Medieval Griffin Claw

Behold an example of a fabled Griffin claw, said to neutralize poisons and once collected as prized objects by Medieval kings. The upper image is of a purported Griffin claw, with a silver band inscribed with the Latin: “GRYPHI UNGUIS DIVO CUTHBERTO DUNELMENSI SACER” (“the claw of a Griffin sacred to the blessed Cuthbert of Durham”). The lower picture shows an illustrated Griffin from a 13th-c manuscript.

Griffins have a long history, attested as far back as 5th century BCE by the Greek historian Herodotus, and continuously discussed in Ancient Roman and Medieval European texts as half-eagle, half-lion beasts who lived east of the Mediterranean. Their claws were fearsome and strong, as this depiction of a Griffin seizing a horse suggests. In the Medieval period, they were thought to have kept special stones (often of agate or emerald) in their nests that had special properties.

Griffin’s claws were thought to be able to detect or neutralize poisons, and were highly desired because of this. The claw you see here actually comes from an ibex, but many folks back in the day likely believed that it was from a Griffin. Discovered in the extensive collection of Sir Robert Cotton in the 16th century, its origins are actually much older. St Cuthbert’s holy corpse had been amassing treasures ever since the saint died in 687 CE — and his reputation for having affinity with animals was established. In a Medieval inventory from 1383, the treasure of Cuthbert was recorded as having eggs and two claws of a Griffin, but only the one here remains.

Historian Adrienne Mayor has done extensive work on how dinosaur and other fossils likely provided inspiration for beliefs about the fabulous Griffins.