F25v - tentative identification of an animal / plant hybrid

[Oocephalus]

While rhizomes of that fern were indeed sold as specimens of the Barometz, You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. concludes that the myth originated from embellished descriptions of the cotton plant. As R. Sale noted, the image (originally from Mandeville's travels) does indeed seem to support this. The You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view. plant seems to be more similar to a version found in Jewish sources, in which the animal is tied to the root of the plant by a vine-like stem. However, in those versions, the stem is attached to the animal's navel, which doesn't seem to be the case here.