Cockatrice
A venomous rooster-snake that demands respect in battle and careful preparation in the kitchen.
The cockatrice is a mythical beast, essentially a two-legged dragon, wyvern, or serpent-like creature with a rooster's head. Described by Laurence Breiner as "an ornament in the drama and poetry of the Elizabethans", it was featured prominently in English thought and myth for centuries. According to legend, they are created by a chicken egg hatched by a toad or snake.
Lore & Background
In the Japanese manga series Delicious in Dungeon (2014), a cockatrice appears in chapter 34. It is depicted as a larger cousin to the basilisk, using a different species of component bird and snake. The cockatrice has petrifying venom which curses victims, temporarily turning them to stone. This is distinct from the basilisk, which appears in chapter 3 and the second episode of the anime adaptation (2024), depicted as a large rooster with a snake for a tail. The basilisk cannot kill with a stare, but instead has a powerful venom, which can be cured with an antidote.
Reader's Guide
It only states that the cockatrice appears in chapter 34 of the manga, is a larger cousin to the basilisk, uses a different species of component bird and snake, and has petrifying venom that curses victims, temporarily turning them to stone.
Did You Know?
- The first English mention of the cockatrice was in the 14th-century John Wycliffe translation of the Bible.
- In heraldry, Arthur Fox-Davies describes the cockatrice as 'comparatively rare' and closely resembling a wyvern except for possessing a rooster's head.
- The cockatrice was the heraldic beast of the Langleys of Agecroft Hall in Lancashire, England, as far back as the 14th century.
More in Characters & Party Members
Elsewhere in Delicious in Dungeon
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