The Basilisk of Chiloé
On the island of Chiloé, a rooster's egg left to hatch becomes a serpent with a cockerel's head that hides under the house and drains the breath of the sleeping.
What was reported
In the folklore of Chiloé, an island off southern Chile famous for its rich traditions, the basilisco is born from a small, odd egg said to be laid by an old rooster. If it isn't destroyed, it hatches into a creature with the head of a rooster and the body of a snake.
It burrows under the floor of a house and, at night, feeds on the breath or moisture of the people sleeping there, until they grow thin, cough and waste away. The only cure is to find the creature's lair and burn the house, or to burn the egg before it hatches.
Explanations offered
The basilisco descends from the basilisk of European legend, brought by the Spanish, and blended with local beliefs. The 'rooster's egg' is usually a small, yolkless egg laid by a hen. The legend may have helped explain illnesses such as tuberculosis, which once spread in damp, crowded homes.
- When
- Told for generations
- Where
- Chiloé Island, Los Lagos, Chile
- Witnesses
- Chilote folklore
- Status
- Legend
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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