Dragons, Dogs & Amadillos?

[Linda]

The direction of the scales are as they are in my interpretation because the water flow goes in that direction. It is a mountain first, an animal second. I now think it is an ibex, and in both cases it is correcting previous drawings, as the ibex is always drawn bashing its horns into the ground, but with the points, whereas the vms drawing more correctly shows how the horns would protect the animal's head.



If you remove the top right of the mountain as being the Austrian Alps, then turn everything 90 degrees, you end up with a similar shape and scale direction to the vms creature. However the vms drawing corrects the positioning of the curve with respect to the shoreline, being the nebuly line, which runs aporoximately from the Rhone delta to the Italian peninsula, which is in keeping with the removal of the Austrian Alps. It also adds far more detail.



Here we see mountains with scales again, and an ibex saved by its horns. 

The range of Capra ibex is the light green line, basically the Alps. Therefore if you recognize the animal, it acts as a hint regarding the area being portrayed.




The female ibex has a lot in common with the vms creature, the tail, the horns, the pointy chin, the line of the abdomen, the furriness. The feet are not all correct but many are drawn with three or four toes instead of hooves.