Caladrius
From Roman mythology, Caladrius is a white bird that lives in kings' houses. It can take illness from a person and fly toward the sun, burning the sickness away.
At a glance
- Tradition
- Roman mythology
- Region
- Royal Palace (unspecified) (habitat)
- Trait family
- The Unseen-Walkers
- Symbols
- Bird
Near this figure
Symbols
Judged against the description by a model. Meanings are our own paraphrase.
- Bird is image-domain The bird denotes the soul and its flight between worlds, carrying aspiration, prophecy and divine essence, and moving freely where the earthbound cannot follow.
why
From Roman mythology, Caladrius is a white bird that lives in kings' houses.
Traits
Read from the figure's description, which a model wrote. Open "why" for the sentence a trait came from.
Behaviour
- Absorbs illness through eye contact
why
If the person is destined to recover, the bird will take the illness into itself through this prolonged eye contact.
- Discerns who will live or die
why
If the person is destined to recover, the bird will take the illness into itself through this prolonged eye contact.
- Flies toward sun to burn away sickness
why
the Caladrius then takes flight, soaring directly towards the sun.
Utility powers
- Healing
why
This remarkable bird possesses an innate ability to diagnose and absorb sickness from humans.
- Precognition
why
The bird's selective habitat and its ability to discern who will recover from illness also imbued it with an aura of wisdom and foresight.
Roles
Judged from the works' own entries, not from the description. Carries: the figure holds the role. Meets: the role is in its stories, held by something it meets.
- Death meets
4 citations
- Rodney Dennys, The Heraldic Imagination, p. 173.
- Theresa Bane, Encyclopedia of Beasts and Monsters in Myth, Legend and Folklore, s.v. "Caladrius."
- Ad de Vries, Dictionary of Symbols and Imagery, s.v. "Caladrius."
- George M. Eberhart, Mysterious Creatures: A Guide to Cryptozoology, s.v. "Caladrius."