little cries like those of a mouse. Although Q offered small fish, molluscs, crabs, crayfish, his book etc., it would not eat. After its death some the 17th excreta, like that of a cat, was found in the barrel. rantimiac Loren Coleman and Patrick Huyghe in The Field Guide to (transl lated from French): Bigfoot, Yeti, and Other Mystery Primates Worldwide (1999),° A monster resembling a siren caught off the coast of Borneo describe several mermaid and merman in the administrative district of Amboina. reports in the North Atlantic Ocean and It was 5 [foot] 9 inches long and in adjacent seas (p. 94). A mermaid with proportion as an eel. It lived on land for long green hair was seen off Q four days and seven hours in a barrel filled northeastern Scotland on 12 January Richard with water. From time to time it uttered 1809, and urther observations were Carrington also little cries like those of a mouse. Although made in 1814 off Scotland's west coast. 9 Q offered small fish, molluscs, crabs, crayfish, In 1820, the American Journal of Science noted In his book etc., it would not eat. After its death some Prthe chip Lomas thot was ustarthe | _ that in the I7th far aah was und coast of France when the crew spotted a and 18th centuries MMemoonin May IST noe | the mermaid was) ors cing captured during the This marine mammal measured about being regularly Second World War on an Indonesian five feet i th, had a fluked tail ‘ island bet Amboi dth and was covered in Short hair to the observed In the north coast of New "Guinea (op. top of its head. Its back was brown eastern islands of 152-3). Rein Mellaart was and its belly was white, and from . stationed on Morotai Island, the the breast up it looked like a Indonesia, then northernmost island of the human. Second Mate Stevens known as the Halmahera Islands and observed the village people dragging ashore a net holding a remarkable marine animal struggling to escape. It was about two metres (seven feet) long and pinkish-red in described the creature as having a very human-like white face with black hair on its head. His arms were only half as long as a person's and his hands were human-like. According to the ship's log, the colour; the forepart was identical to crew observed the merman a human woman; it had a long swimming back and forth for six hours, diving under the pointed nose, long hair and hands with four fingers and ship and rising up to two feet out of the water to look at wo thumbs. The rear portion looked exactly like a East Indies. the crew. dolphin, with a double fin on the tail. When Mellaart asked the natives what it was, they The Indonesian Mermaid replied: "We catch mermaid again." Mellaart demanded Richard Carrington also noted in his book that in the hat they release it but the people refused, telling him 17th and 18th centuries the mermaid was being regularly "We will not kill it; it will die itself" as it struggled to observed in the eastern islands of Indonesia, then known _ escape for half an hour and then began crying very much as the East Indies. ike a baby. Mellaart ran off to get the missionaries to Dutch colonial chaplain Francois Valentijn included a orce the natives to release it, but on returning he found detailed description in his book The Natural History of hat the mermaid was dead. Amboina (Dordrecht and Amsterdam, 1724-26) of the zee- The people explained that the merbeings travelled in menschen (Sea~men) and zee-wyven (sea-women) and _ groups, feeding on fish, and dragged themselves onto recorded a mermaid encounter near Amboina (Ambon): remote beaches at night to sleep. The merbeings were | may say that I know for certain that | in the year 1652 or erribly frightened of contact with humans and dived to eee ben nk Richard Carrington also noted in his book being regularly observed in the ; East Indies. The Indonesian Mermaid Richard Carrington also noted in his book that in the 17th and 18th centuries the mermaid was being regularly observed in the eastern islands of Indonesia, then known as the East Indies. Dutch colonial chaplain Francois Valentijn included a detailed description in his book The Natural History of Amboina (Dordrecht and Amsterdam, 1724-26) of the zee- menschen (Sea-men) and zee-wyven (sea-women) and recorded a mermaid encounter near Amboina (Ambon): I may say that | know for certain that in the year 1652 or 1653 a lieutenant in the service of the Company saw two of these beings in the gulf, near the village of Hennetelo, in the JUNE - JULY 2010 NEXUS ¢ 59 that in the 17th and 18th centuries the mermaid was eastern islands of Indonesia, then known as the Continued on page 82 www.nexusmagazine.com