In the depths of the world’s oceans, where sunlight fades into darkness, lurks a legendary sea monster that has captured the imagination of sailors, storytellers, and cryptozoologists for centuries: the kraken. With its colossal size, fearsome tentacles, and insatiable hunger, the kraken has become an iconic symbol of the vast and mysterious realm beneath the waves.

It appears as though the legends of the kraken have a basis in reality. They are, in fact, giant squid.

Legend

Within the vast expanse of human mythology, few creatures have captivated mariners and storytellers as the kraken. This video will explore the intricate tapestry of legend and reality surrounding the kraken, arguing that the mythical beast is indeed a magnified interpretation of the giant squid. By examining the evolution of kraken legends through history, their vivid descriptions, and the scientific discovery of giant squids, we can trace the roots of these tales back to real encounters with these enigmatic cephalopods.

The kraken’s storied past is deeply entwined with the seafaring culture of Scandinavia. Early Norse sagas are replete with tales of sea monsters, but the kraken stands out for its purported size and strength.

Considered to be the world’s most formidable monster, it was thought to inhabit the Norwegian Sea and terrorized the first sailors who journeyed between Norway and Iceland, and Iceland and Greenland. The open sea at this point in history was a daunting mystery for those who crossed it, and this enormous beast that supposedly pulled ships to the ocean depths by wrapping them in its huge tentacles embodied the fears of these early seafarers. If the ship’s crew succeeded in fending off its dangerous tentacles, the sea monster would often start to swim circles around the ship to create a whirlpool that would overturn it.

The earliest reference to the Kraken among other sea monsters can be found in an old manuscript penned by King Sverre of Norway around 1180 AD. The terrifying sea creature is also highlighted in two later mentions in the 13th-century Saga of Örvar-Oddr. It speaks of a creature called the Hafgufa, which may well be the precursor to the kraken, described as an island-like beast capable of engulfing ships and their crew.

The Ancient Norse people held the belief that the Kraken attacked because it craved human flesh, and as a consequence, certain legends assert that it could swallow an entire ship and its crew in one gulp. Intriguingly, the ancient people also thought that the amber-colored fossilized tree resin that was often discovered on the beaches of the North Sea was actually the creature’s feces.

The seafaring Scandinavians took the existence of the Kraken seriously. The creature was not just the stuff of tales, but was recorded in a Norwegian scientific document called the Konungs Skuggsja. This text claimed that only two Krakens existed, and neither could reproduce. The eating habits of the beasts were also detailed. It was reported that the Krakens would catch shoals of fish by opening its mouth wide while releasing food from within. There were also claims that the Kraken emitted a scent which lured fish to it, and while the Kraken consumed most of the fish, some daring fishermen sailed to where the beast had been spotted hoping that they too could secure a substantial haul for their people back home.

In 1735, the Kraken was once more documented by the renowned Swedish botanist, zoologist and taxonomist Carl von Linne in the very first nature binomial nomenclature. A few decades later, the Norwegian Bishop Erik Pontoppidan that the Kraken was so large that it could often be mistaken for a mountain or an island. He included a story recounting how the Bishop of Nidros and his crew landed on the monster’s back to celebrate a mass, thinking it a small island, only to realize their error when the beast arose. However, this story, along with many others in Pontoppidan’s book, was never confirmed, and his work was later dismissed as a credible scientific report.

As the legend evolved, so did the kraken’s characteristics. By the 18th century, naturalists Erik Pontoppidan reported in his scientific work, The Natural History of Norway, detailed accounts of the kraken, suggesting that the creature could be a mile and a half in diameter. These accounts painted the kraken as something beyond a mere animal—it was a cataclysmic force, capable of stirring the ocean into deadly whirlpools and consuming anything in its path.

The kraken legend flourished due to its potent blend of observable truths and the human tendency to embellish. Sailors navigating the treacherous waters of the North Atlantic would often return with tales of monstrous tentacles and strange beasts lurking beneath the waves. These stories, passed down and expanded upon, served as both a warning to those who dared venture into the unknown and as an explanation for the inexplicable losses at sea.

Ancient Greek and Roman naturalists may had already recorded the real animal that inspired the Kraken legend. For instance, Aristotle, a Greek philosopher from the 4th century BCE, noted both the common squid and the larger teuthis squid, described as a giant cephalopod, in his work The History of Animals. Similarly, the first century AD Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder also documented a massive squid-like creature in his major work, Natural History, describing it as having a body as large as a barrel and tentacles that could stretch 30 feet long.

Passage de Vénus sur le Soleil (9 Décembre 1874). Expédition française aux Iles Saint-Paul et Amsterdam. Zoologie. Observations générales sur la faune des deux iles suivies d’une description des mollusques. Archives de Zoologie Expérimentale et

Giant Squid

Unlike other cryptozoological creatures like Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster, krakens have been proven to be real.

The kraken is likely to have been inspired by real encounters with giant squids, which can grow to be 50 feet long including the tentacles. When compared to common squid and octopuses, these creatures would have been enormous and rarely seen by mariners. As is often the case with legends, the encounters with these real creatures were probably embellished and their size and ferocity exaggerated over time.

The case for the kraken as a representation of the giant squid finds its strength in the biological realities of Architeuthis dux. The giant squid, with its massive size and elusiveness, has only in recent centuries been recognized by science as a living species. Before this recognition, the lack of tangible evidence allowed the myth to grow unchecked.

The physical attributes of the kraken align closely with what we now understand about the giant squid. The formidable tentacles, the enormous size, and the beast’s feared ability to drag men and ships to a watery grave are characteristics that can be associated with the giant squid, albeit exaggerated. The colossal squid, Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni, discovered later, reinforced this connection with its even larger size and more fearsome reputation.

Popular Culture

The legend of the kraken has transcended its mythological roots to firmly anchor itself in popular culture. Krakens appear in poems such as Alfred Tennyson’s sonnet The Kraken. Here it is described vividly as a creature of tremendous size slumbering in the ocean depths: “Below the thunders of the upper deep; Far far beneath in the abysmal sea, His ancient, dreamless, uninvaded sleep The Kraken sleepeth.”

In the novel 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, Captain Nemo’s Nautilus is attacked by a giant squid, a clear homage to the kraken legend.

Krakens have been featured in numerous movies, such as the 1981 and 2010 versions of Clash of the Titans where the kraken is portrayed as a pet of the gods. In Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, the kraken is a servant of Davy Jones, used to attack ships and bring the souls of dead sailors to Jones.

Video games and tabletop RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons often feature kraken-like monsters as formidable bosses or encounters. They’re a staple in fantasy settings, often guarding treasure or serving as a climactic challenge.

The portrayal of the kraken in these works often straddles the line between fantasy and plausibility, a testament to the creature’s enduring appeal. The kraken serves as a personification of nature’s might and the human fascination with the monsters that may dwell just beyond the reach of understanding.

Conclusion

The legend of the kraken is a narrative woven from the threads of genuine maritime encounters, cultural folklore, and the boundless human imagination. While the kraken of lore may be an embellished representation, its essence is rooted in the real and awe-inspiring giant squid. The kraken’s enduring presence in popular culture is a reflection of this blend of myth and reality, and its ability to evoke the eternal allure of the unknown. The giant squid, once a creature of sailors’ nightmares and now a subject of scientific inquiry, remains a living bridge between the world of myth and the depths of the ocean’s reality.